World Cup of Hockey 54 everything thread

[Banija]

Banijan hockey team, enjoying their play-in round bye at the Coldwater ski resort

"Alright, alright." Paul Masambe, Banija's head coach, put his hands up. Earning a bye was wholly unexpected- many thought they had a decent chance of the play-in round, but a top three group finish was wholly and entiely unexpected. Therefore, while the team was ready to go straight to Redswyth, Masambe thought the team could use a day off. They had handled things masterfully during group play, and the next stages were going to be ultra competitive. Therefore, because of that, the team could use a mental break.

Of course, the logistics of getting an entire roster of players and coaches, a one day vacation away from their families, was not easy. Fortunately, the BHF was able to work with those at Coldwater to get them a decent rate on a group stay. They obviously didn't need to rent it out entirely or anything- while they were pro hockey players, none of the Banijan hockey players had any high enough profile to really get recognized by a layperson here in Kelssek(or elsewhere, including in Banija itself).

"Who here knows how to snowboard?" And everybody laughed. The team had a great day scheduled- they had a ski instructor, and so they all basically learned the basics of skiing from a local. And that was... An adventure, to say the least. Masamble faceplanted twice, which was caught on camera by the Banijan Hockey Federation's social media team.

Michael Makonza, one of the captains, actually knew how to ski with legitimate skill. "Watch this boys." And he was the only one to avoid the bunny slopes. He wasn't exactly hitting a black diamond slope, but he flew off into the distance, off to cheers from the Banijan players. When he eventually met up with them at the lodge, they all cheered his name, lifted him up, and threw him in the air- so much for their chances at being unrecognized.

A fun, team-bonding moment. Would that help in their bid to upset maybe the bluest of the blue bloods in this sport in Elejamie? Remains to be seen- but with no injuries incurred, Masambe was at least all smiles as they team went back to the airport to fly back to Redswyth.

[Hafamarimyht]

RP Permissions
Choose my scorers: Yes
Choose my scoring events: Yes
Godmod scoring events: Yes
RP injuries to my players: No
Godmod Injuries to my players: No
Godmod other events: Yes within reason, feel free to tg me!

Nation Name: Hafamarimët
Demonym: Hafamari
Trigramme: HAF
Head Coach: Dupo Čemjanetka
Style Mod: +2

OFFENSE
First Line:
LW: Dïlgan Buvana (#9)
C: Doman Vïčekdučuk (#1)
RW: Tož Vänetka (#5)

Second Line:
LW: Tïjet Žalučuk (#8)
C: Pnetkada Nejanetka (#2)
RW: Tabina Rïnečuk (#7)

Third Line:
LW: Lërina Čvïp (#6)
C: Böjdan Pmigačuk (#3)
RW: Gajëk Sïlmaha (#4)

DEFENSE
Third Line:
LD: Tanel Čunsanetka (#31)
RD: Öjgana Penlëranetka (#33)

Second Line:
LD: Netan Žusbah (#10)
RD: Hunso Selërjučuk (#11)

Third Line:
LD: Selrama Kajučuk (#21)
RD: Ëtnav Röjčasïndan (#25)

GOALKEEPERS
Atvan Knaš (#00)
Tanel Röjvan (#86)
Kïno Sïčančuk (#98)


Däs Hafamarimëtu Play-intïnak Osterhalten Janču Bmjoca

Hafamari Team Will Play Against Osterhalten in Play-In Round

Hafamarimët’s national hockey team has finished the group stage with a winning record, finding victory in 5 out of 9 games played. This was enough to net the team 5th place in Group C, which features powerhouse teams from Zenic and Elejamie. Before the Play-In Round decides the team’s fate, let's take a look at their performances through the group stage.

The first game, played against the North Polish Union, saw Hafamarimët lose in overtime, with third-string goalie Kïno Sïčančuk missing Stefan Schulz’s shot with just a few seconds left on the clock.

In game 2, the team prevailed over Gyaromia 3-2. Two of the goals came from Doman Vïčekdučuk in the first period, with both assists by Tož Vänetka. In the third period, Pnetkada Nejanetka and Tïjet Žalučuk passed the puck quickly between each other, eventually distracting their opponents’ defense, giving Nejanetka the chance to score her first goal of this World Cup.

Playing at home against New Rotterdam, the Hafamari team scored 4 goals on their way to victory in game 3. Doman Vïčekdučuk earned a hat trick by scoring one goal each period, and Tož Vänetka’s second period goal gets his name put on the list of scorers.

Game 4 was, unfortunately, another loss, this time against Visayas Islands. The team put up a fight, scoring four goals, though unfortunately this would not be enough to beat the Visayan team’s six goals.

Luckily the team was back on their legs (or, skates) for game 5 against Placely Placington. It was Pnetkada Nejanetka’s turn for a hat trick, all three of which came in the final period after earlier goals from Böjdan Pmigačuk and Doman Vïčekdučuk.

The next team Hafamarimët would face was Zenic, a team that proved to be a challenge that Hafamarimët would lose. It was a solid game, with the Hafamari defense only allowing one goal. Unfortunately, the offense couldn't break through Zenic’s line and were unable to score. The offense continued to struggle in game 7 against Riandera, once again not scoring to counter Riandera’s two goals.

Game 8 would be the upset of the group stage for Hafamarimët, managing to beat the Elejamian team 7-5. Elejamie maintained the lead of the group overall, though the previously-undefeated team now has a 1 in the L column. Doman Vïčekdučuk got his second hat trick of the stage, with other goals scored by Tož Vänetka (2), Dïlgan Buvana (1), and Tïjet Žalučuk (1).

A 5-1 extravaganza would be Hafamarimët’s game 9 against Andso Mangis. Goals scored by Doman Vïčekdučuk (2), Tož Vänetka (1), Pnetkada Nejanetka (1), and Tabina Rïnečuk (1) helped the team cruise to victory, earning them a spot in the Play-In Round.

[Kelssek]

Play-in round
Darmen 1–1 Equestrian States (1–2 SO)
Natkr 2–5 Vetrahjart
Visayas Islands 3–5 Savojarna
Osterhalten 2–1 Hafamarimyt


Round of 16 fixtures
Ko-oren (A1) vs. Osterhalten (PL4) - Federation Arena, Neorvins
Elejamie (C2) vs. Banija (D3) - Salmonwynd, Redswyth
Zenic (C1) vs. Vetrahjart (PL2) - Falls Creek, Burnaby
TJUN-ia (B2) vs. Calgasia (A3) - Laineä Arena, Alavaria
Valanora (B1) vs. Savojarna (PL3) - Aréna Olympique, Langlois
New Rotterdam City (C3) vs. Kelssek (D2) - Maritime Life Arena, Breton
United States of Nova Calania (D1) vs. Equestrian States (PL1) - Catfields, Novonaya
Squornshelan Remnant States (A2) vs. Darkmania (B3) - Jardins de la Carée-Boudoin, Laneux

This is also how the bracket will start. Please note the cutoff time change to 13:00 UTC - next scorination will be in approximately 59 hours.

[Ko-oren]

The Gelogathingun Administration: Prologue, Pt 3

Parliament demands Navy restructuring information

Lazaran Sezinnau, member of the Liberal fraction of Parliament, has invoked the democratically elected organisation's right to halt a ministerial plan while the 144 members of parliament get an opportunity to investigate further. The procedure requires a two-thirds supermajority vote, which passed 103-41 last Lathajul - three days ago - with full support of five out of seven major fractions (Democratique 20, Midori 19, Labour 20, Liberal 17, Regionals 11) and the remaining votes coming from minor fractions.

Sezinnau's request entails full details into the costs of the Navy's restructuring as well as technical information about the ships to be bought or sold. The Liberal fraction did not want to speculate into what they would find in the full documents, whereas the Democratique fraction openly argued that the Ministry of Defence was hiding crucial details. Juvei Amulo of Democratique: "We have reason to believe that the costs will run far beyond the broad estimates that have been announced to us. The purpose of parliament is for us to investigate and give advice, something that we believe would have helped Defence had they included us earlier. We can only assume why that is," he said, choosing to end his sentence there.

The move has made waves in the political sphere, as it is not a procedure that is invoked often. Sezinnau: "Matters that directly impact what's in the Constitution - Chapter one, even - as well as the chance that costs will skyrocket, putting strain on the budget, meaning that other matters cannot be paid for, I believe, should be subject to audit." The parliament, which sees a change of one-third of its members every two years, has invoked the right twice in the last six years, so whenever it happens, it creates a scene. The recent increase in the size of the ministry of Defence means they will have the manpower to respond to Parliament's question, but it might not have the experience to carry out the stipulations of the law in full. It took several attempts for the Ministry of Revenue and Tax to answer their queries the last time.

Minister of the Navy, Badrick Corcay, said he will abide by the law, but also questions whether Parliament has the expertise necessary to evaluate the plan. "The Navy and national defence don't come natural to Ko-oren, so we want to make sure that the investigation carried out by the members of parliament holds up to scrutiny in itself. It's easy enough to ask questions about the budget, but I frankly do not see what parliamentary staff can add to the work of my staff. I also do not want to lose much time on this, we wanted to complete the preparatory work before the end of next year so that the quotes and contracts will automatically be fulfilled over the next decade. It might seem long as a timescale, but there will be all kinds of intermediary deadlines that might now be pushed back, let alone the quotes that Anaian companies have already put out will run out. Delay quite simply means budget overreach, so if that's what parliament is looking for - they've found it."

Democratique frontrunner Azhdhari Aunenra will put up more of a fight. "To the defence experts in parliament, this is an important inquiry. As for the rest of parliament, it's a matter of us being able to put this pressure on the ministries to begin with - we see prime minister Gelogathingun's changes to the laws that govern our democracy. Unfortunately for her, the previous administration had our rights entrenched in the constitution - it is our job to make sure that future constitutional reform will not erase this opportunity for the Ko-orenite people to control the government."

