Halifax. The junior crowns came in weak against the Czech Republic, Canada and Finland.
Yesterday, national team captain Magnus Havild caught up with the group of players to find out why:
– We’re playing a bit hard, we have to keep it simple, says striker Noah Ostlund.
When Magnus Hävelid came to the mixed area after yesterday’s training, he was elated and full of anticipation. But something rubbed off ahead of the semi-final match against the Czech Republic.
And the thing he has to solve if Tegan Jr. is to make it to the final:
The weak begins.
When the national team captain is asked what will be important against the Czech Republic, the answer comes quickly:
Above all, a better start. We’ve had a long starting distance in a lot of matches and we’ve talked about that with the group today.
Against the Czech Republic and Canada in the group stage, and more recently against Finland in the quarter-finals, the junior crowns came in weak and found themselves at a huge disadvantage:
– I agree and we’ve been talking frankly and also looked at some of the technical details of the game that could be improved
So what next?
– We’ve talked about it. Is it the preparations? No, the players don’t think so. Is it mental tension? Of course some may feel that way, but we looked more into the technical details of the game. It’s easy to play. Someone (from the players) said “simple”.
This is how they want to start the match against the Czech Republic
But to be ready when the puck is dropped, doesn’t that have much to do with the situation?
– I think the attitude is there, sometimes it can be a little exaggerated. We need to fine-tune the game, not only the owner of the puck but also the playability of others and get more physical power in our game. I hope she’s in her place against the Czech Republic,” says Haflid.
Also, the players do not know the reason for the weak start
No, I don’t really have a good answer. I think we’re playing a bit too hard, says SSK defender Ludwig Jansson and continues:
– The last five minutes of the first half against Finland and the second half we play desperately. Be happy with little ones, get pucks behind their backs, get good turnovers and longer attacks. So we have to start the matches.
Striker Noah Ostlund on the same line:
We might play a little hard, instead of making it easy for the first five or ten minutes. We talked about it today and agreed to keep it simple.