France Shows Fight, but Czech Firepower Proves Too Much in Olympic Clash
MONTRÉAL - For a moment, it looked like France might just pull off the upset of the tournament.
Down 2-0 early, Les Bleus clawed their way back with a stunning second-period surge that flipped the script and silenced the pro-Czech crowd at the Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena. Three unanswered goals gave France a 3-2 lead, and suddenly, the underdogs were in control. But that lead didn’t last long.
The Czech Republic responded with a ruthless stretch of hockey, scoring four unanswered goals to take a 6-3 win on Friday and remind everyone why they’re considered one of the most dangerous teams in the tournament.
Let’s break it down.
A Second-Period Spark from France
France’s comeback was sparked by a power-play goal late in the second period from Louis Boudon, who buried a feed from Stéphane Da Costa and Yohann Auvitu at 18:59. That goal cut the Czech lead to 2-1 and gave the French bench a jolt of energy.
Boudon wasn’t done. Less than three minutes later, he struck again-this time at even strength-off a setup from Charles Bertrand, leveling the game at 2-2.
Then came the go-ahead goal. At 14:06 of the second, Hugo Gallet found the back of the net with assists from Bertrand and Boudon, capping a wild stretch that saw France score three times in just under five minutes. It was a stunning turnaround that had the Czech bench reeling and the French fans daring to believe.
Czech Republic Turns Up the Heat
But if there’s one thing we’ve learned about the Czech squad, it’s that they don’t stay down for long.
With France riding high, the Czechs wasted no time flipping the momentum back in their favor. Just 30 seconds after Gallet’s go-ahead goal, David Pastrnak tied things up at 3-3, finishing off a clean setup from Ondrej Palat and Michal Kempny.
And the floodgates opened from there.
Matej Stransky gave the Czechs the lead back at 6:37 of the second, tipping in a pass from Radek Faksa and Filip Hronek. That made it 4-3 heading into the third, and the Czechs never looked back.
They added two more in the final two minutes of the game-Filip Chlapik at 18:55, followed by Roman Cervenka just 48 seconds later-to put the game out of reach and seal a 6-3 win.
Texier Logs Big Minutes
One notable stat from the French side: Alexandre Texier didn’t register a point, but he did lead all forwards in ice time for the second straight game, logging 20 minutes and 45 seconds. He managed one shot on goal and continued to be a key presence on both ends of the ice. While the score sheet doesn’t tell the full story, Texier’s minutes show just how much the coaching staff is leaning on him in these high-stakes matchups.
What’s Next
France will look to regroup after this one, while the Czech Republic continues to build momentum heading deeper into the Olympic tournament.
Up next on the Olympic slate: Nick Suzuki and Team Canada hit the ice against Switzerland later today in what promises to be another tightly contested battle at the Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena.
Stay tuned-this tournament is just heating up.