Canada end Swiss ice hockey dream
Switzerland crashed out of the ice hockey world championships in Russia on Thursday, following a 5-1 defeat in the quarter-finals by Canada.
The Canadians entered the game as the favourites, but were wary of a Swiss side which provided a huge upset at the 2006 Turin Olympics when they beat the 23-time world champions 2-0.
“We definitely did not want to underestimate this team,” Canada’s Matthew Lombardi said. “They work hard, play a great system and come a long way.”
The Swiss line-up only included two players from the National Hockey League (NHL) – the world’s top professional league based in North America – Montreal Canadiens teammates defenceman Mark Streit and backup netminder David Aebischer.
The team may have not have been a match for Canada this time, but it provided a stern test, particularly during a tight early period.
A sturdy defence and brilliant play by Jonas Hiller, who is expected to sign with a NHL club for next season, kept the Swiss in contest as Canada dominated the early period.
Canada finally pierced the Swiss defence late in the opening frame when Lombardi was left unmarked in the slot, backhanding a low shot by Hiller.
“Too passive”
“I think the first period was all right but we were too passive,” Streit said. “I thought we could have played a little more aggressively.”
He added that to win you had to “create offence and not just play great defence”.
Canada – the 2002 Olympic champions – stepped up the pressure in the second period and went ahead 2-0. However, Switzerland hit back just 38 seconds later through Paul Di Pietro.
Di Pietro – who is Canadian-born – scored both goals in Switzerland’s Olympic upset last year.
But Canada continued to dominate play, adding three more goals to notch up a convincing win.
The team now joins hosts Russia, Finland and defending champions Sweden in the final four.
Disappointment?
The Swiss side’s aim had been at least to reach the quarter-finals of the world championships being held in the Russian capital, Moscow.
It was suffering from the absence of several key forwards, notably “enfants terribles” Reto von Arx and Michel Riesen from Davos who have fallen out with Canadian-German coach Ralph Krueger.
“The players don’t owe anybody anything,” said Krueger of Thursday’s result. “We didn’t realise our dream, but we did what was expected of us.”
“It’s looking good for the Olympics,” he added. “We – trainer and team – are not dissatisfied with what we have achieved.”
swissinfo with agencies
The ice hockey world championship is taking place from April 27 to May 13 in Moscow.
Sixteen teams started the competition and were divided into groups of four.
In the semi-finals, Finland will play Russia and Sweden will face Canada.
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