United States, Czechia tied after first period in semifinal at World Juniors
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The United States and Czechia are tied 1-1 after the first period in the semifinal at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship in Ottawa.
Gabe Perreault opened the scoring when he took a diving pass from captain Ryan Leonard and deked to beat Czech goaltender Michael Hrabal for the 1-0 lead. Aram Minnetian picked up the other assist on the goal.
Jakub Stancl tied the game for Czechia halfway through the period, taking advantage of a Logan Hensler turnover and beating American goaltender Trey Augustine with a shot over the glove from the left circle.
Leonard took the first penalty of the game just one minute into the opening frame, sending Czechia to the power play. The Czechs got two shots on net but couldn’t beat Augustine on the man-advantage.
The Americans went on the power play with 1:36 remaining in the period as Adam Zidlicky took a two-minute penalty for roughing right after Hrabal turned aside Leonard on a breakaway. Perreault rang a shot off the bar but did not score as the Americans will start the second period on the power play.
The winner of this semifinal will face Finland in the gold-medal game on Sunday while the loser will take on Sweden for bronze. The United States look to repeat as World Junior champions while Czechia looks to improve on last year’s bronze medal finish.