Latvia Defeated

LIVE: Will Austria secure its third win in three games?

This is what winners look like – even the Latvians were no match for Austria …(Bild: EPA/ANDREAS BECKER)

Austria has written the next chapter in its impressive success story at the Ice Hockey World Championship in Zurich: With a 3-1 win over Latvia, the team secured its third victory in its third game, marking another historic achievement for Roger Bader’s squad. With nine points in the bag, the quarterfinals are getting closer and closer.

Just as against Hungary, Austria started with Atte Tolvanen in goal against Latvia and played very strong defense in the opening phase: The ÖEHV team didn’t allow the first shot from the Latvians until 6:10 minutes in, and Tolvanen was able to stop Lamppinskis’ shot. On the other end, scoring chances were also limited early on, with attempts by Thaler (5th) and Nissner (7th) posing no real threat.

Before the offensive lines on both sides picked up the pace: For the ÖEHV team, Paul Huber was unlucky with a shot off the post following a nice assist from Rohrer (8th minute), and Schneider missed the far corner shortly thereafter. On the other end, Dzierkals tested the net first, followed by Tumanov’s Tolvanen—the latter hitting the crossbar with his “rocket” (15th minute).

Austria on equal footing with the world’s 10th-ranked team
The first period ended scoreless and evenly matched—demonstrating that Austria was holding its own against an opponent ranked one spot higher at tenth in the world rankings. They showed great fighting spirit, bravely throwing themselves in front of shots—like Schnetzer, who, after such a block, limped toward the boards with a pained expression on his face—but thankfully returned to the ice at the start of the second period.

The first shot on goal in the second period belonged to the Latvians: the strong Tolvanen cleared Vilmanis’ attempt with his stick, then stopped Batna (22nd) and Anderson (24th) as they appeared in front of him. And Tolvanen reacted brilliantly when he stopped Krastenbergs, who was charging at him alone, by skillfully catching his shot in his glove (26th).

Harnisch puts Austria in the lead
Austria initially made little impact offensively in the second period, failing to register a shot on goal in the first six minutes. But they celebrated 1-0 after 27:12 minutes, a goal scored by the fourth line: Following a faceoff and a successful forecheck by Stapelfeldt, Graz forward Harnisch got the puck in a central position, took a few steps, and slipped it through Gudlevskis’ legs into the net for the 1-0 lead.

The goal spurred Austria on, and a 2-0 lead seemed imminent. Around the 30-minute mark, Schneider fired a shot on goal from a spin move, and Latvia’s goaltender managed to clear it with difficulty. Then Rohrer once again showed his class with a beautiful solo effort, but Gudlevskis stopped his shot (33rd minute)—shortly after, he stopped Rohrer again, who had appeared in front of him following a pass from Thaler.

Tolvanen: an almost unbeatable wall
Before the third line got into the action, Rebernig fed Schwinger from behind the net, but Schwinger also found his match in Gudlevskis from close range (35th minute). At the other end, Austria allowed few chances as a unit; even Smits’s shot posed no real threat (36th), and Tolvanen neutralized attempts by Vilmanis (38th) and Anderson (39th).

The final period started as badly as possible—with the score tied 1-1 after just 25 seconds. Balcers surprised Tolvanen with a very quick wrist shot that also flew through Nissner’s legs toward the net. Then Zwerger left the ice after a hard check, limping and dazed (44th), and didn’t return until a few minutes later—the “culprit,” Batna, received a two-minute penalty only after video review.

Nissner puts Austria back in the lead
During this power play—Austria’s first of the game—Nissner, assisted by Rohrer and Schneider, moved in on Gudlevskis from the left and fired a backhand shot right in front of him—the puck rolled over the line before Gudlevskis could grab it. The referees played it safe and reviewed the video evidence, only then validating the goal (45th minute).

Rohrer seals the deal with 1.9 seconds left
Latvia tried everything to tie the game again but couldn’t find a real solution against the compact ÖEHV team. Vilmanis had a half-chance, and Mamcics and Batna also found their match in the brilliant Tolvanen (56th), while Cibulskis (59th) also failed with his attempt. Latvia pulled their goalie with 95 seconds left, and Rohrer sealed the deal with 1.9 seconds remaining, scoring into the empty net to make it 3-1—the celebration knew no bounds!

With a maximum of nine points, Austria thus caught up with the top teams Switzerland and Finland in the Group A standings and can now advance to the quarterfinals, just as it did last year. With three wins to start the World Championship, Austria has ushered in a new era; with nine points to its credit, it now has promotion in sight, just as it did last year—fourth place in Group A is necessary for that!

The remaining matches, however, will be no walk in the park: Host Switzerland awaits on Wednesday (4:20 p.m.), Germany on Saturday, Finland on Sunday, and the U.S. on Tuesday. But with the outstanding teamwork that Bernd Wolf and Co. are delivering in Zurich, they are certainly capable of pulling off this feat as well.

The result:
Austria – Latvia 3:1 (0:0, 1:0, 2:1)

 Goals: 1:0 (28.) Harnisch, 1:1 (41.) Balcers, 2:1 (45./PP) Nissner, 3:1 (60.(EN) Rohrer

Austria’s lineup: Tolvanen; Wolf, Unterweger; Nickl, Biber; Hackl, Maier; Stapelfeldt, Schnetzer; Schneider, Nissner, Zwerger; Thaler, Rohrer, P. Huber; Schwinger, M. Huber, Rebernig; Harnisch, Wallner, Kolarik