WJC Today - Day 7 Recap

Russia 2 , Czech Republic 1 - Summary

The Russians were victorious Monday night as they defeated the Czech Republic 2-1 in overtime to advance to the semi-finals. Zheldakov scored at 1:03 of overtime, as the Czechs suffered a devastating loss.

Daniil Apalkov and Grigori Zheldakov were the scorers for Team Russia. 17-year-old Andrei Vasilevski stopped 43 shots for the Russians.

Oceanic forward Jakub Culek scored the lone goal for the Czech Republic.

The Russians are set to face Team Canada tonight, the first time they’ve met since they upset Canada last year in the finals, capturing the gold medal.

Finland 8 , Slovakia 5 - Summary

Led by Mikael and Markus Granlund, Team Finland advances to the semi-finalsafter a 8-5 victory over Slovakia. Temmu Pulkkinen had a goal and an assist, while Joel Armia, Roope Hamalainen, Alexsander Barkov and Joonas Donskoialso scored.

Barkov, 16, is the youngest player to ever score in tournament history, passing Pittsburgh Penguins superstar Sidney Crosby by 21 days .

Richard Mraz had a goal and two helpers, while Matus Chovan and Marko Dano each had a goal and an assist for Team Slovakia. Marerk Tverdon and Martin Daloga also scored.

Sami Aittokallio stopped 24 shots for Finland, while Juraj Simboch made 30 saves for the Slovaks.

Switzerland 4 , Denmark 3 - Summary

Tanner Richard scored in overtime as Team Switzerland defeated Denmark in a Relegation match-up.

Cedric Schneuwly, Alessio Bertaggia and Gregory Hofmannalso scored for the Swiss.

Nicklas Jensen and Oliver Bjorkstrand scored for Team Denmark.

WJC Today - Day 7 Preview

It's day seven of the World Junior Hockey Championships and there are three games on the clock.

Round robin is now over and team's will now be competing in either the relegation round or the quarter finals.

The scene will now shift to the Pengrowth Saddledom in Calgary, Alta.

Switzerland and Denmark will battle in a relegation-round match at 1 p.m. EST. Switzerland finished round robin with a 1-2-1 record. Denmark lost all four of their games in round robin.

At 5 p.m EST, Slovakia and Finland will battle against each other to earn a spot in tomorrow night's semi-finals match up against Sweden. The loser will play on Wednesday Jan. 4 to qualify for the Bronze medal game.

Slovakia finished the round robin with a 2-2 record for a third place finish in Pool A. They were led by Saint John Sea Dogs forward Tomas Jurco with a goal and six points.

Finland finished second in Pool B with a 3-1 record and were led by Teemu Pulkkinen's five goals and eight points.

Goaltender Christopher Gibson of the Chicoutimi Sagueneens has appeared in two games recording a 4.50 goals-against-average.

Last but not least, is the Czech Republic battling Russia in the second quarter final game of the night at 9 p.m. EST.

Russia finished second place in Pool A with a 3-0-1 record. The Russians are led by Nikita Gusev and Yevgeni Kuznetsov with three goals and nine points each.

Quebec Remparts forward Mikhail Grigorenko has two goals and four points.

The Czech Republic finished third place in Pool B with a 2-2 record and were led by Petr Mrazek's solid goaltending.

The winner will advance to play Canada tomorrow night in the semi-finals. The loser will play on Wednesday Jan. 4 to qualify for the Bronze medal game.

Photo courtesy of TSN.ca

WJC Today - Day 6 Preview

On the final day of the preliminary round, there are four games on the World Junior Championship schedule. Here are some quick previews of all games.

The first game on the schedule is the Czechs taking on Team Finland at 5 p.m. at Rexall Place in Edmonton, Atla. This game can be watched on TSN.

The second game of the night is Switzerland taking on the Slovakia at 7 p.m. in Calgary. This game will not be broadcasted on TSN.

Next up is the Canada - U.S.A. showdown. The Americans, who have already been eliminated from medal contention after a 5-2 loss to Czech Republic last night, will look to get back on the winning track after losing two straight. This game can also be watched on TSN and TSN.ca.

The final game of the night is the Russians taking on Sweden at the Saddledome in Calgary. Gametime is set for 11 p.m.

Standings

Group A

Team	GP	W	L	OTW	OTL	PTS
RUS	3	3	0	0	0	9
SWE	3	2	0	1	0	8
SUI	3	1	1	0	1	4
SVK	3	1	2	0	0	3
LAT	4	0	4	0	0	0

Group B

Team	GP	W	L	OTW	OTL	PTS
CAN	3	3	0	0	0	9
CZE	3	2	1	0	0	6
FIN	3	2	1	0	0	6
USA	3	1	2	0	0	3
DEN	4	0	4	0	0	0

Scoring leaders for the tournament can be found HERE.

Photo: Hockey Canada