World Junior Championship. Denmark U20 - Russia U20 - 0:4

On January 2nd, the under 20 Russian national team competed in the 2017 World Junior Championship quarter-finals against Denmark. Head coach Valery Bragin retained Ilya Samsonov between the pipes, while Artyom Volkov and Danil Yurtaykin were again missing.

Last year, these two teams met at the same stage, with Russia equalising at the death before winning in overtime. With those dramatics still fresh in the mind, our players were eager to avoid such nerves this time around. They quickly took control too, holding puck possession for long periods inside Denmark's zone. However, the first goal came in rather strange circumstances - Alexander Polunin dumped the puck in on net from neutral ice, but, somehow, Denmark goalkeeper Lasse Petersen allowed it to sneak past him. Stunned, the Danes contrived to concede a second before the period was out - on the powerplay, Kirill Kaprizov connected perfectly with Mikhail Vorobyov's sneaky behind the net pass.

Predictably, Denmark pulled Lasse Petersen in favour of Kasper Krog for the second stanza. He proved to be a harder man to break down, saving fifteen Russian shots during the period. Completely dominant, Russia were missing a number of clear cut opportunities on the Danish crease, with Vadim Kudako somehow lashing wide when open on the doorstep. At the other end, Denmark were rarely troubling Ilya Samsonov, who was determined to notch up his second shutout.

To his delight, Ilya Samsonov kept his second consecutive clean sheet intact. Pavel Karnaukhov and Kirill Kaprizov added the gloss to the victory in the third frame, completing a thumping 4:0 Russia win! Our players move on to the semi-final stage, where they will play either the USA or Switzerland.

Match protocol:

Denmark U20 - Russia U20 - 0:4 (0:2, 0:0, 0:2)

Goals:

0:1 Polunin (Vorobyov), 08.45

0:2 Kaprizov (Vorobyov, Trenin), 19.49

0:3 Karnaukhov (Guryanov, Kvartalnov), 47.12

0:4 Kaprizov (Polunin), 55.35

Goalkeepers: Petersen/Krog - Samsonov

Shots on target: 14 - 32

Penalty minutes: 10 - 14

02.01.2017. Toronto, Canada.

Russian Ice Hockey Federation