A surprising 7-2 victory over Japan clinched gold for Ukraine on the 2025 IIHF Ice Hockey U20 World Championship Division I Group B in Tallinn, Estonia. Ukraine’s subsequent era was once unstoppable at this stage, profitable all 5 video games to advance to subsequent 12 months’s U20 Division I Group A.
“First place was the only option for us in this tournament,” Ukrainian defender Mykola Kosarev stated. “Our U-18 national team plays in Division I Group A and so does our men’s national team. We wanted to go up to that level.”
After fresh heartbreak from 12 instantly appearances in Division I Group B and falling into the overall hurdle of promotion in 2023 and 2024, Ukraine’s momentum is again on the upward thrust. Finishing in seventeenth position general is a easiest efficiency mark in a World Championship festival. Ukrainian U20 group since 2007. Fifteen contributors of the gold medal-winning roster can be eligible to play. in subsequent 12 months’s Division I Group A event.
At Tallinn’s Tondiraba Ice Arena, Ukraine were given off to a relaxed get started, beating the Estonian hosts 8-1. That was once adopted via a 3-0 shutout towards neighbors Poland, after which a hard-fought 6-5 victory over Italy. Coach Andriy Sryubko’s aspect had 5 other goalscorers of their 5-2 win over newly promoted Korea on matchday 4.
In the overall recreation towards Japan, Ukraine wanted only one level to win gold. With the Ukrainians piling at the power, Oleksii Yutykhov drew first blood halfway during the first era. Ukraine held a 16-6 merit in pictures on target within the opening 20 mins. Once once more the heavy predictions paid off when Marko Mironov scored on a feed from Nikita Kulikov to double the lead at 12:49.
In the early levels of the center body, Japan’s recreation plan in brief labored a deal with, as Ukraine slightly were given a sniff of the puck. But then the Japanese broke away in simply 88 seconds. Mykhailo Haponenko, coming back from serving a one-game suspension, stole the puck from Japan’s Sora Mori, ran on a breakaway and coolly slotted Ukraine’s 1/3 target previous netminder Towa Otsuka at 4:05. Just six seconds later, Mironov added his 2nd of the afternoon.
Despite Japan calling a timeout and changing Otsuka with Jin Yoshida in internet, Ukraine was once unstoppable. Just 22 seconds after play resumed, Danilo Beda piled at the distress for Japan together with his 5-0 strike.
Junia Kukova put Japan at the board at the energy play sooner than Elryon Kaprianov restored Ukraine’s five-goal cushion together with his 6-1 target simply sooner than the second one wreck. Teto Ishigaki netted a third-period comfort for Japan, sooner than dominant blueliner Kosarov netted the overall target for Ukraine on a one-man merit to finish their spectacular event.
Skating for the nine-time Norwegian champion Stavanger Oilers, Kharkiv-born Kosarov scored his first target in senior hockey on his seventeenth birthday on October 24 ultimate 12 months. Along with Yevtikhov, he led Ukraine in scoring in Tallinn, with the 2 gamers accumulating 8 issues (3+5=8) in 5 video games.
At the opposite finish, 18-year-old netminder Oleksandr Levshin performed all video games for Ukraine and posted the event’s easiest GAA (2.00) and save share (90.91), together with a shutout.
Second-place Japan was once led offensively via Taisetsu Ushio, permitting essentially the most targets in Tallinn (24). He completed because the event’s best scorer with 11 issues (7+4=11) in 5 video games. The Japanese general noticed explanation why for optimism.
“I think we have a better skill level and we’re a more aggressive team than the last two years,” stated Japan’s Keito Okubo, skating within the IIHF U20 festival for the 1/3 time. “We know Ukraine is big and physical, but we are a fast team. We need to keep moving our feet, throw the puck deep, and develop offensively with great defensive play.”
In entrance of the most important crowd of the event (2451), Italy defeated Estonia 4-3 within the last recreation to win the bronze medal for the 1/3 12 months in a row. 18-year-old Fallou Mbow loved a effective rookie run, completing joint 2nd within the general scoring with 10 (5+5=10) issues.
With 9 U18 gamers on Estonia’s roster, the event’s youngest group created Estonian hockey folklore towards Poland on Day 4. With time briefly operating out and Poland main 2-0, Estonia kicked into equipment past due, scoring 3 times. Demid Morozov tied the sport with an empty netter with 45 seconds left to play in legislation. With 0.4 seconds closing, David Timofegio curled house a rebound from shut vary to finish a surprising conversion and a memorable 3-2 victory.
The best Polish line with Maximilian David, together with the Hoffman twins, Jakob and Jonasz, performed a key function, as Poland as soon as once more left it past due to make sure survival. In a nerve-wracking 2-1 final-day win over Korea, Jacob Hoffmann put Poland forward early within the first body. Jonasz then scored the game-winner as Poland completed 5th.
Soo Min Chae scored in legislation and took the game-winning penalty shot as newly promoted Korea opened their marketing campaign with a shootout win over Japan. Despite celebrating their first win over their Asian competitors within the festival in additional than 16 years, the Koreans failed so as to add to their issues tally thereafter, shedding instantly again to Division II Group A. fell
