France leads three times, but Germany gets mandatory three points in dramatic duel and awaits USA result

An incredibly dramatic duel between France and Germany produced 9 goals. The French took the lead three times, but never once held it and Germany won the last group match 6:3. They will have to wait for the outcome of the remaining matches to determine their final position in the group.

The pre-match calculations were simple. France played for nothing and went to enjoy the last match at the World Championship, the Germans needed to win to get the best possible position in the group and thus a paper-easy draw in the quarter-finals.

But it was the French who had the first huge chance, after just ten seconds. After a mistake by the Germans, they raced two-on-one, but Perret, facing Grubauer, found only his trap.

Immediately after that, however, came a foul from the French side and two big chances for the Germans. Michaelis, however, hit only Papillon’s shoulder on a shot just outside the box. Moments later, Dominik Kahun rushed the goalkeeper alone, but his backhand shot didn’t end in a goal.

Then France spoke again. First came the warning in the form of a shot off the bar, but in the 17th minute the first shot came. Justin Addamo came down on a long pass and after a shot was signalled, he crossed to the right and a lone Valentin Claireaux opened the scoring.

Germany’s turnaround

But the Germans were able to equalize before the end of the first period. A Stachowiak challenge gave the puck to Kahun in front of the net and Marc Michaelis sent it just under the crossbar.

But if Germany was to work hard and confirm third place in the table, it looked like France was more likely to play for the playoffs. Right at the start of the second period, after a scramble in front of the German goal, Anthony Rech got to a deflected puck and headed it into the net.

This time, however, the Gallic team did not hold the lead for long. Lukas Kalble equalised after four minutes. But the drama continued and France took the lead again. Sascha Treille took a pass from the defensive zone and alone in front of Grubauer put the underdogs back in front.

Thanks to Peterko, Germany tied the game again immediately, but after a long examination the referee ruled that it was offside and the goal was disallowed. But the Germans soon equalised anyway. Lukas Reichel escaped down the left wing, Papillon then looked for the puck a bit and Stachowiak tapped it into the net.

The scoring continued, with Kastner taking advantage of Michaelis’ pass to send the Germans into the lead for the first time in the game. It was still a two-goal game before the end of the second period, but the referees called off the goal for the second time in the game after analyzing the video.

In the third period, the game was in Germany’s hands. Stachowiak, who was playing great, increased the score to 5:3 right after coming on the ice, and after five minutes Reichel increased the score to 6:3. No more goals were scored and the Germans will wait for the outcome of the remaining games to see if they finish in second or third place.

Source: IIHF