As for the content of the restructuring itself, there remain questions about the specifications of the ships and whether they are bought futureproof enough, as well as the number of ships, which some quote as 'being far too high' given Ko-oren's population, economy, exclusive economic zone, as well as the pacifist principles outlined in the constitution. On top of that, foreign experts have wondered whether (weapon) systems line up with each class' intended use: there are several support classes named, which do fit in with the stated aims of the navy, but which do not have clear specifications. The border between navy and coast guard will continue to be muddy, which has already led to questions by Coast Guard minister Baudilio Pinta.

[TJUN-ia]

Kordavia 0–4 TJUN-ia
Kaumann 0–2 TJUN-ia
TJUN-ia 0–0 HUElavia (2–1 SO)

The final three games of this group stage for the Ice Jaguars of TJUN-ia were much better from them, a run of games that saw two convincing shutout wins and a shutout triumph that will never be discussed again.

And so, we progress into the knockout stage with hope renewed that maybe, we can cause some chaos.We will start out knockout journey back in Alavaria against the team who finished 3rd in Group A - #17 Calgasia.

GAME ON!
GO ICE JAGS!

---

SCHEDULE (Group B)
MD1: vs Natkr (25) - Falls Creek Arena, Burnaby W 8-2 (1st)
MD2: vs Darkmania (10) - Maritime Life Arena, Breton W 2-0 (T-1st)
MD3: vs Of the Golden Harp (80) - Salmonwynd Arena, Redswyth W 2-0 (2nd)
MD4: vs Valanora (1) - Aréna Olympique, Langlois L 3-3 (1-2 SO) (2nd)
MD5: vs Equestrian States (59) - Northlands SuperBarn, Clayquot L 3-5 (T-3rd)
MD6: vs Sea Peoples League (UR) - Federation Arena, Neorvins W 8-5 (3rd)
MD7: vs Kordavia (34) - Laineä Arena, Alavaria W 4-0 (2nd)
MD8: vs Kaumann (UR) - Salmonwynd Arena, Redswyth W 2-0 (2nd)
MD9: vs HUElavia (19) - Harbourside Gardens, Kirkenes W 0-0 (2-1 SO) (2nd/21pts/+17GD)
-----------------------------------------------
Ro16: vs Calgasia (17/A3) - Laineä Arena, Alavaria

[Zenic]

And now the knockouts officially commence for the Frozen Survivors.

After the miraculous comeback to win Group C on the final matchday, Zenic needed a few days off to recuperate before being able to turn their attention to the knockout rounds. Thankfully, the Play-In Round existed so Zenic was forced to wait and see who they would face in the Round of 16. They did have a slight advantage as they were able to travel to Burnaby ahead of time while Natkr and Vetrahjart dueled for one of the final four spots.

While those two were currently battling, Per took the time to think over the last few days of the group stage. Zenic had finished with a 7 game winning streak, including a thrilling overtime win against New Rotterdam City on the final day following several other close games in the matchdays leading up to this match. The key matchup for this game was center versus center. At the top, it was Vlastimir Tomislav versus Maarten van der Heck. Their constant jockeying for position and large bodies both helped screen their teammate's shots from the opposing goalie and added another wall for their opponents to break through for a shot on goal. And it was a similar story all the way down the lines.

Eventually, New Rotterdam City struck first thanks to Crispus de Bondt's shot finding a way through the mass of bodies in front of him. Zenic would eventually respond during the second period as Vlastimir needed just a tiny bit of space for his stick to redirect a Scarlett shot. Ness took a different approach, collecting the puck on a rebound from the boards between the blue lines and outskating Dolf Ebben in a race before sneaking the puck underneath one of Posquanto's blockers. Up 2-1 after the second period, things looked to be on the up and up. The 'vibes' in the locker room got even better once they realized Elejamie was not in the lead in their game against the Visayas Islands. All they needed to do was hold onto the lead and hope Elejamie did not win in regulation in order to be group winners.

Linus Kockelmans, and to some extent Joop Jager, had other plans. The duo drew up a play that drew Azazel away from the goal and gave Potucket a high percent shot that equalized the game at 2-2 near the start of the 3rd period. Shortly after, Jan Hoogveld caught the defense napping and slipped right through for a one-on-one with Stevo that the hunter from Meunsteerstad won. Suddenly down 3-2 with half a period left, Per had needed to make a decision: go all out on attack or stay the course and let things play out? He was tempted to both sides but ultimately chose to stay the course and believe in his squad.

That turned out to be the correct decision. With 3 minutes remaining, the MVP for Zenic so far, Nicolò Breandán, skated back and forth in front of goal until he caught Hessel de Meyer stuck going the wrong way and slotted in the 3rd Zenician goal. The goal occurred too late for either team to truly change anything and overtime was on the books. The mood was sour as everyone entered the locker room until a member of staff came rushing in with a phone in their hand. They said just two words: "Elejamie lost." Suddenly, hope sprung eternal and Per's speech was basically different variations of "Let's get this done quick."

And quick it was. Just 2 minutes into OT, Linda wrapped around the New Rotterdam City goal and passed the puck across the net to a streaking Yukiko who put it away for the 3-2 OT win. The celebration on the ice was much deserved as Zenic's road to a potential title was now much easier. But not THAT much easier.

Per was reviewing the brackets online for the 20th time that day. Regardless of who they faced in the Round of 16, the only possible round where Zenic could face a team outside the top 25 in the knockouts was the final itself. At that point, it would be either 59th Equestrian States or unranked Savojarna. Otherwise, Zenic would have to win 4 straight top 25 matchups in order to be crowned champions of the ice hockey world. Just then, his phone pinged with a notification that read: Natkr 2–5 Vetrahjart.

That settled things: the road to glory started with Vetrahjart.

[Elejamie]

Jesus fucking Christ.

Did the wheels start falling off towards the end there? Did they start getting complacent when they realised that they had automatically qualified and thus could throw away those last two games? Is Margaret forcing them to job again, if not going back to her ways of actively screwing them over? Did they not sacrifice enough people to her and now she's pissed off at them? Did the refs suddenly take payments from under the table? Did the players? Were there shenanigans going on? Did the whole two-coach tandem suddenly stop working? What the fuck happened here? First there was the Hafamarimët match where they went from a 4-3 lead to a 7-5 defeat, and then there was the Visayas Islands match where they were shut out 2-0. I guess I have to recap them.

At least the Hafamarimet match saw them actually try for part of it; again, they were leading 4-3 by the end of the second. Things went off well with a brace from Stacy Saunders in the first period, first with 19:02 left and then with 11:02 left. Of course they allowed two unanaswered to make it 2-2 by the end of the period. Fortunately they bounced back with a goal with 14:03 left, thanks to a bit of clever deking from Kiko Carpio. They leveled the scores once more but Adrian Backer scored one more with 4:07 left in the period to make it 4-3. That should've been it, just keep a solid defence and ride it out until the end of the third period. But no, the Ice-a-phants proceeded to completely shit the bed. Hafamarimët levelled, then took the lead, and then extended it. At that point Ricardo Bejarano was pulled and replaced by Adrian Lambert. A couple of fights broke out during this period, and very nearly a line brawl, but fortunately James Han managed to give Elejamian fans a little bit of hope thanks to him scoring with only 9:52 left in the period. Too bad the opposing team scored once more after that and the match pretty much ended 7-5.

The Visayas Islands match, however, was a complete clusterfuck with both goals coming from team captain Lucas del Prado. Meanwhile the Elejamian squad either failing to adapt to the other team's tactics or copying the England national side (or mayhap the Pittsburgh Steelers) by playing down to their competition, that or maybe they realised that they had already qualified and decided to peace out. By the third period Jon Horton was seen repeatedly taking squirts from his bottle, which turned out to have gin and tonic in it instead of water. Eduardo Carreras, on the other hand, was repeatedly seem sucking on a pen as if it was a cigarette. No one could really blame him due to a combination of an indoor smoking and vaping ban, a nationwide ban on snus with tobacco in it, and him using snuff being easily misconstrued as him taking something that would get him in trouble. After the match Jon Horton refused to be interviewed, and Eduardo Carreras called the entire team out and told them not to celebrate them making it through to the next round.

As a result, Elejamie's hard-fought first place slipped and they ended up finishing second behind Zenic. Maybe this was a punishment for embarrassing the Frozen Survivors earlier in the group stage. Maybe it was a punishment for complacency. Who knows. Either way, it was an absolute omnishambles that will hopefully be the worst of it this competition. New Rotterdam City scooped up the last of the automatic qualifiers with their third place finish. The Visayas Islands finished fourth and Hafamarimët fifth, meaning that they weren't exactly out of the woods just yet. The North Polish Union ended up finishing sixth, but considering how the team had essentially underperformed all competition it's now a question of whether or not the coach will be joining his team on their plane ride home. Placely Placington finished seventh with a 2-5-2-0 record, which was much better than everyone had been expecting from a bunch of clones that die just as easily as they are replaced. Gyaromia finished eighth, whereas Andso Mangis and Riandera finished ninth and tenth respectively with five points coming from their 1-6-0-2 records; while the former had conceded more goals (43 vs 31) and a worse point differential (-27 vs -23), they did also manage to beat the latter 1-0 earlier in the tournament which is why they ended up finishing ahead. On the upside, at least they weren't Kaumann who finished in last place over in Group B without a single win; they did pick up a couple of points from OT losses, 3-2 against The Golden Harp and 3-2 against Darkmania, so at least they didn't exit the competition with only a goose egg to their name.

