Updated with some English-language comments from Edvinsson at 7:17 PM: Team Sweden defeated Austria 6-0 on Friday afternoon in Edmonton, and Red Wings defenseman Simon Edvinsson scored the 1-0 goal, Theodor Niederbach scored the 6-0 goal.
Both players, as well as fellow Wings prospect William Wallinder, played well, but HockeyNews.se’s Mans Karlsson noted that, after the game, Edvinsson was not particularly happy with his team:
It was star defender Simon Edvinsson who opened the scoring with a shot from half-distance during the first period. The goal was Edvinsson’s first at the WJC–if you don’t count when he scored against Russia during the tournament which was cancelled last winter.
Despite scoring the goal, Edvinsson was critical of the team’s performance in the first period.
“We had a good collaboration there. But we need more pucks like that on goal. We need better roles and to demand more of each other. We were stagnant in front of the net, instead of having more movement with the puck. We’re making progress, but a little more is needed. And, above all, we need to demand more of each other,” he said to SVT Sport.
Sweden plays Team USA on Sunday at 10 PM EDT on TSN and the NHL Network; the Americans tangle with Austria on Saturday.
Update: Here’s more from Edvinsson in English, per IIHF.com’s Lucas Aykroyd…
Swedish defender Emil Andrae lived up to the “C” on his jersey with two goals and an assist, calmly leading his team to a 6-0 victory over Austria on Friday at the World Juniors.
Isak Rosen and Fabian Lysell also shone with a goal and an assist apiece, while Oskar Olausson amassed three assists. Simon Edvinsson and Theodor Niederbach had the other goals for Sweden, which stayed perfect with its second consecutive win.
“It was a better game today,” Edvinsson said. “We got up in the offensive zone. We played a lot harder, especially in the second and the third, so it was a good game from our side, an important game to get the offence going.”
Sweden next plays the United States on Sunday. Austria plays the United States on Saturday.
“It was nice to get a controlled win. We played much better today than against Switzerland so nice to get that one,” Edvinsson said. “We would like to continue on this good path… if we play this good or even better, we can beat USA as well.”
