Slovenia lost in their best game so far

03 May 2011 | Martin Žilinčík

Germany confirmed their top position in the final game against Slovenia although it was not an easy ride and they needed eight rounds of shoot-outs to gain the satisfying two points. Slovenians finished their preliminary round with another solid performance and they remain one of the biggest surprises of this championship with Germans indeed.

Germany was expected to play efficiently, avoid possible injuries and save the energy for qualification round. What was not anticipated is that they would let in the goal first. Slovenians broke the tie in the fifth minute with a shot by youngster Žiga Jeglič. Germany had to create some offensive and they got a lot of opportunities since the Slovenians started collecting penalties.

But Robert Kristan stood tall between the pipes all the game and luck also took a huge part. "You know, that’s hockey. In the last game (against Russia) we outshot them and still lost,” said Robert Sabolič who notched two assists but failed in the penalty shots. His line shot both Slovenian goals. "We play together a lot and we know each other very well. But we will need all the lines to score more in the relegation round,” confessed the Slovenian right winger.

The Germans had an open net in front of them for nearly ten times but could not shove the puck into it. They were trailing 0:2 from 28:33 but cut the lead in half in less than seven minutes and equalized early in the third period. The overturn was finished in the penalty shoot-out when Germany won 2:1. They outshot the opponent 61:26 in regulation, but sometimes were pushed hard by willing Slovenians.

"It was a tough match. Really tight. And we expected it to go like this," said German head coach Uwe Krupp after the match. "For the first time we were in deficit and we had to put a lot of pressure on the net. I’m glad that we came back".