While the Ice-a-phants made their way over to Kelssek proper and trained for the Round of 16, the play-in round was taking place. All the fourth and fifth placed teams had to battle it out to see who would be joining the twelve remaining teams and who would be joining the other twenty teams in going home. Darmen and the Equestrian States had a hard-fought 1-1 battle that not even overtime could separate, but it would be the Ponies who'd reign supreme when they won the shoot-out 2-1. Vetrahjart had no problems with despatching Natkr as Løvernen triumphed 5-2. Savojarna also scored five in their match but allowed three, whereas Osterhalten were just able to edge out their opponents with a 2-1 scoreline. And who were their opponents? The Visayas Islands and Hafamarimët respectively. If only they didn't ask the monkey's paw for help in beating Elejamie.

Speaking of Elejamie, who were they up against? Banija, a team that they were somewhat familiar with. They had a good amount of respect for their head coach Paul Masambe, given that he had taken a team without much of an ice hockey scene and turned them into a decent squad. Not necessarily world-beaters but still a team that should have some eyes on them. Granted, they didn't get off to the best of starts, losing 3-2 in the shoot-out to Abanhfleft after their match finished 3-3, but they did bounce back with a 3-1 win over the Kylter Peninsulae. And then they proceeded to get stomped by Nova Calania 6-1, though they did manage to turn the tide and thrash Choppyhausen 6-0, Pafi 7-2 and arguably the Ophiuchus Region 6-2 to keep themselves above water. They managed to shut out Savojarna 2-0 to move into the top three, snatched a victory against Osterhalten 1-0 to secure a spot and lost 2-1 to hosts Kelssek in a match that ultimately meant nothing.

On paper, this didn't seem like it would be too tough of a match. Banija weren't exactly Gyaromia or Placely Placington, they wouldn't go down that easily, but they weren't exactly Ko-oren or Valanora either. A hard-fought battle was on the cards and it was more than likely that the Ice-a-phants could easily snatch up a win. However, those two defeats to end the group stage had taken the wind out of their sails. While it didn't demotivate the team per se, it had left Jon and Eduardo in a bad mood and now they were hoping to finally right the ship before the whole thing collapses and they'll probably be looking for new jobs. It also didn't help that they were the reigning champs, so there was already a lot of weight on their shoulders. But hey, some people work a lot better under stress. And the two co-coaches were hoping and they would join those fabled ranks as they got to work on a game plan.

Even if they had four cigarettes, a can of energy drink each and half a small bottle of vodka to help them cope.

[Kelssek]

Infinity swimming pools. Made of glass. With miniature dolphins in them. Well, that last bit might be a step too far. But at this price point some imagination is needed to stand out, so maybe. What defines the five-star hotels, though, is both the luxury, seamless, and genuflecting treatment they give their guests but also the impeccable consistency. It's all about knowing what your customer wants before they do, and you can infer a lot from the profile of person your hotel is dealing with, even before they became ruthlessly calculated by algorithm. It's things like remembering their name, too.

Some luxury chains have seen more than their share of murder mysteries. Why would storylines of guests at any given hotel intertwine in deadly ways? It’s probably not anything peculiar to rich people, or to their loyalty program. It sure is food for thought that money can’t buy you peace of mind. But the murder rate at any of these chains is probably a bit less than the one off Highway 25 used to exchange bags of drugs.

Avelenn Grand. An exclusive, elevated, and (practically) murder-free experience by Avelenn Hotels group.

[Kelssek]

RP cutoff

[Kelssek]

Round of 16
Ko-oren 4–5 Osterhalten
Elejamie 5–0 Banija
Zenic 1–0 Vetrahjart
TJUN-ia 5–4 Calgasia
Valanora 2–0 Savojarna
Kelssek 6–4 New Rotterdam City (scorinated by Tumbra)
United States of Nova Calania 6–2 Equestrian States
Squornshelan Remnant States 1–0 Darkmania

Quarterfinals
Osterhalten vs. Elejamie - Harbourside Gardens, Kirkenes
Zenic vs. TJUN-ia - Aréna Olympique, Langlois
Valanora vs. - Maritime Life Arena, Breton
United States of Nova Calania vs. Squornshelan Remnant States Northlands SuperBarn, Clayquot

[Zenic]

1-0. Literally the slimmest of margins possible in Ice Hockey.

That was the difference between Zenic and Vetrahjart in Burnaby. Both squads got their chances in during the first and second periods but nothing seemed to land with much authority. Aesop Stevo and Kristvin Tómassen were both riding clean sheets deep into the third period when Linda Laxmi skated onto the ice to become the hero the Frozen Survivors needed. Thanks to the selfless passing by Yukiko, Teresita, and Ejvind, Linda was able to get the puck with a perfect angle at the net, even with Marcus Aune on her. Her shot found its way past Tómassen's right shoulder and sneak inside the far post for the go-ahead goal. A few saves here and there from Stevo helped secure the win.

The dream was still alive but it had gone into cardiac arrest for a bit. The end result: 1 game down, 3 more to go. Quarterfinals required them to head to the city of Langlois in Southwest Kelssek to face 8th ranked TJUN-ia. The Ice Jaguars were as close to a bizarro version of the Frozen Survivors owing to the fact that they were as equally offensive in strategy as Zenic were defensive. Per's counterpart, Ølson Rasmussen, managed to get this squad to finish only 4 points behind Valanora in Group B before winning a wild 5-4 game against rising stars Calgasia.

While Per, the rest of the staff, and the players knew not to look too far ahead, it was only mortal of them to think of the possibilities. A resurging Osterhalten or a rematch with the defending champions Elejamie would be what awaited them in the semifinals should they make it past TJUN-ia. After that? A duel with the hosts, a confrontation with a fellow member of the bottom half of the top 10, another chapter in the Zenic- Nova Calania rivalry or a rematch of the World Cup of Hockey 28 final. Victory here would ensure Zenic's first trip to the Semifinals since World Cup of Hockey 51: where they ultimately finished third after defeating Srednjaci 2-1 in overtime. Maybe this time, they push all the way to the promised land.

Maybe, it was time to focus on TJUN-ia and actually get another step closer to that dream.

[Elejamie]

"Huh."

That was how Jon Horton reacted to the Banija match over at Salmonwynd in Redswyth. The match that he and his fellow co-coach Eduardo Carreras had stressed over, the match where they had to come up with the perfect plan to save their hides, the match that they insisted their players follow their game plan to a T. They came into this match with a slight bit of dread behind their cool exteriors... and left the match somewhat puzzled as to what they were worried about going into it. Jon saw the result on the jumbotron and gave a nonplussed "Huh." Almost as if he he didn't know how to process the whole thing.

Eduardo noticed it as well. He shook his head and told his colleague "My thoughts exactly." He then went over to the Banijan bench to shake Paul Musembe's hand, with Jon doing the same thing shortly afterwards. Afterwards the duo and their team went to their locker room, the players celebrating and the coaches wondering how they managed to pull this off. Maybe expecting the worst can actually work out for you, especially if you manage to grab a 5-0 win out of it. It may not have been as good as them scoring 6+ goals like they did in the early stages of the tournament, but they will still take it.

And to give Banija some credit, they did a good job of keeping it tight throughout the first period. After all, they had beaten the Ice-a-phants 2-0 the last time they played, thus preventing them from getting a clean sweep, and they weren't just hoping that the magic from that match would return but they were also repeating what they had been doing in that match. Malick Sissako was doing as solid a job in net as he did in the aforementioned match, having stopped all eleven of Elejamie's shots during that opening period. Even when the Banijans found themselves a player down after Sayon Diarra was sent to the box for cross-checking Stacy Saunders, Sissako was still able to keep each and every single shot out of the net. The trade-off? Banija were unable to score a single goal themselves. Whether they be at even strength, with a man advantage or with a man on the bench, none of their players were able to move the puck past Adrian Lambert. As a result, the first period ended goalless with both sides hoping that they would get the all-important goal in the second.

Banija kept it tight in the first, yes, but the cracks were starting to show in the second. Sissako did a good job of shutting out Elejamie for the first half of the period, with the closest to a goal coming when he just managed to get a skate to a Harrison Blackburn shot before it crossed the line. All with 13:02 left on the clock. But for the remaining ten minutes of the period, it wasn't looking too good. The first sign that things weren't going to end well was when Idrissa Sissako was given a minor for accidentally clipping Adrian Backer. While they did admirably the last time they were a man down, one could argue that it was either down to luck or just Elejamie's power play unit not doing as well as they should. This time around, the Ice-a-phants managed to put the work in and, with 7:42 left in the period, Saunders managed to open up the scoring with a wrist shot that Sissako just couldn't get a glove to; Cerin Meloten and Diego Pinto were both credited with asissts. The good news was that they were able to prevent any more goals from being scored, even if again none of their players were able to add their names to the scoresheet.

The bad news was that they just completely fell apart in the third period. Did they run out of gas? Did their luck just run out? Did they not plan this far ahead? Did Elejamie switch up their tactics and take Banija by surprise? Or was it Banija who switched things up and it completely blew up in their faces? Whatever the case was, it lead to the visitors allowing four straight goals in the period. Things didn't seem too bad when, with Backer made it 2-0 to his side, scoring a one-timer off of Blackburn's pass after he received the puck from Rafael Espinosa. And things might potentially turn a corner when Charlie Spreitzer was given a double minor for high-sticking Abayo Elamè. Instead it lead to a short-handed goal for the Ice-a-phants when, with 12:44 left, Blackburn and Espinosa found themselves in a 2-on-1 with the Mainsborough winger being the one to score the lucky goal to make it 3-0. And with 6:44 left, Stacy Saunders managed to score off the back of intense pressure as well as a bit of back-up from Meloten and Bill Harrison. Eventually, with a minute left and hoping to at least salvage a point from this debacle, Musembe made the difficult decision to pull Sissako for an extra attacker. This seemed to work at first but in the dying seconds, 4.9 to be exact, Franco Astori scored an unassisted empty netter to cap off an amazing display for his side.

