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Czech Republic Goalie Sets New Standard For Exuberance At World Junior Hockey Championships

There’s always been something special, something different, about playing for your country. And given that the World Junior Hockey Championships are for young men generally aged 17-19, one would expect them to show some enthusiasm, especially after a big win.

Czech Republic goalie Petr Mrazek, who actually plays Junior Hockey in Canada for the Ottawa 67′s, has been very fired up during his country’s games and especially those against the USA and Canada. This penalty shot occurred today as the game was tied 2-2 and the USA desperate for a goal, needing at a minimum a win or a tie to continue controlling their own destiny after a surprising 4-1 loss to Finland on Wednesday.

Canadian fans booed Mrazek with feeling when he did the same fist pump celebration after stopping a Team Canada penalty shot on Wednesday, although his team was already down and would eventually lose 5-0. Given that fans in Canada love to stick it the United States anyway, it probably shouldn’t come as much of a shock that they cheered pretty enthusiastically for Mrazek after he stopped Josh Archibald, but it was jarring nonetheless.

Mrazek really raised the bar late in the 3rd period after Petr Holik scored an empty net goal to seal the Czech’s 5-2 victory. Keep in mind this is a mid-level group game, not the medal round, is not actually over yet, and a loss likely does not significantly affect the Czech Republic’s positioning in the next round unless the United States can beat Canada on Saturday night.

Personally I love to see that kind of enthusiasm and it’s had to fault a 19 year old for showing it, especially against the last two gold medal winning countries, but it feels like something we should reserve for a game with more meaning.