Note: Most information from the fancy IIHF website.
Standings
Team
|
Wins
|
OTW/SOW
|
OTL/SOL
|
Losses
|
Points
|
Goal Diff.
|
Slovenia
|
4
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
12
|
+10
|
Italy
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
9
|
+1
|
Poland
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
9
|
+5
|
Austria
|
2
|
1
|
0
|
2
|
8
|
+3
|
South
Korea
|
2
|
0
|
1
|
2
|
7
|
0
|
Japan
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
5
|
0
|
-19
|
Results
April 23
Japan 1 - Slovenia 7
Italy 3 - Poland 1
South Korea 2 - Austria 3 (SO)
April 24
Slovenia 3 - Italy 1
Poland 1 - South Korea 4
Austria 3 - Japan 1
April 26
South Korea 3 - Japan 0
Austria 4 - Italy 2
Slovenia 1 - Poland 4
April 27
Japan 1 - Italy 3
Slovenia 5 - South Korea 1
Poland 1 - Austria 0
April 29
Italy 2 - South Korea 1
Austria 1 - Slovenia 2
Poland 10 - Japan 4
Team Recap
Slovenia: Slovenia started off the tournament facing Japan. The first period was almost uneventful, as both teams combined for a grand total of four shots (three for Slovenia, one for Japan). There was a goal though, as Jan Urbas scored seven minutes into the game. Play definitely picked up in the second, especially for Slovenia. Their offense came alive, scoring four times in the period. Japan would break their shutout late in the third. Late goals by Ken Ograjensek and Ziga Pance capped off the scoring. Slovenia would beat Japan 7-1. Against Italy, it did not start slow for Slovenia. They outshot the Italians 14-6 in the first, with Jurij Repe's powerplay goal standing as the only one of the period. Italy would tie the game in the second. Slovenia's powerplay helped them in the third, scoring twice to put the game away, as Slovenia beat Italy 3-1. Against Poland, Slovenia continued to dominate the shot counter. It was Poland who would score first though, opening the scoring four minutes into the game. The lead didn't last long, as Ziga Jeglic scored two minutes later to tie the game. The tables turned in the second, as it was all Poland. Slovenia conceded three goals in the middle frame, and could not recover. A goaltending change to start the third didn't do much for Slovenia, as they lost to Poland 4-1. Slovenia had a bad start against South Korea, conceding the opening goal to them just 40 seconds into the game. They would tie the game eight minutes later, thanks to Robert Sobolic's powerplay goal. Anze Kuralt scored late in the period to put Slovenia in the lead. Slovenia extended their lead in the second with a pair of goals. Klemen Pretnar's goal midway through the third capped off the scoring, as Slovenia beat South Korea 5-1. Slovenia faced off against Austria in a game were the winner was virtually guaranteed a promotion spot. An early penalty by Slovenia led to Austria opening the scoring. Sabolic responded five minutes later to tie the game. Early in the second, an Austrian player was given five and a game for a high hit. This opened the door for Slovenia, who took advantage of it. Ograjensek scored late in the five minute powerplay to put Slovenia in the lead. Gaspar Kroselj was solid the rest of the way. He stopped 26 of 27 shots he faced in the game, as Slovenia hung on to win 2-1. The win put Slovenia in sole possession of first place, giving them the gold medal and a spot in the main tournament next year.
Italy: The Italians had the honour of facing the host Poland in their first game. Italy got on the board midway through the first thanks to Joachim Ramoser. Their lead lasted until halfway though the second, when a penalty by Marco Insam led to Poland's first goal. Just six minutes later, Luca Frigo scored to put Italy back in the lead. Thomas Larkin added an empty netter in the third, as Italy held on to win 3-1. It was a different story against Slovenia. Italy had a difficult time in the first, and their only penalty of the period led to Slovenia's first goal. It wasn't until the second when Giulio Scandella scored to tie the game. Once again, a penalty would hurt Italy. Just minutes into the third, Slovenia scored on the powerplay. The Italians could not tie the game again, as they gave up an empty net goal en route to a 3-1 loss. Against Austria, Italy had a better first period. The shots were really close, but Italy still let up the first goal of the game. The second was worst, as Austria struck twice. Italy gave up one more in the third before they got on the board. Goals by Alexander Egger and Armin Helfer weren't enough though, as Italy lost the game 4-2. Facing Japan next, Austria had a much better game. They did let up the first goal, but Simon Kostner scored five minutes later to tie the game. Anton Bernard put Italy in the lead midway through the second period, and Ramoser added one more late in the period. Frederic Cloutier stopped 24 of 25 shots he faced, as Italy won the game 3-1. Italy's last opponent was South Korea. The Italians capitalized on an early powerplay chance, as Ramoser scored on the man advantage. Italy held the 1-0 lead until late in the third, when Daniel Tudin scored to extend their lead. South Korea did managed to get on the board minutes later, but it was the only goal they scored. Andreas Bernard was in net for this one, and stopped 26 of 27 shots, as Italy won the game 2-1. Italy finishes the tournament in second place, earning the silver medal. They also earn a spot in next year's main tournament provided France and Germany don't finish seventh and eighth in their group.