It was also one of two matches in the Round of 16 that saw someone win by a goal or more; the other was Nova Calania's 6-2 victory over the Equestrian States. Zenic had to settle for a simple 1-0 victory, courtesy of Linda Laxmi. TJUN-ia had a hard-fought battle over Calgasia that saw the Ice Jags triumph 5-4. Valanora managed to shut-out a resurging Savojarna with a 2-0 scoreline. Hosts Kelssek kept themselves alive by beating New Rotterdam City 6-4 in a match that was absolutely studded with goals. And the Squornshelan Remnant States also had to settle for a 1-0 victory, this time against Darkmania. Oh yeah, and Osterhalten managed to beat Ko-oren 5-4.

Let's go back a bit, right to the beginning. Osterhalten got off to a great start when they beat the Kytler Peninsulae 6-2 in their opening match before going down 6-4 to Nova Calania. Disappointing, yes, but it was a minor stumbling block as they managed to snatch a 3-2 win against Choppyhausen, a 6-5 victory over Pafi, humble the Ophiuchus Region 4-1, and defeat Savojarna 4-3 to move themselves up to second place. Unfortunately a 2-0 loss to Kelssek saw them booted down to fourth place and a second consecutive shut-out, this time 1-0 to Banija, meant that they were at the mercy of the play-in round; the only saving grace was that, no matter how badly this last match went, they wouldn't be able to sink any further. Fortunately for them, they did manage to cap things off with a 6-4 win over an Abanhfleft side that was pretty much playing for pride at that point. And they were able to edge out Hafamarimët 2-1 to make it through to the last 16 with a 6-3-0-0 record. The downside was that they were up against Ko-oren, who were not only one of the best ice hockey teams out there (even if they are sadly lacking a WCoH trophy) but they also managed to top their group with a 7-0-1-1 record; their only defeat was a 2-0 shoot-out loss to Eshialand on the final day and even then that was after the match finished 3-3. This could end only one way, right?

Wrong. In a match that probably saw a few gamblers make some serious dough, Osterhalten managed to defy the odds and, as previously mentioned, vanquish Ko-oren 5-4. As a result, they are the only team from the play-in round left in the tournament. On paper this would be an easy victory for Elejamie. They were up against a marginally weaker opponent who not only had a tougher time in the group stage but also had an extra game to play which might make them more tired overall. Furthermore this was their first tournament without longtime captain Arlo Archambault, who was relieved from his position and his spot in the team following a disastrous WCoH53 campaign. On the other hand, not only had they been on a stellar run since Archambault was turfed out but that surprise victory against the Dragonflies would make any opponent team wary of them no matter how good they were. Still, both they and the Ice-a-phants had to travel all the way over to Kirkenes to not only train but also play their match. Jon and Eduardo were counting on two things. The first was that they would be able to come up with a solid enough game plan to win them a spot in the final four.

The second was hoping that the EIHB hadn't booked them rooms at one of those Avelenn murder hotels.

[Osterhalten]

Abahnfleft (1-6-2-0) 4-6 (6-3-0-0) Osterhalten

1st Period
4:29 Cooke (3) - Vaillant (5), Maraker (3)
8:04 Maiella (1) - Moncade, Cooke (3)
11:28 Kestrel (3) - Eaton (11), Brite (4)
18:50 Vaillant (1) - Maraker (4), Cooke (4)
2nd Period
8:54 Brite (8) - Eaton (12), Kestrel (9)
3rd Period
11:22 Behringer (3) - Savatier-LaCoste (3), Hurley (4)

---

Osterhalten 2-1 Hafamarimyt
2nd Period
12:25 Eaton (4) - Brite (5), Kestrel (10)
16:04 Maraker (3) - Vaillant (6), Cooke (5)

---

(A1) Ko-Oren 4-5 Osterhalten (PL4)

1st Period
8:23 Eaton (5) - Kestrel (11), Moncade (1)
17:22 Maraker (4) - Moncade (2), Vaillant (7)
2nd Period
3:33 Reis (4) - A. Cooley (2), Labat (3)
8:02 Savatier-LaCoste (5) - Behringer (5), Hurley (5)
3rd Period
17:43 Eaton (6) - Kestrel (12), Brite (6)

Now that was good hockey. After a depressing stretch of shutout losses to close competition and wins barely edged out in the face of less experienced competition, the Otters took down the heavily-favorited, 3rd-ranked Dragonflies of Ko-oren en route to punching a ticket to the nations first ever World Cup of Hockey quarterfinals.

The first period commenced to intense fanfare: passionate locals from Kelssek intertwined with even more intense fans from the two countries with a major stake in the game, who flooded the stands with dueling seas of green, blue and yellow versus Osterhalten’s blue, red and cream. Until about 8 minutes into the frame, the game was scoreless and possession had tilted in Ko-Oren’s favor. At the eight minute mark in an defensive zone draw, Theo Eaton matched up against Ko-oren center Lumjagau and won the puck backwards to the waiting Adrien Moncade, who began a textbook breakout of the zone, passing up the wall to Arlen Kestrel who fed it center-ice to Eaton, exiting the zone after his spirited battle with Lumjagau. Pursued quickly by Lumjagau, Eaton passed it back to Kestrel who switched places with Brute, passing it as they crossed paths. Brite entered along the left wing, as Eaton split the defense and headed towards the hash marks, where Brite fed a pass through to him that was quickly wrangled and sent into the top corner of the net. Later in the first on a power play, after a Ko-orenite equalizer, second liner Henrik Maraker found the back of the net from the top of the face off circle, off of consecutive passes from veteran defenseman Adrien Moncade and centerman Nicolas Vaillant to bring the score to 2-1. However, this lead was short lived, as Lumjagau got his revenge on Eaton and tied the game at 2, with just a minute left in the first period. Osterhalten fired first and second in the second period, with a five hole goal by Sebastian Reis and a breakaway marker by young Aurelien Savatier-LaCoste 3 and 8 minutes in, respectively. These goals were responded to not until the beginning of the third, when Aegomenna scored two goals back to back within a minute of each other to start the period, giving heavy momentum to the Dragonflies.

Entering the final minutes of the game, the score was tied at four apiece and overtime was looking more likely by the second. After serious pressure by the Ko-orenite squad, Kestrel managed to secure a second of possession with the puck free from being hounded by Dragonflies. As Ko-oren went for a line change, three Otter players went as well leaving the ice mostly open for the time being to him and Eaton. While momentarily the balance would shift, as fresh Ko-orenites would leave the bench, Kestrel didn’t wait for more numbers to attack, instead, set off with every piece of energy he had remaining to force a sloppy change or cause some confusion for the Dragonflies which he succeeded in making. He and Eaton were off to the races, nearing the red line by the time the first defenders were getting themselves collected and scurrying off the bench to meet them. They entered two on two, with Kestrel remaining in possession and skating wide while Eaton drove leftwards and wide to open a pathway to the middle. In tandem, in a way that could’ve only been planned, the two turned at nearly identical times to skate towards the goal and in the momentary confusion and milliseconds before the next wave of players arrived from the bench, Kestrel fired the puck to the far low pad of one of the best goalies to ever play, Bertus Bitterboom. Eaton received the rebound off of the pad and used Bitterboom’s rightward momentum against him, skating across the crease to score on the almost open left (goalie’s perspective) side of the net to give Osterhalten the unexpected lead heading into the final two minutes. While Bitterboom was pulled out of desperation neither team managed a goal, leaving the final score at 5-4 Otters.

The Otters now head to Kirkenes to face off against their second consecutive powerhouse opponent in 2nd-ranked Elejamie, who stand to be equal or better competition to the startlingly defeated Ko-oren squad. Elejamie’s round of 16 5-0 victory over Banija, who the Osterhaltienne team was shut out themselves by is no reassuring matter.If Osterhalten can pull back to back victories against worldwide top-3 competition, Frank Powell’s job will surely be safe for the time being, even after two less-than-stellar group stages.

[TJUN-ia]

After taking home wins in our final three group games, the Ice Jaguars of TJUN-ia entered the knockout stage of this World Cup of Hockey in 2nd place in Group C with only 2 losses to their name. Considering the negative attitude that had permeated around this sport at times, the fact that we looked that good in the group stage had to be a good sign that something was working for Ølson Rasmussen in this system. But back home, the Playoffs now rang like a bell in the still air. The Playoffs are the ultimate test of hockey grit and hockey guts, and everyone knew our true potential could only be realised in this eternal plane. Everyone knew what was at stake, so were we ready to play?

At Laineä Arena in Alavaria, we had a date with #17 Calgasia, the 3rd-placed team from Group A. Everyone knew that this was going to be a tough test, no matter the ranking difference between us and, what we ended up with was an absolute war between two teams desperate for an opportunity at something good. The first two periods were 2-2 fever dreams, with Stefan Hoffmann (x2) being countered by Mary Karaitiana (x2) while Lea Weber and Katharina Bohm were met with responses from Liu Min-Chun and Karina Stepova. At 4-4 in the 3rd, things were tense as all hell, as both teams knew that one small mistake could be the difference between a Quarterfinal and the plane home. It was simply too hard to call...and then it happened. Forty to go, with overtime looming, Klara Hilderbrandt became the hero and punched the puck past Max Altmann to secure what would be the game winner. 5-4. TJUN-ia's weakest Big 5 sport stays alive one more round.

That triumph felt like a cloud overhead giving way to sunshine...and we want more of that. Zenic, world #6 and the winners of Group C, are up next back at Aréna Olympique in Langlois in a matchup in which we will be underdogs, but only just.
This one may end up being too close to call...so buckle up.
GAME ON!
GO ICE JAGS!

