CANTON — Kazakhstan’s men’s ice hockey team came out victorious 5-1 against Team Korea at Cheel Arena in both teams’ 2023 FISU World University Games debut, thanks to a four-goal offensive explosion in the second period.
“The group was tired because we had a long trip, around 24 hours. It was not good for us, but it’s okay, we got our first victory. I think we will feel good tomorrow and it will be better for us,” said Kazakhstani forward Batyrlan Muratov.
Kazakhstan set the tone early on in the game when forward, Aldiyar Nurlan, scored a goal five minutes into the first period, as Korea tied it up less than a minute into the second period with their only goal of the game. However, this was just the beginning of the offensive explosion that would occur in the second period, as Kazakhstan would go on to score four more goals.
Penalties were a major factor in Kazakhstan’s victory, as Korea’s players accumulated six during the game. Kazakhstan made sure to take advantage of this, as two of their five goals were scored while on power plays.
Korea’s defenseman, Junho Lee, shared thoughts on the team’s performance after the game, saying that in the first period, “(they) did a good job,” despite being followed by a fall in the second period.
“Next game we have to move on and work hard,” he said.
Kazakhstan will continue in the preliminary games at 8 p.m. on Saturday night against Hungary at Cheel Arena. Korea will look to secure their first win in their next game against the United States on Sunday at Cheel Arena.
Source: Adirondack Daily Enterprise
