Jaroslav Chemeler and Matous Mensik scored 33 seconds apart during a five-minute power play as Czechia stunned Canada 5-2 in the opener for both countries at the world junior men鈥檚 hockey championship Monday.
Stanislav Svozil and David Spacek, with a goal and an assist each, and David Moravec provided the rest of the offence for underdog Czechia, the country commonly known as the Czech Republic.
Tomas Suchanek was stellar in making 36 saves behind a structured, determined group.
Shane Wright, with a goal and an assist, and Connor Bedard replied for Canada. Benjamin Gaudreau allowed five goals on 17 shots before being replaced by Thomas Milic in the second period. Milic finished with 10 saves for the suddenly wobbly tournament favourites who lost to the Czechs for the first time in 3,285 days.
Sweden hammered Austria 11-0 in Group A鈥檚 other game.
Looking for its 20th gold medal after winning on home soil in Edmonton this past summer, Canada suffered just its second loss in 24 meetings with the Czechs at the men鈥檚 under-20 showcase since 1994, with the only other defeat coming in a shootout in the 2013 preliminary round.
馃幆 smashed by Connor Bedard! 馃ぉ#WorldJuniorspic.twitter.com/tawy31JiPO
鈥� Hockey Canada (@HockeyCanada) December 27, 2022
Down 3-2 in the second period Monday, Canada crumbled after forward Zach Dean was assessed a match penalty for an illegal check to the head.
With Dean taking an early shower, Chemeler banged home a loose puck from Gaudreau鈥檚 doorstep at 8:14 before Mensik fired from a sharp angle moments later to end a netminder鈥檚 forgettable night.
Canada pushed as the period wore on, but Suchanek was there to deny Brennan Othmann on a frantic power play before Wright hit the post late in the period.
The Canadians got a power play early in the third, but were unable to connect, and the quietly confident Czechs kept their cool from there to secure an improbable victory.
The first 鈥渘ormal鈥� world juniors since 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic 鈥� 2021 was played in a bubble before the 2022 event was postponed eight months 鈥� fans inside a frothing Scotiabank Centre were ready from puck drop.
The tournament hosts had a number of early chances, including Adam Fantilli鈥檚 attempt at 鈥淭he Michigan鈥� that was thwarted by Spacek, before pushing ahead on a power play.
After the Czechs were whistled for goaltender interference on a sequence where the puck wound up in Gaudreau鈥檚 net, Wright tipped Olen Zellweger鈥檚 point shot for the Canadian captain鈥檚 first-ever world junior goal.
Bedard then had Canada鈥檚 second effort at completing 鈥淭he Michigan鈥� 鈥� where a player picks the puck up on his stick behind the net and tries to tuck it upstairs 鈥� before Brandt Clarke鈥檚 2-0 goal was nixed by an offside review.
That seemed to energize Czechia.
Spacek scored on a backdoor play where he caught Fantilli napping defensively before Moravec鈥檚 seeing-eye point shot 35 seconds later gave the Czechs an unlikely 2-1 lead through 20 minutes.
Svozil put the Czechs ahead by two 44 seconds after the intermission when he was given too much room coming down off the point, but Bedard responded 45 seconds after that off a turnover to ignite the red-clad Maritime crowd hosting the world juniors for the first time in 20 years.
But Dean鈥檚 hit on defenceman Ales Cech resulted in the five-minute penalty that would extend the underdog Czech鈥檚 lead to three and leave Canada with plenty of questions.
READ MORE: 鈥楬e鈥檚 incredible鈥�: B.C.鈥檚 Bedard once again turning heads at Canada鈥檚 world junior camp
HEAVE AWAY
Canada鈥檚 goal song for the first world juniors to be played on the East Coast in 20 years is 鈥淗eave Away鈥� by The Fables, a Celtic rock band from St. John鈥檚, N.L.
TRAVEL WOES
Czech defenceman David Jiricek鈥檚 equipment didn鈥檛 arrive in Halifax until Monday afternoon thanks to the winter storm that walloped central and Eastern Canada last week.
The No. 6 pick at the 2022 NHL draft 鈥� property of the Columbus Blue Jackets and a member of the AHL鈥檚 Cleveland Monsters 鈥� was supposed to join his teammates Friday in Halifax, but didn鈥檛 get out of Toronto until 48 hours later.
Jiricek was on the ice for his team鈥檚 morning skate 鈥� in borrowed gear 鈥� and was a game-time decision until his bag was driven from the airport to the arena.
UP NEXT
Canada: Faces Germany on Wednesday.
Czechia: Faces Austria on Tuesday.
Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press
