Slovakia ends the home championship with a win

The tournament did not turn out as well as the Slovak players wanted but they still fought till the end. In the last game they beat Denmark and got good help from their fans.

"Our fans were great. They’re the best fans in the world", said Michal Handzus.

Slovak forward Jozef Stümpel: "We wanted to win in our last game at the championship, so we played very offensively. The atmosphere was fantastic, I would like to express my thanks to our fans".

Slovakia will end on 9th or 10th place. Which one is known after the game Switzerland-USA.

Denmark took the lead after 4 minutes of play when Mads Christensen scored his 4th goal of the championship, but then it was all Slovakia. The home team outshot Denmark 43-18 and won the game 4-1 after goals by Jozef Stümpel, Miroslav Satan, Marian Hossa and Richard Zednik.

Denmark’s Morten Green’s comments to the game: "They were better than us today, no doubt about this. They had more energy. After first period Slovakia was up 2-1 and had all the fans behind them. We had no power to turn the game over".

And the tournament: "It was a good championship for us. Many players were not coming here, but we stayed in the top group and ended 11th in the world which is very good. If we would relegated this year, it would be very very hard to come back. We had so many injuries this year and still managed to stay in the A group. For the team we had here the 11th place is a great result. That is for sure."

Pavol Demitra played his last game ever for the Slovak national team: "For me and everybody, it was very emotional. You’re going to remember it the rest of your life". Jozef Stümpel said: "We wanted to win in our last game at the championship, so we played very offensively. The atmosphere was fantastic, I would like to express my thanks to our fans." It is expected, that for many Slovak players the game against Denmark was the last game for the national team.

Besides Demitra also Miroslav Satan and Richard Zednik are expected to quit. "I dont know if it was my last game in the national team. I am getting older but the key factors are mainly health, family and my form," said Jozef Stümpel. "The door are open for everyone. Everyone is welcome, including the older players. We cannot stop their age, but they were the best generation which ever put the Slovakian jersey on. But of course, there is time for Tomas Tatar, Richard Panik, Tomas Marcinko and others," said Slovakian coach Glen Hanlon.

 

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