The Czechs played two strong periods for their ardent fans before surrendering five goals in the third period. A three-goal explosion in 58 seconds early in the third secured the win for the defending champs, who outshot Czechia 43-19. The Czechs failed to score on four power play chances.
“The environment was amazing,” said Poulin. “It was loud out there. But I would say our first two periods, we struggled a little bit. They were strong. They had a couple chances where ‘Soupy’ [goalie Kristen Campbell] kept us in and in the third, we were able to manage. We had a lot of pucks on the net. We were able to capitalize, and we’re happy we got that win.”
In Thursday’s quarter-finals, the Canadians will face the second-place team in Group B. The Czechs are fourth in Group A and will take on the fifth-place Swiss, whom they beat 3-0 on Day One.
The Czechs are two-time bronze medalists (2022, 2023) and are hungry to return to the podium this year on home ice. This was a strong contender for the most physical game ever played between a European team and a North American team in IIHF women’s hockey history.
“[If the European nations] can play more physical, it adds another layer to the game for us, and it slows down plays a little bit, because you get so much pressure on you,” said Canada’s Renata Fast. “But it’s a fun way to play the game.”
Poulin not only added to her tournament scoring lead (3+5=8), but also moved into second place in all-time Women’s Worlds points for Canada (38+47=85), one point behind Hayley Wickenheiser and two ahead of Jayna Hefford.
Canadian coach Troy Ryan continued shuffling the deck. Campbell, his Toronto Sceptres starter, appeared in her first game since the opening 5-0 shutout over Finland. Forward Julia Gosling – a 2024 Women’s Worlds gold medalist – saw her first Ceske Budejovice action in place of her veteran Toronto Sceptres teammate Natalie Spooner. Meanwhile, defender Micah Zandee-Hart returned after a one-game absence to replace wunderkind Chloe Primerano, a fellow British Columbian.
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Czech coach Carla MacLeod also did some juggling, including dropping Natalie Mlynkova to the fourth line and moving Michael Pejzlova up to play with…
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