The top scorer of this year’s elimination round has historically improved to 59 goals. “We all know what the playoffs entail and how difficult it is to take the last step. We have to prepare well for him, so far we only have the third point in the series,” said Růžička. The ratio of shots 42:23 was clearly for Pardubice, but they were not helped even by opening the score after 50 seconds of the second half. Tomáš Zohorna, who had the captain’s badge in place of the sick Poulíčka, pushed through from the stop.
But Třinec equalized 202 seconds later. “I saw from the blue line where I could hit. Our shielding forward did a lot of work there,” said Latvian defender Karlis Čukste. Aron Chmielewski stood up in the mentioned role, but he went to the elite line for the injured Daň. “I try to help the boys as much as possible. Pardubice flew at us, but we defended well and found the way to win,” said the Polish striker.
Photo: David Taneček, CTK
Pardubice players after the home defeat against Třinec in the fifth semi-final.
Růžička shined in the role of the shooter. “He got a lot of space in front of the goal from us. We got a little complacent and stopped playing our way,” acknowledged Zohorna. “When we took the lead, we dropped the necessary emphasis and, despite the superiority in shooting, we didn’t push Třinec after that,” regretted coach Radim Rulík, who was very sorry for the situation with the third goal. “Pretty unlucky moment. “Sedlák with a broken hockey stick could have stayed on the ice, we had a substitute,” thought the coach.
Although Dynamo kicked the ball a second before the end of the second half, they couldn’t get through in the third act due to the great pressure. When the power play was attempted, the referees missed a foul on Říčka, and from the break Kurovský gave the score its final shape.
“It annoys us a lot. Gingerbread on ice was not a victory celebration, but rather an expression of the fans’ displeasure. I agree with the viewers, but I don’t want to say more. There was a lack of calmness on the hockey sticks in the end,” said Zohorna.