Poland: The host kicked off their tournament against Italy. It was not a good start for them, as Italy scored midway though the first to take the lead. An Italian penalty midway through the second opened the door for Poland to tie. They did just that, as Tomasz Malasinski found the back of the net to tie the game. The tie didn't last long, as Italy struck back six minutes later. Poland tried to tie the game, but could not find another goal. An empty netter sealed their fate, as they lost their opening game 3-1. Poland had a pretty even game against South Korea. Both teams registered seven shots and no goals in the first. South Korea struck early in the second, scoring twice. It wasn't until midway through the third when Poland tied the game, thanks to Grzegorz Pasiut. That ended up being Poland's lone goal, as South Korea went on to score two more. It was another loss for the host, who were downed 4-1 by South Korea. Poland struck early against Poland. Malasinski scored four minutes into the game to put the host in the lead. It didn't take long for Slovenia to tie the game, as they scored just three minutes later. Poland hung on throughout the period, as Slovenia outplayed them. Poland refocused in the second, and got off to a good start thanks to Mikolaj Lopuski's powerplay goal. Malasinki added two more in the period, completing his hat trick in the process. Rafal Radziszewski stopped 32 of 33 shots, as Poland hung on to win the game 4-1. Against Austria, Poland would dominate the first period. Pasiut scored midway through the period to put the host in the lead. The second was the period of penalties. For the first half, Poland and Austria would trade powerplay chances, with neither scoring on them. It got heated later on, as on two separate occasions players from both sides went off for roughing. Poland hung on to their lead throughout, with Przemyslaw Odrobny stopping all 29 shots he faced. Poland would shut out Austria 1-0. Poland finished off against Japan. They gave their fans a game to cheer about. Poland had nine different goalscorers (only Aron Chmielewski scored twice), and outshot Japan 51-22, as the host went on to win 10-4. The win help Poland jump up to third place, as they earned the bronze in front of the home crowd.
Austria: The Austrians started off facing South Korea. The first was pretty even, but Austria would let up the first goal of the game late in the period. The shots picked up in the second, but another late goal given up by Austria hurt them. The Austrians caught a break early in the third when South Korea committed two penalties. The 5-on-3 was what Austria needed. Markus Schlacher scored on the two-man advantage to pull Austria to within a goal. Manuel Geier's goal with four minutes remaining tied the game. Overtime solved nothing, as the game needed a shootout. Konstantin Komarek was the only one who scored in the event, as Austria won the game 3-2. Austria had a better start against Japan, with Nikolas Petrik striking three minutes into the game. Their lead lasted until later in the period, when Schlacher's penalty led to Japan scoring the tying goal. Austria outplayed Japan in the second, but nothing came of it. Finally, Brain Lebler scored early in the third to put Austria back in the lead. Raphael Herburger added one more midway through the period. Bernhard Starkbaum stopped 25 of 26 shots, as Austria won their second game 3-1. It took a little while for Austria to strike against Italy. Andreas Kristler scored midway through the first to put Austria on the board. Kristler struck again halfway through the second, doubling Austria's lead. Komarek added one more before the period expired. Stefan Bacher capped off Austria's scoring in the third. Italy managed to score twice, but that was all Austria would let up, as they went on to win the game 4-2. Austria had a difficult start against Poland, as they only registered three shots in the first period. Poland scored midway through the first, putting Austria down a goal. The second period was penalty after penalty, as both teams swapped powerplay chances. It accumulated with players from both teams getting offsetting roughing penalties on two different occasions. The penalties died down in the third, as Austria kept pushing for an equalizer. It would not happen, as Austria ended up getting shut out by Poland 1-0. Austria faced Slovenia, with the winner getting a promotion spot. The Austrians had a good start to the first. Komarek scored on the powerplay six minutes in to give them the lead. Slovenia struck back five minutes later to tie the game. Early in the second, Alexander Pallestrang received a five and a game for a hit to the head. This turned the tide against Austria, as Slovenia managed to score on the five minute man advantage. Austria trired, but could not recover from that. They ended up losing 2-1 to Slovenia. The last-day loss (combine with other results) put Austria solely in fourth place, keeping them in Division I for at least another year.
