NARVA, Estonia — Estonia have swept aside all opposition at the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) division II group B championships in Estonia.
Estonia have always been the weaker of three Baltic states at ice hockey with Latvia sitting comfortably in the Elite division whilst Lithuania moves between Division 1 group A and B regularly.
However on the back of a dominant campaign in Narva last week in which the hosts scored a [private_supervisor]remarkable 62 goals while conceding just five in five outings, the general secretary of Estonian ice hockey Riho Soonik is making some bold statements.
Soonik concedes that Estonian ice hockey has been experiencing something of a slump of late with division II group B the lowest Estonian hockey has been.
But now Soonik can see the light at the end of the tunnel and sees no reason why Estonia can not challenge Latvia and Lithuania in the near future. ”We are on our way back to division 1, where I believe we rightfully belong,” he said.
“The tournament shows a big difference in goals and I think we can play on the same level [as Latvia and Lithuania].”
Soonik remarked that the tournament was well received in Narva, something of a last minute choice of venue after the financial crisis put the original arena in Tallinn in doubt.
Reasonable crowds turned out to support the Estonians and two live games were shown throughout the Baltics on Viasat Sport, vastly increasing the potential reach of the tournament.
Estonian Results
Estonia vs. Israel: 17-3
Estonia vs. China: 15-0
Estonia vs. New Zealand: 17-0
Estonia vs. Iceland: 6-1
Estonia vs. Romania: 7-1 [/private_supervisor] [private_subscription 1 month]remarkable 62 goals while conceding just five in five outings, the general secretary of Estonian ice hockey Riho Soonik is making some bold statements.
Soonik concedes that Estonian ice hockey has been experiencing something of a slump of late with division II group B the lowest Estonian hockey has been.
But now Soonik can see the light at the end of the tunnel and sees no reason why Estonia can not challenge Latvia and Lithuania in the near future. ”We are on our way back to division 1, where I believe we rightfully belong,” he said.
“The tournament shows a big difference in goals and I think we can play on the same level [as Latvia and Lithuania].”
Soonik remarked that the tournament was well received in Narva, something of a last minute choice of venue after the financial crisis put the original arena in Tallinn in doubt.
Reasonable crowds turned out to support the Estonians and two live games were shown throughout the Baltics on Viasat Sport, vastly increasing the potential reach of the tournament.
Estonian Results
Estonia vs. Israel: 17-3
Estonia vs. China: 15-0
Estonia vs. New Zealand: 17-0
Estonia vs. Iceland: 6-1
Estonia vs. Romania: 7-1 [/private_subscription 1 month] [private_subscription 4 months]remarkable 62 goals while conceding just five in five outings, the general secretary of Estonian ice hockey Riho Soonik is making some bold statements.
Soonik concedes that Estonian ice hockey has been experiencing something of a slump of late with division II group B the lowest Estonian hockey has been.
But now Soonik can see the light at the end of the tunnel and sees no reason why Estonia can not challenge Latvia and Lithuania in the near future. ”We are on our way back to division 1, where I believe we rightfully belong,” he said.
“The tournament shows a big difference in goals and I think we can play on the same level [as Latvia and Lithuania].”
Soonik remarked that the tournament was well received in Narva, something of a last minute choice of venue after the financial crisis put the original arena in Tallinn in doubt.
Reasonable crowds turned out to support the Estonians and two live games were shown throughout the Baltics on Viasat Sport, vastly increasing the potential reach of the tournament.
Estonian Results
Estonia vs. Israel: 17-3
Estonia vs. China: 15-0
Estonia vs. New Zealand: 17-0
Estonia vs. Iceland: 6-1
Estonia vs. Romania: 7-1 [/private_subscription 4 months] [private_subscription 1 year]remarkable 62 goals while conceding just five in five outings, the general secretary of Estonian ice hockey Riho Soonik is making some bold statements.
Soonik concedes that Estonian ice hockey has been experiencing something of a slump of late with division II group B the lowest Estonian hockey has been.
But now Soonik can see the light at the end of the tunnel and sees no reason why Estonia can not challenge Latvia and Lithuania in the near future. ”We are on our way back to division 1, where I believe we rightfully belong,” he said.
“The tournament shows a big difference in goals and I think we can play on the same level [as Latvia and Lithuania].”
Soonik remarked that the tournament was well received in Narva, something of a last minute choice of venue after the financial crisis put the original arena in Tallinn in doubt.
Reasonable crowds turned out to support the Estonians and two live games were shown throughout the Baltics on Viasat Sport, vastly increasing the potential reach of the tournament.
Estonian Results
Estonia vs. Israel: 17-3
Estonia vs. China: 15-0
Estonia vs. New Zealand: 17-0
Estonia vs. Iceland: 6-1
Estonia vs. Romania: 7-1 [/private_subscription 1 year]
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