Slovakia edges Kazakhstan in overtime thriller

30 Dec 2024Henrik Lundqvist»

Slovakia concludes the preliminary round with a 1-1-0-2 record, earning a quarter-final berth at the World Juniors in Ottawa. Kazakhstan, still winless, faces a do-or-die matchup against Switzerland tomorrow to determine their playoff fate.

Slovakia - Kazakhstan 5-4 OT

In a dramatic game at TD Place Arena, Slovakia clinched a 5-4 overtime victory against Kazakhstan, with Maxim Strbak sealing the game at 2:55 of the extra frame. Despite holding commanding leads of 3-0 and 4-2, the Slovaks nearly let the game slip away as Kazakhstan stormed back with two stunning short-handed goals late in the third period.

Slovakia began the game with authority, led by their captain Dalibor Dvorsky, who struck twice in the first period. His first came at 8:07, showcasing his poise and skill as he capitalized on a turnover to roof a backhand past Kazakh goalie Vladimir Nikitin. Dvorsky doubled the lead five minutes later, converting a slick feed from Juraj Pekarcik.

The Slovaks added a power-play marker with just seconds remaining in the period. This time, it was Dvorsky setting up Pekarcik, who blasted a shot over Nikitin's blocker to make it 3-0. Slovakia outshot Kazakhstan 16-1 in the period, seemingly putting the game out of reach early.

Kazakhstan refused to back down. Artur Gross ignited their comeback early in the second with a brilliant solo effort, intercepting a pass and finishing with a sharp shot to beat Slovak netminder Samuel Urban. While Beibarys Orazov came agonizingly close to narrowing the gap further, hitting the crossbar, Slovakia restored their three-goal lead through another Dvorsky-Pekarcik connection at 12:36.

Kazakhstan’s Asanali Sarkenov cut the deficit late in the second, setting up a tense final period.

The third period was marked by escalating tension. With under five minutes left, Sarkenov delivered a dangerous cross-check to the face of Slovakia’s Frantisek Dej, earning a major penalty and game misconduct. This should have been Slovakia’s moment to close out the game. Instead, Kazakhstan turned adversity into opportunity.

Davlat Nurkenov scored a short-handed breakaway goal at 56:37, and Kirill Lyapunov delivered the equalizer with just 28.5 seconds remaining, capitalizing on another Slovak turnover.

With momentum on Kazakhstan’s side, Strbak emerged as the hero in overtime with a breakaway goal to secure Slovakia's win.