Calgary 2024: Worlds A-Pool open with onslaught of goals

The best of the best in Para Ice Hockey kicked off the World Para Ice Hockey Championships A-Pool in Calgary with an offensive explosion on day one. The top eight teams in the world faced off in a quadruple header to open the tournament which brought plenty of high-powered offense.  

Team USA are the heavy favourites as they look to win their fourth straight World Championship title. The Paralympic champions got their campaign off to a thrashing start. 

United States 10, Slovakia 0

USA dominated Slovakia in the opening game winning it 10-0. The barrage of goals began in the first period with David Eustace (USA) getting the first of the tournament off a rebound.  

Gold medallist Declan Farmer kept up the pace with two goals of his own to give USA a 3-0 lead after the first period. It was smooth sailing from there on as Farmer picked up his hat trick in the second period and the Americans added three more to gain a 6-0 advantage. 

Farmer could not be stopped as he rocketed home his fourth of the game as part of a four-goal frame for the US to clinch the 10-0 win. Slovakia’s goalkeepers Eduard Lepacek and Miroslav Pastucha did all they could, combining for 21 saves.

China 10, Korea 0

Game two brought more one-sided action as China backed up their bronze medal in Beijing 2022 with a resounding opening performance in Calgary. China took down their continental rivals Republic of Korea 10-0. Frustrations boiled over in the third period as the teams had to be separated during a scuffle as punches were thrown. 

China coasted from wire to wire despite the tension. They executed solid, tactical offense including this tic-tac-toe goal finished off by Li Hongguan (CHN) to mark a 4-0 lead. 

China are trying to improve their fourth place at last season’s world championships. They have rapidly rose up the rankings after beginning their Para ice hockey programme in 2017.

Canada 19, Japan 0 

Canada are trying to defend home ice and reclaim the throne atop Para ice hockey. They are seeking revenge after three straight second-place finishes and came out fired up in their opening game, dominating Japan 19-0. 

The game was over before you could blink as Canada raced to a 10-0 lead in the first period. Liam Hickey (CAN) opened the scoring just 47 seconds into the first. Hickey added his second less than two minutes later to extend the lead to 4-0. 

He finished with three goals on the day. He was one of five Canadians to score multiple goals including four with hat tricks (Anton Jacobs-Webb, Dominic Cozzolino, Tyler McGregor, Adam Dixon (CAN)). Canada added eight goals in the second and finished it off with four more in the third. 

Czechia 4, Italy 1 

The final game of the day brought the most competitive matchup. Czechia are looking for another medal after winning bronze at last year’s World Championships. They got off to a solid start taking down their European rivals Italy in the opener. 

It started with the opening attack as Vaclav Hecko unleashed a snipe from distance to open to scoring 39 seconds into the game. Hecko ripped a shot through two defenders in a 1-on-4 rush to give Czechia the opening lead. 

Czechia moved to 2-0 as the first period was drawing to a close. Alex Ohar added the second goal with 48 seconds left in the first period. 

Pavel Dolezal tallied another to give Czechia a 3-0 lead with less than four minutes to go in the second period. Italy got on the board with a power play goal late in the third period when Nils Larch found the back of the net. However, Czechia quickly closed the door on any comeback with a goal less than two minutes later to secure the 4-1 win. 

What’s coming on Day Two?

Calgary will host another four games on Day Two as all eight teams will take the ice once again. It starts with China (1-0) taking on Slovakia (0-1). Game two features Korea (0-1) taking on the defending champions USA (1-0). 

Game three will see the hosts Canada (1-0) battle Italy (0-1). The final game will see Japan (0-1) against Czechia (1-0).  

How to Follow?

Watch all the action across World Para Ice Hockey Facebook page, and on the Paralympic Games YouTube.