Big Latvia game Monday; Simek scores in debut

IIHF

After opening the IIHF World Junior Championship with a stunning upset win over Canada, Eriks Mateiko and Latvia were brought back down to reality on Saturday with a 5-1 loss to the United States.

The Latvians outshot the Americans 8-7 in the first period and trailed just 1-0 entering the second. But the underdogs could only contain the powerful United States offense for so long, allowing three goals in the middle frame and 34 shots against in the final 40 minutes.

Latvia is now 1-1 heading into their Monday showdown against Germany, which will be a pivotal game in determining who advances to the quarterfinals and who is forced into the relegation round. Game time is 4:30 p.m. Atlantic at the Canadian Tire Centre.

Mateiko, who scored in regulation time and the shootout on Friday against Canada, had one shot on goal and finished a -1 in 17:09 of ice time in the loss to the Americans.

The Saint John Sea Dogs captain is no longer the only player with a Sea Dog connection playing in this year's tournament. After being named to Czechia's preliminary roster but left off the team's submitted roster, former Sea Dogs forward Pavel Simek has officially been added to the lineup.

Simek, who is now a member of the Rimouski Oceanic, made his world junior debut on Sunday, scoring in the opening period of Czechia's 4-2 win over Slovakia.

Pavel Simek with a nifty move to give Czechia a 2-0 lead!#WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/J0Yov2lYpp

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) December 29, 2024

Simek played just 2:16 in Sunday's game. His goal was his only shot on net.

Czechia's next game is New Year's Eve against Sweden.

Some other news and notes...

• Team Canada had an unconvincing 3-0 win over Germany on Sunday, their first game after Friday's shootout loss to Latvia. The Canadians once again struggled to produce dangerous scoring chances. They'll face their biggest test of the tournament on Tuesday night against the United States.
• At the Spengler Cup, Gerard Gallant, Mike Kelly and Team Canada improved to 2-0 with a 6-3 win over the Straubing Tigers on Saturday. Canada will face the Tigers again in Monday's semifinals. The championship game takes place Tuesday.
• Former Sea Dogs defenseman Jakub Zboril and HC Dynamo Pardubice had their Spengler Cup come to an end with a 4-2 loss to the Tigers in quarterfinal action on Sunday. Zboril was held pointless in three games.