In the 28th attempt of the shootout, Czech captain Eduard Šalé beat Swedish goalkeeper Marcus Gidlof, securing a dramatic 3-2 victory for the Czech Republic over Sweden. With this win, the Czechs claimed the bronze medal at the 2025 World Junior Championship in Canada, repeating their success from 2024.
The 14-round penalty shootout set a new record, doubling the length of the previous record-holding shootouts, both of which were decided after seven rounds in the semi-finals. In 2007, Jonathan Toews was Canada’s hero against the USA, while Troy Terry led the USA to victory over Russia in 2017.
With Sunday’s victory, the Czech Republic has now medaled for the third consecutive year. After claiming silver in 2023 and bronze in 2024, the Czechs have added another bronze to their tally. In the modern era, the Czech Republic has won three bronze medals—or nine, including the achievements of the former Czechoslovakia.
Coach Radim Augusta praised Šalé’s exceptional performance: “I told him before the game that he has the chance to be the only Czech player to win three medals [gold, silver, and bronze] in a row at the [World Juniors]!”
“It’s unbelievable,” Šalé said. “It started with the game against Canada, which we won, and ended with this last game against Sweden. We knew they were a great team. We’re happy that we managed to do this and take home another medal.”
Sweden had dominated the Czech Republic in recent years, winning 16 out of their previous 17 matchups. This was only the second bronze medal match between the two teams. In 2022, Sweden defeated the Czechs 3-1.
Following the sensational success of the Czech men’s team at the home World Championship in May last year, the junior team’s bronze medal is another milestone for Czech ice hockey. Fans have more to look forward to: the IIHF Women’s Ice Hockey World Championship will be held in České Budějovice in April 2025.
IIHF World Junior Championship 2025 | Canada
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