U20 World Cham­pi­onship in Bled: Austria beat fellow favourites Norway after top perfor­mance

As in the opening win against France, head coach Philipp Pinter placed his trust in goalkeeper Benedikt Oschgan against Norway. Austria made a dream start: Gregor Biber surprised Norway goalkeeper Martin Lundberg during the first power play after just under two minutes, with Lundberg deflecting the puck into the net with his right leg pad, to make it 1:0 (3.). The favourites then took control, but Red-White-Red were very solid defensively and goalkeeper Oschgan was there when needed most. 

Austria repeatedly broke quickly and were dangerous on the counter-attack. After the second ÖEHV power play ended without a goal, Norway came close to equalising during a brief spell of pressure. Austria were far more efficient and clinical in front of the opposition goal: Adrian Gesson made it 2:0 from close range with a superb lob following a swift counter-attack (19.).

Right at the start of the second period, Austria came through a tricky spell on their first penalty kill. The players then continued to show bite, demonstrating to the physically robust Norwegians that they could match them both physically and in terms of play. Both teams engaged in an intense battle and gave each other very little space. Austria missed the chance to extend their lead on another power play, although the special teams produced an attractive man-advantage game. 

After the penalty expired, Norway pulled one back following a swift attack, with Niklas Aaram-Olsen beating goalkeeper Oschgan from close range (31.). Shortly afterwards, the ÖEHV selection failed to make use of another man advantage against an increasingly dominant Norway side.

The nature of the game changed little in the final period. Both sides maintained a high intensity, while Norway naturally had to play even more offensively. Austria were unlucky following a counter-attack: Ian Scherzer fired the puck against the post. After Vasily Zelenov won a face-off, Alexander Rupnik fired from the left face-off circle to make it 3:1 (46.). Austria then saw out a penalty kill, with goalkeeper Oschgan preserving the two-goal lead. 

In the final minutes, the Red-White-Red selection were superb defensively and secured their second victory in their second World Championship game. Austria, with goalkeeper Benedikt Oschgan named Best Player, have the maximum six points after two matchdays.

Head coach Philipp Pinter was highly satisfied after the second straight victory at the World Championship: "That was an incredibly important win, an unbelievable collective performance. We were very compact defensively and very clinical in front of the opposition goal. My players defended with great passion and blocked shots. Our goalkeeper was outstanding when we needed him. It was a very good, intense ice hockey game over 60 minutes. Both teams had great chances; we were a little luckier in certain situations. Credit to the team for how they tactically stuck to the game plan!" 

Hosts Slovenia await on Thursday

After a day off, Austria’s campaign in Bled continues on Thursday against hosts Slovenia. The match will once again be live from 16:00 on krone.at from __OEHV_NUM_L_A__. 

Pinter is already looking forward to the clash with Austria's southern neighbours: "We will switch off a little on Wednesday, then have a good training session, analyse today's game, and then Slovenia are already waiting as the next difficult opponent. Slovenia are a very good team, were better than Norway at times and had many chances. We are prepared, can enjoy the win against Norway a little today, and then our full focus will be on game three!"

2025 IIHF ICE HOCKEY U20 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION IA

9 December 2024 - 15 December 2024, Bled (SLO)
Participants: Norway, France, Denmark, Austria, Hungary, Slovenia

Norway vs Austria 1:3 (0:2,1:0,0:1)
Tue, 10 December 2024, 16:00, Ledena dvorana Bled
Norway goalscorer: Niklas Aaram-Olsen (31.)
Goalscorers for Austria: Gregor Biber (3rd/PP1), Adrian Gesson (19th), Alexander Rupnik (46th)

Slovenia vs. Austria
Thu, 12 December 2024, 16:00, Ledena dvorana Bled
Live on krone.at

Austria vs. Hungary
Fri, 13 December 2024, 12:30, Ledena dvorana Bled
Live on krone.at

Denmark vs. Austria
Sun, 15 December 2024, 12:30, Ledena dvorana Bled
Live on krone.at

Already played:

Austria vs. France 4:2 (0:0,4:0,0:2)
Mon, 09 December 2024, 12:30, Ledena dvorana Bled
Goalscorers for Austria: Ian Scherzer (22nd), Paul Sintschnig (25nd), Thomas Klassek (32nd), David Waschnig (38th)
Goalscorers for France: Teo Toubhans-Besnier (45th/PS), Paul Le Lem (46th/PP1)

All information on the official IIHF website: https://www.iihf.com/en/events/2025/wm20ia