U20 Div 1A, Day 5: Latvia promoted to the World’s Top Ten, three teams in battle for bronze

Latvia had to earn one point in order to assure the gold medal. On paper this should have been an easy task against the already relegated Italian squad. However, especially one young man on the ice made life tough for the Balts: Italian goalkeeper Hannes Treibenreif. Right from the get-go the 18-year-old South Tyrolean stopped the impossible. The only of the 32 Latvian shots to get past him in the first and second period was Harald Eke’s deke on the 2-on-1.

The more time the content remained a one-goal-game, the more the ‘azzurri’ started to believe and created some opportunities. However, the only six shots on Gustav Grigals through the entire game were not enough to rob him of his shutout. In the 53^rd minute Kirils Galoha decided the game with the 2-0 rebound goal, before Rodrigo Abols put the final marker on the empty net.

Some game-action between Italy and Latvia.

With this win, the Latvians have finished the tournament undefeated. Their gold medal at this year’s Division 1A level also qualifies them to take part in the 2017 Top Division tournament, which will be held in Montreal and Toronto (Canada). Ten members of this year's team can possibly play next season too, when Latvia will for the first time since 2013 be among the World's ten best Under 20 national teams.

Team Latvia celebrates its promotion.

Italy, on the other hand, has been relegated to the U20 Division 1B level. Despite a strong goaltending performance by both Treibenreif and Armand Pilon, this year’s Italian squad did not possess the skill to be a real treat on the 1A level. On the bright side, twelve players of this roster could gain experience for a possible return next season.

Despite his 0-3 record, Hannes Treibenreif played a fantastic tournament.

What’s next?

The tournament continues with the afternoon game between Germany and Norway (16:30 CET) . The last game will be played in the evening (20:00 CET), as Austria will try to finish the tournament with another strong performance on home ice against Kazakhstan.

Whereas the Austrians can already be sure of their silver medal, the remaining three teams are battling for third place. Germany has a slight advantage in this race, as the Germans are one point ahead of Norway and Kazakhstan.

Tweets by @eurohockey