A friendly match was held in Bled, Slovenia, featuring the youth national teams of Ukraine and France. Both teams are in the final stages of preparation for the World Championship in Division 1A, scheduled for December 7-13.
According to the press service of the FHU, this game was intended to provide head coach Andriy Sryubka with insights on which players may not make the final roster for the world tournament.
At the Ledena dvorana arena, our team lost to the French in a shootout, with a score of 2:3 (1:0, 0:0, 1:2, 0:0, 0:1).
In the first period, our team struggled to gain an advantage due to frequent penalties, but the French failed to capitalize on any power plays. The only penalty on the French side was converted by Shulha. It seemed that this goal would secure the victory, but in the last three minutes of regular time, both teams exchanged three goals.
Initially, Shybynskyi doubled Ukraine's lead, but just 15 seconds later, Riu spoiled Boyko's chances for a shutout. After a timeout, the French managed to equalize, scoring in a 6-on-4 format. In overtime, both teams had scoring opportunities, but no winner was decided. In a lengthy shootout, the French proved to be more accurate.
The first game of the World Championship is set for December 7, with Kazakhstan as Ukraine's opening opponent.