LANDSHUT, Germany – Canada’s National Men’s Under-18 Team erased three one-goal deficits and took a third-period lead, but fell 6-5 in overtime to Czechia to close out preliminary-round play at the 2022 IIHF U18 World Championship. The Canadians finished the prelims with a 1-0-1-1 (W-OTW-OTL-L) record, good for third in Group A.

• Lukas Dragicevic (Richmond, B.C./Tri City, WHL) and Adam Fantilli (Nobleton, Ont./Chicago, USHL) registered a goal and an assist each.
• Kocha Delic (Mississauga, Ont./Sudbury, OHL) temporarily put Canada ahead in the third period.
• Nick Moldenhauer (Mississauga, Ont./Chicago, USHL) and Grayden Siepmann (Abbotsford, B.C./Calgary, WHL) also scored.
• Josh Filmon (Winnipeg, Man./Swift Current, WHL), David Goyette (Hawkesbury, Ont./Sudbury, OHL), Connor Hvidston (Tisdale, Sask./Swift Current, WHL), Rieger Lorenz (Calgary, Alta./Okotoks, AJHL) and Owen Pickering (St. Adolphe, Man./Swift Current, WHL) chipped in with an assist each.
• Reid Dyck (Winkler, Man./Swift Current, WHL) made 46 saves.
• Czechia outshot Canada 52-24.

Next Game:
Canada vs. Finland or Sweden (quarterfinal) – Thursday, April 28 (time TBD)

TSN and RDS, the official broadcast partners of Hockey Canada, will broadcast 13 games throughout the tournament, including all Team Canada preliminary-round games, four quarterfinals, both semifinals, and the bronze and gold medal games.

Quotes:
“We need to play a full 60 minutes. Our goalie gave us a chance to win tonight, but special teams were the difference. Discipline is also going to be key for us moving forward. Playing five-on-five hockey allows us to stick to our game plan and utilize our bench in a different way. We are focused on our next game and an opportunity to keep advancing towards our goal in this tournament. We continue to grow and get better as a group each day and that’s what our plan is.”
- Assistant coach Kori Cheverie (New Glasgow, N.S.) on what adjustments the team needs to make for the quarterfinals

“I think we played hard, but were just a little sloppy. If we cleaned up our passes and our breakouts a little bit, we would have had a better outcome against them. I think moving forward we just have to keep our heads up and clean things up, we will be good to go. It was pretty special scoring my first goal of the tournament, especially with my dad here, so that was definitely a special moment.”
- Moldenhauer on the difference in the game, and opening the scoring

“We thought we started the game well in the first 10 minutes, but then it was inconsistent for the next period and a half. In the third I thought we came out and played well. We put together some good hockey and were really confident with how we were playing. If we play like we did in the third the rest of the way, we are confident in our game and how we can compete.”
- Pickering on Canada’s up-and-down performance

For more information on Hockey Canada and Canada’s National Men’s Under-18 Team, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along via social media on Facebook and Twitter.