Russia Shows Second-Half Strength In Win Over Sweden

A strong second half of the opening game of the 2017 World Hockey Championships saw Russia defeat Sweden by a score of 2-1.

The Swedes took a 1-0 lead at 14:40 in the first period after a great play by Victor Hedman. The star Tampa Bay Lightning defenceman started the play from his own zone by sending a long stretch pass to Victor Rask down the ice. Rask would have to fight off two defenders before sending the puck back into the slot where Carolina Hurricanes teammate Elias Lindholm was waiting. Lindholm converted on the play perfectly by sending the shot between Andrei Vasilevsky's legs and in, making it 1-0 for Sweden to end the opening period.

The goaltending took over as the story thanks to strong performances by both netminders. Andrei Vasilevsky made the save of the tournament early on with a nice diving blocker save on Joakim Nordström, keeping the puck out to keep the deficit to just one. At the other end, Victor Fasth looked good against the likes of Artemi Panarin and new Vegas Golden Knights froward Vadim Shipachyov, keeping the shutout after 40 minutes of play.

The Russians had a lot of pressure, keeping the puck active around the net after just four shots in the second period. At 3:58 in the third, Alexander Barabanov fed a behind-the-back pass from below the goal line to Sergei Andronov. Andronov, who was making his World Championships debut, easily snuck in and fired the one-timer in from just outside the crease, beating Fasth to make it 1-1.

The game couldn't find a winner after 60 minutes so the first game in Germany required extra time. Both teams had tremendous scoring chances, with Nikita Kucherov highlighting the early chances with a breakaway thriller. Kucherov came in all alone and made a great little deke in front, but the Tampa Bay Lightning star missed the net and couldn't score. 

With no winner after 65 minutes, the game required a shootout. Only one player scored with the extra man, with Panarin flicking a five hole goal past Fasth and in for the 2-1 goal, giving Russia the first victory of the tournament.

Sweden will return to action on Saturday with a 20:15 local time matchup against the hosts from Germany. Russia will get the day off before meeting up with Italy for the early 12:15 contest.

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