Germany slows down after two debacles, still narrowly wins against Poland

Germany has won the two previous matches at the 2024 World Cup, scoring eight goals each time. Against Poland, they were not so successful in the end, but still won 4:2. It can look forward to getting closer to the quarter-finals, with one last point to go.

The first goal came in the second half of the match

Germany entered the match with Poland very actively, but no shot went past David Zabolotny. He faced 10 attempts in the first period and caught every one.

The Germans got their first shot at 25:14, when Alexander Ehl scored successfully after the interplay of Parker Tuomie and Maximilian Kastner. Germany took the lead and continued to play active hockey.

With five minutes left in the second period, the Germans were awarded a penalty shot advantage. John-Jason Peterka took the penalty and handled it expertly. He came up with a backhand cross, but surprised the goalie with a quick shot between the legs.

Germany holds on to quarter-final chance after dramatic finish against Poland

Germany improved their 2-0 lead in the final period when Yasin Ehliz dribbled down the side and surprised the opposing goalkeeper at the near post. However, the Poles also had their say and at 53:13 Patryk Wajda was very lucky to get the honours.

Poland came alive with the goal and the hope for a good result drove them forward. Less than five minutes before the end of the match, Filip Komorski reduced the gap to a single goal.

However, the second Polish goal did not move the Germans’ confidence and they did not allow a total loss. On the other hand, at 56:11 Peterka gave Germany back the two-goal lead with his second goal. At the end Poland tried to play without a goalkeeper, but it did not change the result.

Germany jumped to second place in Group B with 12 points after a 4:2 win. However, they are still not guaranteed to advance to the quarter-finals as the next three teams can overtake them on points, while the Germans have already played six games in the tournament. However, they only need one point in their last clash with France to advance to the quarter-finals.

Poland, on the other hand, remain in last place with just one point and are slowly heading for relegation. They will play their final match against second to last Kazakhstan to stay in the competition.

Source: IIHF, X