South Korea: The South Koreans faced off against Austria in their first game. Michael Swift got the scoring started for South Korea late in the first. Kisung Kim extended the lead with a goal of his own late in the second. Penalty troubles hurt South Korea early in the third, as Austria scored on a 5-on-3. South Korea could not hold on to the one-goal lead. Austria scored with minutes left in the third to tie the game. This game when all the way to a shootout. South Korea could not answer Austria's goal, and ended up losing the game 3-2. Against Poland, it was a pretty even game for South Korea. The South Koreans got the scoring started in the second, with Swift scoring twice in just over four minutes in the period. Poland would respond with a goal midway through the third. Swift answered back soon after, completing his hat trick. Sangwook Kim capped off the scoring with an empty netter. South Korea would beat the host 4-1. Facing Japan, it was all South Korea in the first period. A two-man advantage early on led to Swift opening the scoring (and getting a ten minute misconduct). Kisung Kim scored on the remaining powerplay. Sanghoon Shin added one more midway through the period, giving South Korea a three goal lead. Matt Dalton was spotless in this game, stopping all 29 shots he faced. South Korea shut out their Asian brethren 3-0. South Korea had a good start against Slovenia, with Kisung Kim scoring 40 seconds into the game. A South Korean penalty led to Slovenia tying the game nine minutes into the period. South Korea let up one more before the first period ended, as they found themselves down a goal after 20 minutes. The game started to slip away from the South Koreans, as Slovenia added two in the second and one in the third. South Korea ultimately lost the game 5-1. Still with a chance at a promotion, South Korea faced off against Italy. A penalty early for South Korea cost them, as Italy scored on their powerplay to open the scoring. The next goal was Italy's as well, with South Korea giving it up late in the third. Just under four minutes left in regulation, Eric Regan found the back of the net, putting South Korea on the board. They would run out of time though, as South Korea lost their final game to Italy 2-1. South Korea ended the tournament in fifth place, which is good enough to keep them in Group A for another year.
Japan: This was a tournament Japan will want to forget. Starting it off against Slovenia, the Japanese had no chance. The first period wasn't too bad, as Japan escaped the period down 1-0. The second period is what killed them, as Slovenia went off for four goals. Shuhei Kuji scored late in the third to break the shutout. Slovenia added two more, as Japan lost their opening game 7-1. Against Austria, Japan would let up the opening goal minutes into the game. A powerplay opportunity late in the period would help Japan, as Seiji Takahashi scored on the man advantage to tie the game. Japan continued to be outplayed, but hung on to keep the game tied after 40 minutes. The tie would be broken early in the third thanks to Austria. The Austrians added one more, making the final 3-1 in their favour and giving Japan their second loss. Next up for Japan was South Korea. Japanese penalties early in the game hurt their chances, as South Korea scored twice while on the powerplay. Japan let up another goal midway through the period. The game slowly shifted toward Japan, and in the third they pushed to get on the board. It would not happen though, as Japan were shut out by South Korea 3-0. Japan had a better start against Italy. Kuji scored nine minutes into the game to put the Japanese in the lead. It last for less than five minutes, as Italy scored to tie the game. Italy's pressure in the second would be too much for Japan. Italy scored twice in the second, effectively putting away the game. Japan could not rebound, and would end up losing the game 3-1. With relegation now a lock, Japan looked to go out on a high note against Poland. It would not happen, as Poland exploded for six goals in the first period. Hiroki Ueno scored before the period ended to put Japan on the board. Poland scored early in the second, then Takuma Kawai answered back with a powerplay goal. Japan and Poland swapped a pair of goals in the third, with Poland adding one more to hit double digits. Japan lost the high-scoring affair 10-4. Japan finished the tournament with no points, putting them in sixth place. They are now relegated to Group B for next year.
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