Women's U19 WFCQ 2022 Day 1

Two places at the 2022 Women’s U19 WFC are being decided this week in Saku, Estonia. Will it be third time lucky for Italy or will Estonia secure their first ever Women’s U19 WFC spot?

Hungary – Denmark

A high, 6-0 lead after first period was a consequence of effective and smart play from Denmark. Hungary didn’t manage to respond despite Nora Lelovics shooting on Danish goal 9 times. It looked like game over for Hungary who just couldn’t find a way to beat Jeannie Emilie Monsted. It took almost 4 minutes in the second period for Hungary to finally respond to Danish attacks. However, Denmark had it all mapped out and after 26 minutes it was 1-7. After a quiet start and two crossbars, Nora Lelovics finally found a way to score and she finished second period with two goals and an assist. If Magyarország wanted to tie the game, they needed a strong and consequent third period. Despite Hungary playing in power-play four times, Monsted #1 was unstoppable and it quickly became clear that Denmark were more confident and in control securing their first ever Women’s U19 WFCQ win. Best player awards went to four goal scorer Nora Lelovics and Danish goalkeeper Jeannie Emilie Monsted played an excellent game saving 25 shots.

Italy – Estonia

Women’s U19 WFCQ in Saku marked another “first” in their history. It’s their host team debut and a solid lead after first 20 minutes. Estonia was able to demonstrate their clear advantage having longer bench, although it took some time to be evidenced. Liis Look took her team on the scoreboard in 10th minute. Great team work and hosts scored two more in the opening period and went into the break with strong advatage. Second period saw only one goal, Italy gained a momentum when Marta Pelliccioni scored to give her team some hope. Early in the third period Pelliccioni confirmed to be on fire as she netted another one. Estonia responded scoring one more when Hanna-Liisa Oispuu successfully executed penalty shot. There was some drama in the last seconds but Italy was not able to close the gap despite winning two last periods. Early lead was a key to the final 3-4 win for debutants. The best player awards went to hat-trick scorer Marta Pelliccioni and Reelika Liiv.