Russia 6-0 France 
Euro Hockey Challenge
Traktor Ice Arena, Chelyabinsk
Saturday, April 15, 2017
Russia avenged a shocking overtime loss to France with a thrashing of Les Bleus today in Chelyabinsk, winning the International Hockey Lineal Championship on the backs of a 6-0 shutout victory.
In net for France tonight was Sebastian Ylönen, giving Ronan Quemener a well-deserved night off after his 45-save performance on Thursday…but Ylönen did not quite have the same luck as his teammate. The Russians struck twice in 93 seconds early in the game, with similar looking point shots through traffic by defenders Andrei Mironov and Bogdan Kiselevich putting Russia ahead 2-0.
Maxim Shalunov would add a third tally on the power play on a nifty one-timer pass from Stepan Sannikov to take a 3-0 advantage into first intermission. Russia upped the pressure in the second, outshooting France 13-5, but despite an early rebound goal from Valeri Nichushkin to go ahead 4-0, Ylönen managed to hold the fort throughout.
However, the Russians sealed the win late in the third off of two errors by France to set the score at 6-0. First, it was a Mikhail Naumenkov pass attempt that deflected off defender Teddy Trabichet and in past Ylönen, followed by an easy 2-on-1 one-timer by Yegor Korshkov just 49 seconds later, following a brutal clearing attempt by Les Bleus. Ilya Sorokin, denied the shutout on Thursday, tonight gets the shutout win with a 19-save performance.
With the win, Russia recaptures the International Hockey Lineal Championship for the first time since 2014, winning their 67th title in their history. This marks the fourth all-time IHLC meeting between these two, the first coming in 1992 and the latest being yesterday’s 1-0 French overtime victory. Russia will now take the title to Switzerland for the third leg of the Euro Hockey Challenge, for a two-game set in Fribourg on Friday and Biel on Saturday.
BOXSCORE
1st Period
06:05 – GOAL – Mironov (Telegin)
07:01 – PEN – Treille, hooking
07:38 – PP GOAL – Kiselevich (Shalunov)
11:48 – PEN – Valier, tripping
13:10 – PP GOAL – Shalunov (Sannikov, Shumakov)
15:29 – PEN – Perret, holding
19:26 – PEN – Andronov, hooking
2nd Period
24:11 – GOAL – Nichushkin
26:50 – PEN – Sannikov, tripping
32:38 – PEN – Mamin, cross checking
33:52 – PEN – team, too many players
36:13 – PEN – Hecquefeuille, hooking
3rd Period
49:38 – PEN – Golyshev, tripping
54:21 – GOAL – Naumenkov (Mironov)
55:10 – GOAL – Korshkov (Tkachyov)
GOALTENDERS
W: Sorokin (19-19)
L: Ylönen (27-33)
SHOTS ON GOAL
9+13+11 = 33
5+5+9 = 19
ROSTERS
Goaltenders: Emil Garipov, Ilya Sorokin. Defence: Zakhar Arzamastsev, Artyom Blazhiyevski, Yaroslav Dyblenko, Vladislav Gavrikov, Bogdan Kiselevich, Andrei Mironov (A), Mikhail Naumenkov, Igor Ozhiganov. Forwards: Sergei Andronov (A), Anton Burdasov, Anatoli Golyshev, Yegor Korshkov, Pavel Kraskovski, Maxim Mamin, Valeri Nichushkin, Stepan Sannikov (C), Maxim Shalunov, Sergei Shumakov, Andrei Svetlakov, Ivan Telegin, Vladimir Tkachyov.
Goaltenders: Florian Hardy, Sebastian Ylönen. Defence: Nicolas Besch, Olivier Dame-Malka, Kévin Hecquefeuille (A), Damien Raux, Teddy Trabichet. Forwards: Maurin Bouvet, Valentin Claireaux, Teddy Da Costa, Floran Douay, Damien Fleury (A), Romain Gutierrez, Maxime Lacroix, Loïc Lampérier, Laurent Meunier (C), Jordann Perret, Nicolas Ritz, Sacha Treille, Peter Valier.
Photo Credit: FHR – IIHF – HHOF – IOC
