The Slovak hockey players did not advance to the finals of the Olympic tournament, they lost to the Finns in the semifinals 0: 2. The bronze medal match will be played on Saturday from 14:10, the Slovaks will meet one of the pair Russian Olympic Committee / Sweden.
Diary N asked six experts six questions after the match.
Michal Handzuš and Rastislav Staňa answered.
Questions:
1. In the first match, the Finns were clearly better, today it was even. What have we changed?
2. We didn’t score a goal, we didn’t force the Finns to take fouls. What did we miss during the attack?
3. How do you evaluate the goalkeepers’ performance and the goal situation when Rybár lifted the concrete?
4. We haven’t beaten the Finns in a big tournament since 2004. Were they defeated today?
5. What chances do you give the Slovaks in the bronze medal match against one of the Russia / Sweden pairs?
6. Who was the best player in Slovakia?
1. In the first match, the Finns were clearly better, today it was even. What have we changed?
Michal Handzuš,
former striker, 2002 world champion, Stanley Cup winner
We improved from match to match and today we did not allow the Finns to score easily as in the first match, mainly due to our defensive activities. The Finns bounced off us from then and we had to open the game, now we played very well in the back and we didn’t let them renumber. It was a balanced match.
Rastislav Staňa,
former goalkeeper, world champion of 2002
It turned out at the game for us and the Finns that it was a much more important match. Both teams played well on the defensive. The Finns reminded me of Czech hockey today when they won matches by saying