---

SCHEDULE (Group B)
MD1: vs Natkr (25) - Falls Creek Arena, Burnaby W 8-2 (1st)
MD2: vs Darkmania (10) - Maritime Life Arena, Breton W 2-0 (T-1st)
MD3: vs Of the Golden Harp (80) - Salmonwynd Arena, Redswyth W 2-0 (2nd)
MD4: vs Valanora (1) - Aréna Olympique, Langlois L 3-3 (1-2 SO) (2nd)
MD5: vs Equestrian States (59) - Northlands SuperBarn, Clayquot L 3-5 (T-3rd)
MD6: vs Sea Peoples League (UR) - Federation Arena, Neorvins W 8-5 (3rd)
MD7: vs Kordavia (34) - Laineä Arena, Alavaria W 4-0 (2nd)
MD8: vs Kaumann (UR) - Salmonwynd Arena, Redswyth W 2-0 (2nd)
MD9: vs HUElavia (19) - Harbourside Gardens, Kirkenes W 0-0 (2-1 SO) (2nd/21pts/+17GD)
-----------------------------------------------
Ro16: vs Calgasia (17/A3) - Laineä Arena, Alavaria W 5-4
QF: vs Zenic (6/C1) - Aréna Olympique, Langlois

[Kelssek]

Kelssek flirts with disaster but hangs on for quarterfinal berth

It was a match that was much more nervy and disjointed than the Voyagers would have liked, marked by a horrendous showing on the penalty-kill that came close to costing Kelssek the game. In the end Kelssek hung on to their lead against a second-period surge by New Rotterdam City to make it to the quarterfinals of the World Cup of Hockey.

Calen Berg had Kelssek off to the best of starts as the centre scored 54 seconds into the match, stuffing it inside the post on a wraparound after some hard work in the corner to win the puck off the boards by Irwin Harries. Bowen Wesey made it 2-0 with a long slap shot that goaltender Posquanto never got a look at thanks to a logjam in the slot. Berg had a second goal with 4:33 left in the first period before Crispus de Bondt scored in the first powerplay of the game to pull it back to 3-1.

Kelssek seemed to be cruising through the first half of the second period as Lahusor Elogosesurá and Gabriel Hywel each found the net between another powerplay goal for New Rotterdam City when the defenders for Kelssek were slow to clear out Okkie Spuyt from the top of the crease, allowing the second unit’s centre all the time he needed to roof a rebound past Kevin van Nes. But then New Rotterdam City had another when a botched line change let in Frits van Baalen and Wout Wijnkoop in alone on a two-on-zero rush.

With New Rotterdam City’s third goal in three minutes, the lead was cut to one and at 5-4 Kelssek were reeling. The horn to end the second period couldn’t come soon enough. If there were rumblings about pulling Kevin van Nes, the goalie made a big breakaway save with 74 seconds left to keep Kelssek’s lead.

But even if the fans and commentators might have been calling for a goaltending change in the intermission, head coach Leslie Lépine denied it was even considered by the coaches. “It was pretty clear to everyone we needed to steady the ship and lock things down, and it was not about the goaltending but everyone on the ice who needed to reset what they were doing. It’s still just absolutely unacceptable that we had 25 per cent on penalty killing.”

Kelssek looked far more composed in the third period and it began with successfully killing a penalty for the first time. This was a crucial two minutes in the match as New Rotterdam City pushed for the equalizer against a shuffled penalty-kill unit. Whatever the adjustment was, they managed to avoid letting New Rotterdam City scramble and crash the net in the way that led to goals against before.

“You can see it as a gamble to try and lock the game down with one goal in it, but we got back to playing desperate hockey and it’s sometimes the mindset you need to have to keep your edge”, commented defender Draper Gass after the match.

Relief was palpable when Taylor Furnish finally secured the win with an empty net goal with 1:02 remaining, sending Kelssek to face Valanora in what’s set to be a cracking quarterfinal against the world’s number one ranked team.

[Valanora]

If the Calcuttas thought they were going to have an easy time of it after winning their group, they knew that was not likely going to happen after the playoff round was concluded and they were drawn against Savojarna in the Round of Sixteen. The Rushmori squad was an old power in the game, respected for what they once were even if they were not as great as they have been in the past. It was also a graphic design company in Savojarna that had created the modern sweaters for the Calcuttas, the same design that is used to this day for the national team. Despite coming into this tournament as an unranked team, they earned their way through their group and battled valiantly to win their playoff tie, all to set up a date with the Calcuttas. It has to be a heady thing to know that all the world is there to witness you once more, an unranked team with a proud legacy going against the world number one and the most decorated team to have played the sport. That the Savojarna side could keep their nerve and hold themselves competitive against the Vanorian team would be a testament to their own resilience and mental fortitude.

What the first period showed though was the gulf in class between the two teams as Savojarna could hardly hold the puck for more than a few seconds before they were having their passes intercepted or being dispossessed by well timed poke and hip checks from the Calcuttas. The offense was almost a complete non starter, registering only three shots on goal the entire period and only eight in total with four being blocked and another whistling wide of the net. Yet where Savojarna was standing strong was in their own end, making it difficult for the team to find clean passing or shooting lanes on net and pushing out any attempts to create traffic in front of their netminder. If the team was going to find a way to crack their defense, it was looking like it was either going to have to be on a break away where they could use their speed or finding the perfect pass for the perfect shot. That was an intimidating prospect but it was not one that was unfamiliar to the Calcuttas, this was a way that many teams like to play against the team, looking to frustrate them into making mistakes and trying to play hero ball.

In the second period it was a lot more of the same, Savojarna lacking any sort of offensive thrust against the hustle of the Calcuttas defense and backtracking forwards, but the team from the Empire struggling to get shots goalward with a plethora of bodies clogging up the lane. It was ugly play and not even the long change of the second that usually favors Vanorian pace was able to help the team make real progress into the Savojarna wall. Yet despite all appearances that they were not made for a war of attrition, as the second period was coming to a close, the Calcuttas were starting to find a way through the gaps. It would be in the third period when they would finally exploit the growing gaps in the Rushmori's defense and Simon Olsen would open the scoring with a tipped shot in front of the netminder, putting it over their glove. It would be the first of two goals for the center, as he would pot away the empty net with fifty-four seconds left to go to secure the victory over Savojarna. Hardly the most impressive of victories but it was a victory all the same, much in the way that a lot of the competition had gone for the team.

The feel of importance and pressure builds quite a bit going into the knockouts, as both the intensity of the game would dictate but also because the team has advanced to play against Kelssek. One of the premier teams of the game and the hosts of the competition, this will be a hurdle quite like no other for the team to try and advance past, as they go against an elite team at home. Having just blasted six goals past New Rotterdam City, it is clear that their scoring touch is at a high mark, much the way that the Calcuttas were doing the group stage. However where the Vanorian team has an edge is that the defense for the Empire has been playing at a fairly high level for most of the competition, including completely nullifying any real offensive threat that Savojarna had in the previous round. It will not be about completely shutting down the Kelssek offense, it will be about trying to slow it down, keep it bottled up enough that the team can break through on the offensive side. It is not the most complicated strategy but it is the one that gives the team their best chance of winning and that's really all you can ask for once you reach the quarterfinals.

[Kelssek]

Quarterfinals
Osterhalten 4–6 Elejamie
Zenic 3–0 TJUN-ia
Valanora 8–8 Kelssek (9–8 OT) scorinated by Kytler Peninsulae)
United States of Nova Calania 4–5 Squornshelan Remnant States

Semifinal fixtures
Elejamie vs. Zenic - Federation Arena, Neorvins
Valanora vs. Squornshelan Remnant States - Aréna Saint-Jacques, Outineau

[Squornshelan Remnant States]

Only a couple short weeks ago, an amateur team from Traal showed up in Kelssek to play for the SRS. In the absence of any official action taken by the SIHC they've been accepted as the Confederacy's official representatives at the World Cup of Hockey. Mind you, this might be the best beer league hockey team the city of Traal, or indeed the entire SRS has ever seen, featuring three former members of the Traal Oilers and the SRS national team as its backbone. Still, they're quite undermanned, requiring special dispensation from tournament organizers to compete with well under the 20 players typically dressed by hockey teams. Despite the apparent shortcomings and disadvantages they've faced, and after a dreadful start, being blown out in their first two games, the team has gone on a torrid run, winning their next nine matches in a row. After finding their stride through the meat of their group stage schedule, running up the score against a series of lower-ranked opponents, the Black-and-Reds (are they still that without official SIHC sanction?) have taken three one-goal decisions to unexpectedly make the semifinals, where they will face the Calcuttas of Valanora. Truly, these two nations can't avoid running into one another in high-stakes matchups, no matter what sport is on offer. Recently, we caught up with team captain and leading scorer, Semyorka Farsand for a brief conversation about the team's run to this point, and the challenge coming up.

"Semyorka, thanks for taking the time to talk. Your team's had a really impressive performance over the past nine games. What's the mood been like in the locker room during this win streak?"

"Hey, thanks. Yeah, mood's been pretty good, loose. The team has been pretty relaxed, not a ton of nerves, feels like a good balance between focus and fun. At this point it definitely helps that we feel like we're playing with house money."

"You've definitely exceeded expectations, even before we consider the lack of support from the SIHC. Making a semifinal would've been an impressive result even with a full team though, so how has your shorthanded group managed to make it this far?"

"I think one thing we have that some of these other all-star style teams might not have, at least early on, is that we're a really tight-knit group. Everyone knows everyone else, we can mix up our lines and pairings and not really lose anything in terms of chemistry. We're also a team without any ego. Hard to be too full of yourself out there when you've got a day job on the oilfield waiting back home."

"Speaking of which, how has the team managed to balance their responsibilities with preparation for the tournament?"

"Well we're all cashing in a bunch of PTO, but yeah, getting Macro to sponsor us for sweaters and equipment was a big help, as was Flanoil coming through to help us get everything here to Kelssek. It's not cheap shipping a couple pallets of skates and sticks all the way to the Pacific. We have to shout out friends and families as well. There's so many sacrifices from all of them, and we'd never have gotten this far without their support."

