Skien 2024: Norway get the royal seal of approval

B-Pool hosts Norway were presented to royalty in Skien, and delighted Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway with an 18-0 success that made it 43 unanswered goals in two matches.

A national performance

On a special night for the World Para Ice Hockey Championships B-Pool hosts, Norway beat Great Britain 18-0 in front of not only a raucous home crowd, but Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Mette-Marit as well.

Presented to the audience in advance of the match, the Crown Princess was treated to a fine display of finishing as Norway raced into a 9-0 lead by the time the first period had concluded. And with six separate scorers in that tally, it was obvious that each man in red had the same ambition for the evening: to put on a show for their special attendee.

The second period brought eight more to the scoreboard, with Audun Bakke striking four times, Loyd Solberg getting three and the always threatening Ola Oiseth adding a further four. But in that final period, with the gap at 17, Great Britain held their own and then some. Just a single puck (Oiseth’s fifth) breached the defences of a determined Bryan Hackworth with the gap finishing at 18.

Player of the Match for Norway, Alexander Lyngroth, was left buzzing by a memorable night for himself and his teammates. “We’re happy with that win. Really happy to still be going strong. Not a bad start! And it’s not every day you meet royalty, so it was very fun that the Crown Princess came out to watch us play, and even better that we got such a huge win in front of her as well!”

For Great Britain’s coach Peggy Assinck, the focus is on what worked in that third period, as well as what it could lead to in the coming days. “It was exciting to see us hold the box in front of the net. We’ve been working on a lot of things, and it seemed to come together nicely in the third period. We’ve been able to work on some of the process goals and now we move onto games we think will be incredibly competitive.”

Germany set the early pace

Fresh off a crushing victory against Great Britain a day earlier, Germany reached double figures again in a straightforward success over Kazakhstan. 

Bursting out of the blocks, Andreas Pokorny’s side found the net after only 24 seconds when Joerg Wedde swept home. Felix Schrader followed next with his first of three goals, with Wedde grabbing a second before a Bernhard Hering double got the side in black firmly into the ascendancy with a 6-0 lead after 15. 

Hering struck again 12 seconds after the second period started, and he would ultimately complete a strong day’s work with five goals to his name. Ingo Kuhli-Lauenstein got one in the second and one in the third, whilst Kazakhstan grabbed a consolation at least courtesy of Aidos Toktarbayev. 

Frank Rennhack – who contributed seven assists – knows they have set themselves a platform early in the tournament. “We must relax and analyse today, then prepare for tomorrow. We think tomorrow (when facing Sweden) may be a little bit closer. But it was a perfect game for us, the game was almost over after the first period. It’s been the perfect second day for us.”

Sweden overcome early scare

Sweden came into this one after what was the closest match of the competition so far, and they had an almighty scare in the opening minutes against hopefuls France. 

Markus Lopez opened the scoring within a minute, only for a long-range hit from Roland Linier to slip through the grasp of Dennis Jansson, despite the best efforts of both Jansson and his backline. 

It was a moment that threatened a potential upset but was ultimately a blip in what proved to be a routine Swedish victory as they emerged 12-1 victors. Lopez was the star of the show, hitting the net on four occasions and setting up two more in an action-packed performance from the #68. He was supported by Peter Nilsson’s four goals, with the other four shared across four teammates. 

Post-match, Lopez felt his own display was reflective of the one his team served up: “I played well, but my performance displayed ours. We had a bit of a slow tempo in the first period, but in the second we started to play more like a team. The first had a lot of solo skating, but we started to play more as we wanted.”

For France head coach David Lemetais, the defeat isn’t one he will read too much into. “It’s very important to score against Sweden. That first period at 1-1, the players were very, very happy and proud of this start. But our ambition is to stay in the B-Pool, so we must win against Great Britain and maybe Kazakhstan. We need to score and to win one or two games, and then enjoy the lessons in how to play this pool. We want to be here next year.”

The Story after two days

It’s Norway, Germany and Sweden who are well on top with two wins apiece from their two matches so far. Norway sit on top due to goal difference, their run of 43 goals without conceding putting them ahead of Germany at +33 and Sweden at +13. 

What’s Next?

Day three will put two 100 per cent records to the test, as Germany and Sweden meet in the opening tie of the day. One of Great Britain and France will get their first points of the B-Pool, while Norway aim to make it three from three as they take on Kazakhstan in the evening. 

How to Follow

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