Cervenka snatches victory for Czechia

Hockey is tough enough at even strength. Take a man out of the equation, and things change rapidly. And the opening game of the 2025 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship in Herning proved that point. Penalties late in the first and second periods sparked big momentum swings as both teams blew leads. Then with 3:47 on the clock, Lukas Sedlak grabbed yet another power play goal to rescue Czechia and tie the game at 4-4.

The Swiss led by two, trailed by one, led again midway through the third but got dragged into overtime. Defending champion Czechia seemed to have turned everything around after a slow start, but a penalty on David Spacek late in the middle frame flipped the momentum back in Switzerland’s favour in dramatic fashion. Then came another big power play to tie the game for Czechia before Roman Cervenka snatched a 5-4 verdict in the extras.

 

That winner came after Karel Vejmelka made a big kick save and David Pastrnak took play down the ice. The Boston forward set up Cervenka in the circle and the Czech captain found the tightest of gaps to wire his shot to the top corner.

“Pasta did a great job,” said the scorer. “He beat the D one-on-one. I was basically by myself on the slot so I tried to hit the net. I’m happy it got in there.”

The tournament organizers wasted no time in wheeling out the big guns in Herning. Game one brought a repeat of the 2024 final – and fans were treated to a rollercoaster ride.

Switzerland, hoping that this will be the year it trades up silver for gold, made a flying start. Christian Marti opened the scoring inside two minutes, catching Karel Vejmelka unawares with a shot from the left-hand boards. The Utah goalie seemed to lose his near post and was powerless as Marti’s effort whistled past his ear and into the net.

And the Swiss thought they had a second when rookie Sandro Schmid encountered surprisingly little resistance on his way from the right-hand point to the doorstep. However, after stuffing the puck home at the second attempt his effort was whistled back when a video review ruled that Nicolas Baechler had strayed offside.

Czechia had high hopes of an offense led by Pastrnak. The Boston Bruin is rarely seen so early in IIHF play, but the star did not shine brightly at the start of the game. The Czechs struggled to generate offence, and Pastrnak’s first big chance went begging. He stepped up to take a penalty shot in the 18th minute after Marti’s slash on a goalbound…