"True for every hockey player here, but maybe just a little bit more for your team. Do you think the sense of being an underdog has helped with your play here in Kelssek? Are there team's you've maybe taken by surprise?"

"I don't think so, really. We don't look at ourselves in terms of whether we're a favorite or an underdog, just trying to see how we match up against each opponent, what we can do to shut down their game and get something going ourselves. For the other team's I think it's pretty much the same as well. I think most of them still see us as a top-ten hockey nation despite the dysfunction, so it's really only in the last match against Nova Calania that most people would describe it as an upset."

"Speaking of your knockout victories, whether we're looking at the high-scoring quarterfinal, or your tight, one-goal victory over Darkmania, you've had some matches recently that have been tense all the way to the final horn. How do you keep up the effort and intensity with a short bench like this?"

"Shift discipline is one thing, no one gets greedy. You stay out there for a minute and a half early on chasing something that isn't there and you know it's going to cost you later on in the third and your teammates are going to have to pick up your slack. We definitely get on each other for that, so the teams holds each other accountable. Beyond that, it's being smart with the puck, making those high percentage plays instead of the risky ones that are going to have you scrambling on defense. Staying out of the box is a big thing too, nothing wears you down like killing penalties, so the less time we spend down a player the better."

"Work smarter, not harder, eh?"

"I guess you could say that, yeah."

"There's been a lot of talk back home about the emergence of Veiko Jago and Gwyn Fanning as future stars and big point producers. You've spent plenty of time playing opposite both of them, do you share that opinion, and do you think they can become the nexus of a new, rejuvenated national team program."

"Veiko and Gwynnie are great talents, hardworking, nose for the net and they both love to have the puck on their stick. I think the sky's the limit for those two, and it's been just so much fun getting to play with them these couple weeks."

"Thanks so much Semyorka, we'll all be watching you and the team in the semifinal, any thoughts about taking on the number-one team in the rankings, and your chances for a podium finish?"

"Well it's obviously a huge challenge. The Calcuttas are strong on defense, they can score, they can do it all really, and it's going to be really tough going up against them. As far as a podium, we're definitely not the favorite with numbers 1, 2, and 6 in the final four with us, but who knows. Anything could happen, right?"

[Elejamie]

They had survived, but it wasn't an easy feat.

Whether it be a Cinderella run or getting rid of their old captain was the kick in the balls they needed to finally join the big boys, Osterhalten were now a team with plenty of eyes on them. A team who could potentially win it all in the next few contests, if not make the final four. And yet Elejamie were still treating them as if they were still in WCoH53 mode. They were still treating them like they had a captain who was probably holding them back, treating them like the team who had just failed to make it out of the group stage last time. And it turns out that that wasn't the smartest move, as it lead to them feeling a bit unprepared going into this match. However, despite all of this, the Ice-a-phants were just about able to emerge with the W and a spot in the final four.

It didn't start off too badly, with both sides keeping it tight for the first five minutes and neither sides' goalies having to worry about a single thing. They could've had six skaters on each side and things still would've ended up going the same way. But it would be the Ice-a-phants who'd score first. With 13:02 left in the period, Stacy Saunders got his name on the scoring sheet when he just about managed to get the puck into the back of the net; it had to bounce off of Clement Pineau's skate and then the post but it still managed to cross the line enough for it to count as a goal. That may have been jammy, but it wasn't really enough to keep their head above water. Especially when, exactly six minutes later, Osterhalten go and score the equaliser. With 7:02 left in the period, Henrik Maraker, Nicolais Vaillant and Leopold Cooke found themselves in Elejamian ice while they played a passing game; Cooke passed it over to Maraker, who fired it into the net with Ricardo Bejarano unable to get a glove to the shot. And the Otters would gain the lead shortly before the end, thanks to Kiko Carpio being sent to the box for clipping Jackson Brite, Theo Eaton scoring the lucky goal with 59.2 seconds left on the clock, and Arlen Kestrel and Adrien Moncade feeding him the puck on the way to a goal.

A disappointing first period, but it wasn't necessarily the end of the world. Far from it, in fact. Elejamie came close to scoring with 19:43 left on the clock, but a bit of accidental goaltender interference from Bill Harrison saw him sent to the box and Osterhalten on the power play. Fortunately, this time it was killed off although there were one or two moments where they were cutting it close and it was very nearly a third goal for the Otters. With 13:42 left on the clock Elejamie managed to level the scores when Harrison Blackburn managed to sink a shot during a mad scramble on the Osterhaltienne goal; Adrian Backer and Rafael Espinosa were credited with assists. Speaking of Backer and Espinosa, the former managed to push the Ice-a-phants ahead with 7:19 left on the clock. Espinosa won the face-off and passed it to Backer who got into a good position before firing it at the opposing net; his shot bounced off of Pineau's pads and Blackburn's attempted rebound did the same thing, but when the Coventry winger tried again he was about to fire it home to seal the deal. And Elejamie made it 4-2 when, with 2:25 left in the period, Stacy Saunders found himself on a breakaway after receiving the puck from Diego Pinto and proceeded to deke it past Pineau. The Otters fought hard but they were unable to trouble Bejarano during those twenty minutes.

It doesn't mean they didn't trouble him in the third period, though. With 17:09 left, Osterhalten managed to get themselves a penalty shot after a bit of cross-checking on Tommie Hurley by Paul Sinclair. Hurley managed to skate up and put it past Bejarano to close the gap. And then with 9:09 left on the clock Osterhalten finally tied things up with a bit of teamwork by Eaton, Kestrel and Brite that saw the latter score. It wasn't necessarily bleak, but it did mean that the Ice-a-phants would need to work hard if they wanted to secure their spot in the next round. They would get a lifeline when, with 6:23 left, Icarus Hartmann would be sent to the box for slashing Espinosa. This didn't seem too bad, as the Otters' PK unit had been on the ice three times before and managed to kill off each and every penalty they faced, but here they just weren't able to stop Adrian Backer from scoring with 5:20 left on the clock. The sixth and final goal came with 4:37 left, with Mike Keller firing a slapshot from the point that Pineau wasn't able to block; Charlie Spreitzer and Anthony McLaren were credited with assists. Osterhalten didn't pull their goalie at that point, since there was still enough time left for them to theoretically score and they weren't too far gone to warrant it, but unfortunately Jon Horton and Eduardo Carreras decided that at that point their players should concentrate on defending rather than play hero puck and extend the lead. As a result, the klaxon would go off when the clock reached 0:00 and Elejamie were crowned the 6-4 winners.

An interesting game, yes, but that doesn't mean that the other quarter-final match-ups were plain. Far from it, in fact. For a start, Valanora and Kelssek played each other in a match that went 9-8. A match that makes outsiders wonder what happened there. Were the playing conditions kind of messy? Were both sides' offences on fire that match? Or was it a series of blunders and a string of inept decisions worthy of one of UrinatingTree's "The Greatest Game" videos? Who knows, unless you go and actually watch the match itself. Meanwhile Nova Calania and the Squornshelan Remnant States played each other in a match that saw the end result be 5-4... in favour of the SRS. Much like Osterhalten, a team you honestly wouldn't expect to make it this deep into a tournament even if they are genuinely good enough for it to be a possibility. But then again this was a match to see who would get their asses kicked by the Calcuttas in the next round so maybe the Tapirs decided that now was a good time to bow out. Again, who knows.

Oh yeah, and Zenic beat TJUN-ia 3-0 to set up a rematch with Elejamie. Even Helen Keller could've seen this one coming because, let's face it, the three certainties in life are death, taxes and an Elejamie-Zenic match-up at the World Cup of Hockey. Especially when one side is looking to avenge their massive defeat earlier in the tournament or, much like West Germany around seventy years ago, prove that it was a massive gamble that paid off. But what did the Frozen Survivors do after that 6-0 defeat? Well, they took out their frustrations on a hapless Andso Mangis squad for a start, thrashing them 6-1. They followed this up with a string of wins: 4-2 against the North Polish Union, 5-0 against Gyaromia, narrow 1-0 victories over Hafamarimët and Placely Placington, and finally a 4-3 overtime win over New Rotterdam City to seal their spot at the top of the table following Elejamie's rather sudden and arguably contrived collapse. This was then followed by a break to fit some more training in, a 1-0 win over Vetrahjart and the aforementioned 3-0 win over TJUN-ia.

So how are things going into the next game in a rivalry that the WCoH insists on playing out even when both sides would probably rather face different teams? On the surface things seemed to be quite chill with the Ice-a-phants, after all no matter who wins or loses both teams will be guaranteed an extra game at the end. But again this is a match with both sides wanting to prove something. A team that wants to finally go back to back versus a team who wanted to avenge their massive drubbing earlier in the tournament. And when you throw in the possibility of facing a Valanora side looking to extend their legacy as the winningest team in the World Cup of Hockey? Your stress levels will probably go through the roof and bounce off whatever satellite it comes across. It's why Jon and Eduardo were somewhat scrambling to come up with a solid enough gameplan, even if it meant having to stockpile on cigarettes and vodka to help them power through it. Something that would ideally see them come out with the W, even if it means going to overtime or even a shoot-out, but they are willing to tolerate a loss by a single goal. Two or more, that's a complete disaster. But still, there was no way of knowing how everything would go unless they come up with something and run it by their players. And who knows, maybe it'll succeed, maybe it'll fail.

And just maybe the SRS will somehow end up the unlikely champions.

[Zenic]

'Uggggghhhh, here we go again,' Head Coach Grover Per thought to himself.

Per watched as the rest of the squad celebrated their quarterfinal victory over TJUN-ia at Aréna Olympique in Langlois. It was a well deserved victory where the 3-0 scoreline did not reflect how close the game actually was. Aesop Stevo delivered a great performance, with a bulk of his work in the first and third period. The defensive pairs, as a whole unit, did fantastic in closing down shooting lanes and making every shot a tough one for the Ice Jaguars. The centers bodied their way to their expected positions and facilitated the wingers in getting pucks at the net because once the pucks were there, anything could happen.

