“The future stars of the NHL were against us, so I wanted to take advantage of it and catch every puck,” Suchánek did not hide his respect for his opponent.

Against Canada, he was in front of goal for the fifth time in his youth career. He especially wanted to make amends for the last mutual duel, when he replaced after only seven minutes and three goals conceded. It was last year at the U18 World Championship in Dallas, USA.

Its two biggest offensive stars – captain Mason McTavish and youngster Connor Bedard – also played for Canada. “I thought I had to catch at least one. McTavish hit twice, but at least I didn’t let Bedard do anything,” Suchánek said with a smile. Against McTavish, he’s already started twice in goal and caught it both times, so now the winning streak is over.

A total of 57 shots flew over Suchánek, of which he collected five times. “I think it was the most difficult game of my career, especially against Canada. But it was also probably my most fun game,” said Suchánek, who pointed to the attendance of 5,135 spectators.

430 supporters came to the derby with Slovakia and exactly a hundred more with Finland. Moreover, data on their number, as for some other matches, was missing after the end of the match, and the organizers added them only later. “I like it when a lot of people come. They chanted and cheered the whole game, I enjoyed it,” he described and thanked the audience for the final applause.

Suchánek participated in the championship for the first time. He didn’t know why Jan Bednář, who had started in both duels so far, hadn’t caught up. “The day before the match, goalkeeping coach Ondřej Pavelec came to see me and told me to get ready. The tournament is short and everyone needs to rest,” he said of the absence. from Bednář.

The schoolboy from Přerov has a match he will probably never forget. But unfortunately, he will not forget a single goal conceded. Specifically, the winner, when Kent Johnson surprised him with a lacrosse trick – behind goal he picked up the puck on his blade and threw it around the stick over Suchánk’s shoulder.

The Canadian striker probably made the best shot of the entire championship. “It’s very hard to catch. Basically, you have to hope it falls on it. Hopefully I’ll have better luck next time,” added the Czech shrine keeper.