The blue-yellows reached the second strongest division in the world
Head coach of the Ukrainian national hockey team Dmitry Khristich commented on the team’s victory in Division IB on World Championship 2024.
“I was satisfied that Lithuania had a game of a different level at this World Cup, and we coped with it. It was very good. It turns out that during this season we played with stronger opponents and had a good result. I am very grateful to the players for showing their best side.”
“The team and the players feel the pressure, and the coaches, yes, they can hear it or not. I can say that the stands were quite fair: when their team had an advantage or some chances, they helped them. But even when we had chances, whistles could be heard. However, I am grateful that we played with spectators in the stands.”
“We know that we will have a selection for the 2026 Olympics. We do what needs to be done in advance. And so, when the time comes, then we can say something more.”
“Group IA is very interesting, there are three teams always changing. Maybe there will be some kind of intermediate goal, but we need to strive for medals. And so, we need to play and see what we can do there. We faced teams from Division IA and we know that we can play against them. We just need to repeat it.”
The Ukrainian national team defeated Lithuania (4:1) in the last round of the 2024 World Cup in Division IB. Khristich’s team won the tournament with five wins in five matches. Ukraine has been promoted to Division IA, where it will play for the first time since 2017.
Source: Sportarena
I’m Emma Smith, a dedicated journalist and avid storyteller. I have been writing for news websites for the past 5 years, reporting on hockey news and delivering in-depth analysis of the sport. In my current role as Author at Athletistic, I write about hockey events from around the world to keep followers up-to-date with what’s happening in the sport.