Surprisingly, it had stay 0-0 for the first two periods and it took until a slightly lucky bounce 4 minutes into the third for the dam to break. Juliana Verukiskaya normally would have saved the 16 meter attempt from Amanda Coy but pressure caused her to hit the puck slightly off-center. That hit gave it just a bit of spin that, combined with hitting the tiniest of divots in the ice, forced the puck to knuckle itself towards the net and squeeze between her blockers for the first goal of the game. After that, it was a shooting range. Both teams attempted more shots in the third period than in the first and second combined, despite the evenness of the competition. Unfortunately for Rasmussen, Per's folks struck again as Jyothi collected the puck between the blue lines on a breakaway to slip it in near post to double the lead.

The Survivors slowed down and went back to their original gameplan as TJUN-ia went for the two goals it needed to stay alive. There were a few instances where Grover Per felt his heart palpitate but he thanked his lucky stars that his defenders gave up their bodies to help Stevo protect the lead. Roc Mohsen was the surprise guest to stick the dagger in the Ice Jaguar's heart as he collected a rebounded puck and scored the final goal of the game from the center line.

The reason he wasn't really celebrating with the others was because of who they faced next: Elejamie. The reigning world champions who Zenic had been developing a hell of a rivalry with since the Frozen Survivors returned to the international rink. And to make it even worse, they were playing at Federation Arena in Neorvins. Why did that matter? That arena was the host of the 6-0 drubbing that Elejamie inflicted on Zenic during the second matchday of the this World Cup of Hockey. Being told they would need to return to the site of the one game they lost all tournament in such a humiliating fashion to play the semifinals of a world championship felt cruel to Per. Especially as the amount of times he could come back to the World Cup of Hockey dwindled cycle after cycle.

What was that thing his therapist told him? 'It's important to acknowledge the unfortunate things but let them guide you instead of rule you.' Per was always confused by that until this tournament, some time after the Elejamie group stage game. He accepted that they were outplayed but understood that it could easily be a one time thing and not necessarily the expectation going forward. So, he, Anat and the rest of the staff studied every knock and cranny of the game film and made sure it didn't happened again. Came close during the New Rotterdam City match but ultimately, they had fixed enough to be able to win despite a few setbacks. Now was the biggest test so far: can they execute that improved gameplan against the team that caused the adjustment in the first place? Per was thinking 'maybe', catching himself off guard just a bit as he normally would have said 'hopefully but probably not' before correcting himself.

After all, Zenic are the only team in the knockouts to have not allowed a single goal so far: back to back shutouts of Vetrahjart and TJUN-ia will do that. Meanwhile, everyone else is acting like the gangsters and cowboys, just shooting all over the place. 6-4? 5-4? 9-8?! Per had truly accomplished his dream: continuing the legacy of Henri Giehl and his staff in creating the last remaining steward of defensive hockey. Add in the fact that the overall series between these two hockey powerhouses was currently tied at 2 to 2: Zenic won in the knockouts of 50 and 51 while Elejamie had won in 53 on the road to their first title in a while and the aforementioned group stage match in the current 54th edition.

At this point, if anyone was going to beat Elejamie, it would be Zenic. Per certainly wanted to.

[Valanora]

Every now and then there is a game that completely defies any sort of explanation or the expectations that any might have had for it. The quarterfinal fixture between the hosts of Kelssek and the Calcuttas of the Eternal Empire happened to be one such match, a match that not a single soul living or in the Gray Havens would have predicted. Seventeen goals were scored over the course of sixty-five minutes and thirty-two seconds of game time, coming out to an average of a goal just under minutes of play. Neither one of these teams are known to have bad defenses, though both of the team's offenses were performing quite well at different portions of the tournament, with the Calcuttas having scored goals for fun during the group stage and the hosts having posted a six spot in the previous round. Despite those high flying statistics, the expectation was still to be a relatively normal game even if it was going to be a close one, as these were two of the best teams in the sport going up against one another. A seventeen goal thriller escapes all rationale and you simply had to be there or be watching to witness it to truly believe what transpired on that ice.

What you can not account for is an officiating crew who found it in their purview to call any minor infraction, as by the time the game came to its conclusion in overtime, there had been an accumulated forty-eight penalty minutes combined between the two teams. Neither team is noted as having a dirty game, in fact it flies in the face of the way that Valanora has played the game at the international level or the way it is most often played at the domestic level. Yet what most nights were considered legal checks were being called for roughing and there were a few phantom tripping and high sticking calls, with two of the latter coming against the Empire team despite on replay it showing that a Kelssek player's loose stick had been the one to catch his teammate up high, despite it being the Vanorian making their way to the penalty box. In this stop and go affair that was a special teams exhibition more than it was a true game of best on best five on five hockey, the Calcuttas would eventually be the ones to punch their ticket into the final four with a poke check turning into a break away that Eira Rygh made no mistake with, going backhand to forehead and then five hole to end the game.

The penalty box procession was probably a result of Henrik Strand taking objection to Simon Oakes throwing a late hit on Agnes Hansen on the second shift for the top defense pair against the Vanorians top line. It was not the most viscous of hit by Hansen was several inches shorter than the Kelssek defender and was thrown hard to the ice by the hit and Strand came to his teammates protection, throwing down the gloves in an uncharacteristic fashion for a Vanorian and started throwing haymakers. The early and unexpected fight really set the mood for the rest of the evening and both sides would score five times with the man advantage, showcasing the elite offenses that they had showcased already in the tournament even against a team that might have thought to be able to contain those playmakers and scorers. The Calcuttas got the slight edge in the special teams game though, adding a short handed goal, scoring only three of their nine goals at five on five, the same number that the hosts did. It would be that shorthanded goal by Simon Olsen that would honestly be the only thing seperating the two giants of the game in the helter skelter matchup.

With the exhaustion that is sure to follow after that game, the team has to somehow collect and compose themselves for a semifinal tilt and who would happen to be waiting there for the Calcuttas but regional and growing multisport rivals in Squornshelous. The northeast Arrosian lineup entered into the competition as the ninth ranked team despite having a squad mostly made up completely of amateurs and semi-professionals, much the same way the Empire has for their baseball national team. The so called Mid-Ice Crisis team will play a brand of hockey that will be completely different than what just transpired, they are a team much in the negative style of play like Ko-oren often is, a team the Calcuttas have found ways getting past with relative confidence as of late. With very little in the way of depth, only eleven players being dressed out of the possible twenty, it might be a game where the Calcuttas can simply attrition them away and use fresher legs in the latter half of the game to overwhelm a team who might lack the discipline to handle this high intensity of the game. In the other semifinal there is Zenic, the team who surprised the hockey world with their surprise victory over the Calcuttas in the last edition at the Round of Sixteen and long time rivals Elejamie, who are working their way towards trying to match the Vanorian record of eight titles.

[Kelssek]

Semifinals
Elejamie 0–2 Zenic
Valanora 7–2 Squornshelan Remnant States

Third place playoff
Elejamie vs. Squornshelan Remnant States - Laineä Arena, Alavaria

Final
Zenic vs. Valanora - Harbourside Gardens, Kirkenes

[Elejamie]

After yet another mandatory jobbing to a team they're sick and tired of playing in a rivalry more forced than Roman Reigns or whatever dogshit TikTok decided to make popular, Elejamian ice hockey fans were polled on who they would like to win the 54th World Cup of Hockey final, which was taking place over in the Harbourside Gardens over in Kirkenes. They either had to pick a team that had just beaten them 2-0, or one of their oldest rivals who had a bit of a resurgance lately after a bit of a period of pure mediocrity. Some threw in a write-in candidate and well:

Yeah.

2% of poll-takers chose Zenic. A team that the Ice-a-phants and their fans were all too familiar with, especially since the Frozen Survivors were now 4-2 when it came to the head-to-head. They have played them five times in the last five competitions, and twice THIS competition. The only respite was WCoH52, where Elejamie went out to Ontorisa and Zenic lost to Valanora, but whether that will be the only break or if there'll finally be another competition where they won't play each other is up in the air. After all, the Joker said it best to Batman, "I think you and I are destined to do this forever", but who is who in this situation depends on who you're speaking to. Anyway, no recap on their group since it's already been made clear by this point.

3% picked Valanora. The winningest team at the World Cup of Hockey, having lifted the trophy eight times and having picked up twelve other medal (six silver, six bronze). They really need no introduction but what they do need is a recap on their progress this tournament. They finished top of their group having won all of their matches even if two of them came in overtime; a 2-1 shoot-out win after a 3-3 draw against TJUN-ia, and another 2-1 shoot-out victory after another 3-3 draw against Darkmania. Basically, if it's 3-3, then they're winning the shoot-out 2-1. After that they made the trip over to Kelssek, got some training in for a few days and seemed to use it wisely as they got an easy 2-0 shut-out win against Savojarna. The hosts proved to be a trickier opponent that saw the match go to overtime but ultimately the Calcuttas triumphed 9-8. At least their next opponents in the Squornshelan Remnant States went down a lot easier, and at least this is an opponent they had beaten before so there was a bit of optimism going into their match.

And of course a whopping 95% went for a giant meteor. A giant lump of rock hurtling through space with the possibility, however slim, of crashing into the Earth and taking most if not all life with it. Some preferred that to either side lifting the trophy and, let's be real, no one can really blame them when both sides are teams you absolutely hate even if it's for different reasons. Not much else needs to be said, really.

