Czechia Joins USA in the Final After an 8–1 Victory Over Finland

Goals and assists

1. Kucharčík (Langr, Fanderlik), 15. Jágr (Kubíček, Čejka), 17. Lhota (Laurinc, Fanderlik), 19. Zvonek (Čejka, Hrabár), 20. Rozlílek (Kucharčík), 23. Rozlílek (Kucharčík), 31. Jágr (Čejka, Pavlíček), 37. Lhota (Bláha, Jágr) – 14. Jeskanen (Pietsalo)

Referees

Sergio De Luca, Eric Robertson

Spectators

3500

Czechia

Mokry - Fanderlik, Hrabár, Hudec, Kastner, Kubíček, Laurinc, Vaniš, Školoudík, Šlehofer - Bláha, Bílý, Jágr, Kohout, Kucharčík, Langr, Lhota, Pavlíček, Rozlílek, Vaněk, Wrobel, Zvonek, Čejka

Finland

Kuusamo (19. L. Herpin) - Keskinen, Liedes, Marjeta, Meri, Tapper, Vanttaja, Viitanen, Wolin - A. Herpin, Hyvönen, Jeskanen, Jokirinne, Kangas, Koskela, Koskinen, Kylmäniemi, Kärkkäinen, Mourujärvi, Mäenalanen, Painilainen, Pietsalo, Sirkkala

COACHES´ REACTIONS

Milan Jelen (CZE): "The match went exceptionally well for us. Finland has a high-quality team, which they proved in several games here, especially with their major upset in eliminating Slovakia. Therefore, we approached this semifinal with maximum focus and respect. Scoring right before the intermission at the end of the first period, followed by a perfect start to the second, was definitely the turning point that allowed us to handle the match so well. Now, the USA awaits us in the finals. Our preparation will be based on what we've seen from them here and our group stage encounter. Overseas teams are always extremely tough, whether it was Canada or now the US. We will prepare thoroughly and aim to play our absolute best game. The mood in the locker room is great right now, but we are keeping our feet on the ground. Making it to the final is fantastic for the fans, for the Czech Republic, and for ball hockey in our country. We will do everything we can to prepare the team and win this game. The atmosphere here is a massive motivation for us. The fans pushed us forward, and the guys could already feel that energy during the warm-ups. That is exactly the kind of experience every player wants to have."

Antti Koskela (FIN): "I think we played a good match. We had a clear game plan and we executed it really well, especially in the first period. The beginning was crucial because the home team had amazing crowd support and the atmosphere was electric. Catching the start was key, and we managed to do that. We made a few mistakes in the second period, but that's just part of the game and nothing fundamental. On the contrary, we proved that we can be productive and create scoring chances. At the same time, we know there is still room for improvement defensively, but the most valuable thing about today's performance was showing that we can battle back even in tough situations. That's a trait of strong and successful teams. Right after the game, my coaching staff and I immediately started working on finding the keys for tomorrow. We will share those specific adjustments with the players in the morning. As Finns, we don’t have any ball hockey bronze medals yet, so this is a huge game for us. We are a small country in this sport, so to all the fans back home in Finland and the twenty people here in Ostrava. Ee are in this together. Tomorrow, the team will be ready, and we will play for all of them."