On Tuesday in Stockholm, the Latvian men’s national ice hockey team suffered a heavy 1:6 defeat against Austria in their final group-stage match of the IIHF World Championship, missing out on a place in the quarterfinals.
Latvia’s sole goal was scored by Eduards Tralmaks.
Kristers Gudļevskis started in goal for Latvia, while David Kickert was in net for Austria.
Although Anrī Ravinskis had the first shot of the game, Austria capitalized on Latvia’s defensive errors. Tomas Raffl had an early chance after a Latvian turnover but was denied by Gudļevskis. Shortly after, Kickert saved a wraparound attempt by Ravinskis.
Austria’s Vincenz Rohrer threatened with a close-range shot after another Latvian passing mistake, but Gudļevskis made the save. Austria consistently created more dangerous scoring chances, while Latvia lacked precision in passing, limiting their offensive quality.
Latvia’s best opportunity came on a power play following a 16th-minute penalty by Dominic Zwerger, with multiple shots forcing saves from Kickert. Dans Ločmelis hit the post during this stretch.
However, just as Zwerger exited the penalty box, he picked up a loose puck, outmaneuvered Gudļevskis, and scored low to the right corner at the start of the 18th minute—1:0 to Austria.
Latvia outshot Austria 11:7 in the first period.
In the second period, Latvia started more actively. After a hard shot from Ralfs Freibergs, Kickert made a shoulder save. Latvia had the shot advantage again (5:1), but in the 24th minute, Freibergs took a penalty for a hit on Lukas Kainz.
Austria needed only 17 seconds on the power play to double their lead—Benjamin Baumgartner scored from the right circle off a feed from Marco Kasper, beating a slow-reacting Gudļevskis for 2:0. It was Austria’s first power play goal of the tournament, while Latvia remained goalless on the man advantage.
A failed pass along the offensive blue line by Rudolfs Balcers led to a breakaway for Rohrer, who scored high—3:0. Although Balcers caught up, he couldn’t prevent the goal. Latvia’s head coach Harijs Vītoliņš called a timeout.
In the 29th minute, Ločmelis circled the net and passed to Tralmaks, who one-timed the puck into the far corner—1:3.
Soon after, Oskars Batņa was penalized for a foul on Lukas Haudum. Later, Mārtiņš Laviņš was shaken up by a hit, but the referee ruled it legal. Toward the end of the period, Gudļevskis made a big save on a 3-on-1 break by Austria.
Latvia edged Austria in second-period shots 9:8.
In the 43rd minute, Haudum was penalized, and Latvia had several chances, but Austria’s Kasper also tested Gudļevskis from close range.
Then in the 45th minute, after a puck scramble in front of Latvia’s goal, Thomas Raffl tapped in a pass from Peter Schneider—4:1 Austria.
Latvia got another power play in the 48th minute, and Haralds Egle hit the post from the slot, but couldn’t score.
At 53 minutes, with Latvian forwards caught behind Austria’s net, Austria broke out 2-on-1. Zwerger scored his second of the night off Schneider’s assist—5:1.
In the 57th minute, Timo Nickl was penalized, and Latvia pulled the goalie for a sixth skater. But Rohrer won a puck battle against Ločmelis and scored shorthanded—6:1. Batņa took a holding penalty in the final minute, but the score remained unchanged.
Group A continues Tuesday: Finland vs. Slovakia at 17:20 and Sweden vs. Canada at 21:20 (both in Stockholm’s Avicii Arena).
In Group B (Herning), Switzerland faces Kazakhstan, followed by Czechia vs. USA and Germany vs. Denmark. Games are broadcast live on LTV7 and lsm.lv.
Group B standings (after 6 games):
Czechia – 17 pts
Switzerland – 16 pts
USA – 14 pts
Germany & Denmark – 9 pts each
Norway – 4 pts (7 games)
Hungary – 3 pts (7 games)
Kazakhstan – 3 pts (6 games)
Latvia’s results:
Wins: France (4:1), Slovenia (5:2), Slovakia (5:1)
Losses: Canada (1:7), Sweden (0:6), Finland (1:2), Austria (1:6)
The tournament format includes 16 teams in two groups of eight. The top four from each group advance to the quarterfinals; the bottom teams are relegated. Great Britain and Italy will replace them next year.
The World Championship concludes next weekend, with Group B games and two quarterfinals in Herning, and Group A, two quarterfinals, semifinals, and medal matches in Stockholm.
Last year, Czechia won the gold medal on home ice (2:0 vs. Switzerland), Sweden took bronze (4:2 vs. Canada), and Latvia finished 9th despite four group-stage wins.