On the upside, at least Elejamie have a somewhat easier opponent to play against in the bronze medal match. The aforementioned Squornshelan Remnant States. Despite being a team of rank amateurs, they still managed to have a relatively easy time in the group stage as they won all but two games: an opening 5-1 loss to eventual group winners Ko-oren, and a 4-2 loss to Darmen in their very next match. Yes, they won their seven remaining games on their way to a second place finish, the complete opposite of Elejamie's run. After that, they went on to beat Darkmania 1-0 and upset Nova Calania 5-4 to book their place in the final four. They were sent crashing back down to Earth when the Calcuttas bitch-slapped them 7-2, so there's a good chance that might affect their morale going into this match. It could either put them in bad spirits and cause them to make mistakes that the Ice-a-phants could capitalise on, or it could motivate them and completely take their opponents unawares.

The only way to find out was for the damn match to be played.

[Zenic]

Maybe that Henri Giehl comparison was a bit too on the nose.

Was he proud of the work these group of men and women had achieved? Absolutely. Did he know they poured blood, sweat, and tears to make it this far? He did the same alongside them. But did he have to acknowledge that this felt almost scripted? Maybe even destined? Indeed it did. But, when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object, everything feels so.....surreal. And add onto it the sprinkles of a rivalry and world championship rematch decades in the making? Per would have sworn that the pressure had gotten to him and this was all made up in his head as some sort of mental break from reality.

Just who were the two participants in the 54th World Cup of Hockey final? The Immovable Object was none other than the Frozen Survivors of Zenic themselves. Tied for 3rd least amount of goals allowed in the group stage (13), 4 straight clean sheets in the knockout rounds, and only one loss in the entire tournament so far. Per was almost glad they weren't undefeated as he was worried the additional pressure might cause distractions: getting the loss out of the way early might have been even better. Now, they could simply focus on what they've been doing most of this tournament: studying the gameplan and executing it against the opponent on the other side of the rink.

On said other side of the rink were the unstoppable force: the one and only Calcuttas of Valanora. 8 time world champions, undefeated record in this tournament so far, and 18 goals scored in the knockouts alone (Per was almost positive this was a WCoH record but he didn't get paid enough to go through that much data to confirm). There was no reason to doubt Sigurd Monsen and their staff, who were the clear favorites to win a record extending 9th title in ice hockey. This amounted to a total of ~17% of all possible World Cup of Hockey trophies being housed in the Arrosian nation. By the way, that math was definitely the kind Per could do.

Essentially, both Zenic and Valanora certainly earned their spot in this final, having knocked out the defending world champions and the ultimate dark horse respectively. Zenic survived a scoreless first period against Elejamie and were rewarded with a bountiful second period. Well, as bountiful as you can get from a defensive squad like Per's group in a semifinal. Vlastimir Tomislav lived up to his captain role and outmuscled his marking defender to scoot the puck in backhanded for the initial lead. Yukiko Dajana followed in her captain's footsteps and hit a one-timer right in front of the net to make sure Zenic came out of the second period up 2-0. Throwing bodies, throwing sticks, even throwing an occasional elbow from the fourth line: everything that could be done to prevent a goal from the Ice-a-phants was attempted and this time around, it was successful. After the untimely hiatus, Zenic had managed to reach the final once again.

Meanwhile, Valanora were just having some fun. After back to back high scoring affairs that were ultimately won by a single goal, Valanora eventually rolled over the upstart amateurs representing the Squornshelan Remnant States 7-2 to comfortably make it back to the final. 3 out of the last 4 finals have now had Valanora participate in some way, shape or form: back to back wins in 51 and 52 in addition to this edition's yet-to-be-determined match.

The last time these two squads faced, the landscape of the hockey world was VASTLY different. The winningest nation in World Cup of Hockey history was Plutoni while Havl and Gregoryisgodistan were the main contenders fighting to catch up, or potentially surpass, Plutoni's record 5 titles at that time. Valanora only had one title at the time, having beat the defending champions and world number 1 Plutoni in World Cup of Hockey 17. Elejamie were one tournament away from winning their first title ever. The United States of Nova Calania as well as Quebec and Shingoryeo had not yet rebranded. And Zenic were a rather fledgling nation in the sport that many believed were punching above their weight after seemingly out of nowhere consecutive trips to the Quarterfinals.

Per remembered the finals of WCoH 28 well as youthful Per was clued to the television screen for every second. He watched as both teams played stifling defense and exchanged shootout wins to tie the series at 1-1. The anxiety he felt going from home to school and back as the Frozen Survivors went down 2-1 in the series to the Calcuttas in another shootout. The exhaustion consume his body as the Henri Giehl and his team prevented another shootout by winning in overtime. And, of course, the despair as Valanora won the series and title on home ice with a 1-0 win in regulation. It was this series that instilled both the drive to become involved in the world of ice hockey but also the seeds for the anxious personality he would become known for almost all of his career.

The trip up from Neorvins to Kirkenes was one of the shorter travels Zenic had to do this tournament but somehow Per had been able to squeeze in an essay worth of thoughts. After all, this would be his first World Cup of Hockey final ever. And considering how things played out for the previous head coach of the Frozen Survivors, potentially his last ever. A title would make the future so much easier to deal with as well: no more questions about how much longer did Per have with the national team, no more questions about whether enough had been done with the talent available, no more worries about his legacy squandered. Per would be free to do whatever he wanted and truly be relaxed. At least, he hoped it would: winning a collegiate title was not the same as a world title.

The only way Grover Per would learn if a World Cup of Hockey championship could truly free his spirits would be by winning one. Guess it was time to go out there and get a title.

[Valanora]

There was a prevailing thought in the Empire that following the extremely odd game against Kelssek in the Quaterfinals, that the team would be both emotionally and physically exhausted, with the latter due to having to play some overtime before finding the eventual game winning goal against the hosts. The result would be that the Calcuttas likely were going to perhaps start slowly against a team from Squornshelous that had perhaps snuck up on a few people, deciding to play with a roster half the size of the allowed limit and choosing to play a team filled with players who do not play professionally. Given the defensive nature of the gameplan involved for the team from the northeast of Arrosia, it was likely going to be a game where if the the Calcuttas were going to emerge victorious it was going to have to be done through attrition and playing a full four line rotation to wear down their multi-sport rivals as well as let the team from the Empire burn off some of that mental and physical fatigue that was going to be a major factor in the game. For a second game in a row though, the prevailing ideas about a game was not what transpired on the ice.

Sixteen seconds into the game, after winning the opening face off, the Calcuttas were on the board when superstar winger Johannes Holand deflected in a shot from the point between the glove and knee pad of Viljar Bjørgås. The goal came so early that there were still some empty seats in the rink as the late fans were still in the process of finding their seats for the semifinal tilt between two of Arrosia's currently best teams. The sudden goal also injected energy and momentum into a Calcuttas side that could have easily played for the long game of using their depth as a weapon to wear down their foes, instead Monsen and his staff saw the way the team responded to their star player netting on the first shift. There would no quarter for the amateurs, there would be no wait for the third period to kick it into gear, it would be foot on the neck of a dangerous opponent and looking to put them down and out as early as the team possible could. The sooner that the Calcuttas could put the game out of reach the better, for the Final if they got there was going to need their very best and giving some tired legs most of the third period off would be a welcomed way to do so.

Three minutes after the Holand opening goal it would be the first line center who would score as Erik Aske took a cross ice pass from Victor Thunes that left Aske alone in the slot, beating the keeper up high on the glove side. Thirty-three seconds later it was three to nothing not even five minutes into the game and the Calcuttas team were buzzing, Vilde Mæland having gotten a break out pass and using all her speed to get one on one with Bjørgås before beating him to the far post with a slick forehand to backhand move that left the goalie sprawled on the ice. It was clear there was a gulf in class between the Calcuttas and the so called Mid-Ice Crisis, the team from Squornshelous heavily having trouble keeping up with the speed of the Vanorian team. It was four to nothing at the end of the first and six to one after two, before eventually finishing seven to two in favor of the team from the Empire. Holand would get a hattrick while Eira Rygh would grab a pair of goals as well to extend their scoring tally and showing the remarkable scoring depth that the team has at their disposal.

That depth is about to be tested in the biggest way with the team preparing for yet another championship game, with Kirkenes set as the venue to hold the tilt that is being billed as an Immovable Force Against An Unstoppable Object. That is because Zenic has played with the tenacity and fierceness that was the reason they were able to spring the upset on the Calcuttas last edition and why they have one of the best defensive records in all of the competition. They are quick to clear pucks in their own zone, prevent easy entries into the zone, and make you have to work hard on the forecheck to be able to establish that offensive presence. They play to perfection the sort of game that Squornshelous was hoping to use to make the game between themselves and the Calcuttas more of a contest and where the regional rivals lacked depth and perhaps a bit of skill to do so, Zenic is perfectly equipped to try and play out a defensive masterpiece to get the victory. For the high flying offense of the Calcuttas, having scored eightteen goals in the knockout rounds alone, they will be trying to lockpick that defense as often as they can and make Zenic come out of their shell to try and beat them.

It is a game that on paper is just another attempt to increase the record amount of world titles that the Calcuttas have while Zenic on the other hand are fighting for a legacy to establish, fighting against a team who has so often stood at the gates and denied them greatness. Last tournament's shock win for the Zenic team was in their eyes finally spearing the elusive white whale that had evaded them for years, that had kept them yearning and on the outside of the elite. A victory here would be looking to shift the balance, to redefine the way Zenic sees themselves and sees the Empire. Their head coach is looking to establish himself as the one who finally got Zenic to the summit, to have finally allowed them to stand as equals with the rest of the elite on the hockey world, a noble ambition and one where they could go out on, having gotten up there in years. Yet for the Empire there is pride, there is drive to right what they felt was a wrong, and honestly to get a bit of revenge on Zenic. There was such a large amount of hope last edition to become only the third nation to ever win three in a row and to have gone out in the way they did left a bitter taste in the mouth. It is a grudge against Zenic, a grudge against the hockey world, and as evidenced by the way they have conducted themselves this tournament, a motivated Calcuttas team is a scary beast to try and stand before.