3. Hockey World Championship: Fleury is a darling of the tournament and the Finns averted a fiasco
BRATISLAVA. On Sunday 11th May 2025, it has been 23 years since the Slovak hockey players have so far became the world champions.
To this day, people remember where they watched the final match against Russia and saw the winning goal 100 seconds before the end countless times.
Its author was Peter Bondra – an attacker who debuted at the age of 34 at the age of 34. He immediately won the gold medal and with seven goals he was also the best canonist of the tournament.
It is not often that the hockey player will be premiered at the World Championship at such an advanced sports age, but the goalkeeper Marc-André Fleury is in this world rarity.
The Canadian played his first match at the World Championship after he ended his professional career. At the age of 40 he has had the last season in the NHL, but he decided to extend it to a tournament he never played.
« It’s a great experience and a great honor to wear a national jersey, » Fleury told TSN after 7: 1 win over Latvia.
He enjoys hockey
The triple winner of the Stanley Cup and the winner of the Vehide trophy for the best NHL goalkeeper did not start the match well. At 8 minutes he collected from the first shot to the goal, when it was shot by Eduards Trabmaks.
His teammates, however, managed to turn the development of the meeting relatively quickly and the veteran in the goal gave a successful debut. Fleury caught the remaining 16 shots and received the award for the best player of Canada.
Video: All goals 3. Playing day at the World Hockey World Championship 2025
After the match he gave several interviews, still smiling. He didn’t take it as a duty, he enjoyed it. As our western neighbors would say, for Fleury, these championships are one big « Discopříh ».
In 2010, although he was part of the Canadian team at the Vancouver Winter Olympics, he didn’t get a chance during the tournament. Last time he joined his native country in the final of the World Championship U20 in 2004 when losing to the US 3: 4.
It is interesting that at that time the final decided his mistake when he failed to throw the puck away from the zone and hit the defender Braydon Coburn, from whom the puck bounced off the Canadian goal.
He also spoiled one pass against Latvia, which stemmed two chances of the opponent. First, however, Fleury hit the right concrete at the end of Rudolfs Balcers and then fit after the shot of Dansa Locmelis.
« He enjoys hockey like when he was a little boy. He is a big child in an adult body. He won a similar procedure like the other, won for the Pittsburgh Stanley Cup in 2009, » said his former teammate Tomáš Surový.
Video: Marc-André Fleury’s interventions in a match against Latvia
A future member of the Hall of Fame
Thanks to his goalie style, he won the hearts of fans during his career. For example, the moment of the previous NHL season is also commemorative, when Minnesota in the end tried to balance the match against Columbus.
Fleury went to the inverter, but when he saw that the puck had an opponent’s player, burned back and tiger jumps managed to gently flow and displaced outside the goal. In addition, Wild equalized a few seconds later and finally won.
« He’s the funniest goalkeeper in the world, » quotes Expressen commentator Jonathan Lindquista, and expert Erik Granqvist also added his opinion.
« I am enchanted. He is so far from the system goalkeeper and relies largely on feeling and good reading situations, » he told Viaplay.
Fleury is one of the four goalies who caught at least 1000 matches in the NHL and more wins than he has only the legend of New Jersey Devils Martin Brodeur.
« We are glad we can play in front of him. I think there is a great opportunity for all the defenders to play before the future member of the Hall of Fame, » said 31-year-old Calgary Flames Mackenzie Wegar.
Against Latvia, the first national goal in A-team Canada was Macklin Celebrini. He has in common with Fleury that he was also a draft unit, but when it became Fleury, his 22 years younger teammate was not in the world.
The fiasco was very close
Like Canada, Finland has two wins in the « Slovak » group, but Suomi has not yet convinced their performances. Austria overcame just 2: 1 and turned the sensation against France at twelve o’clock.
When Jordann Perret scored a goal in the empty goal at 57:18, it seemed to be decided. The French led 3: 1, disappointed fans of Finland left the arena in a large scale and DJ released Les Champs-Élysées.
But the Fíni again dismissed the goalkeeper and Eeli Tolven sent two goals to an extension in which Juuso Parsssinen decided.
Five points do not look bad on paper, but the Finns are far from satisfaction. In addition, they will face the Swedes on Monday to set up a mirror.
« The huge fiasco was very close. The lions have an awkward problem – to feel panic to the stands, » the journalist himself wrote in his comment.
He expects more especially from 30-year-old striker Teuvoo Teräväinen, who he wrote for Ilta-Sanomat that if the team does not take their shoulders, the team will find themselves in a blind alley.
Coach Antti Pennanen promised that there will be changes in individual formations, but it is questionable how to help the team. Compared to other hockey powers, the Finns have only six NHL players available.
Video: Cutting from France – Finland at the World Championship in Hockey 2025
Changed the stick and scored
There was no surprise in Herning Denmark on Sunday, and the victories were scored by Americans, Germans and Czechs.
David Pastrňák, a thorns from the heel, scored a decisive goal for a crucial victory over Norway 2: 1.
« A tough match. The Norwegians played great for how big they were and that they played the match on Saturday. Their goalkeeper stood on their heads, caught at least three to four goals. Finally, it is an important win for us, » Pastrňák told the Czech media.
Boston leader Bruins also revealed that just before the substitution, in which he opened a shooting account at this championship, he changed the stick.
« I fight the ice a bit. The puck is somehow jumping and trying to change something. I changed the stick, Roman (Červenka) found me and fortunately it fell there, » said the author of the winning goal of the World Championship in Prague and Ostrava.
Norwegians, who were not enough at Kazakhstan 1: 2 on Saturday, played a good match against the Czechs. They were also troubled last year, after two -thirds the score was balanced in the O2 Arena, but eventually the Czechs won 6: 3.
« We should apologize to Norwegians when we said they would be an outsider. We thought we would simply flush them and it wasn’t like that.
The result does not look a little good, we are lucky to have three points, « added the former hockey player and NHL player Jiří Tlustý for Sport.cz.
In less than 24 hours, the Czech Republic is waiting for a challenging match against Denmark, which is waiting for the first points at the World Championship. Last year, both teams showed an attractive 11-goal theater with a 7: 4 result for Czechs.
