Finland Edges Austria 2-1 in Thrilling World Championship Opener

Finland begins its 2025 World Championship campaign with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Austria, despite failing to score three or more goals for the first time in 12 meetings.

Finland kicked off their 2025 World Hockey Championship campaign with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Austria in the opening match of Group A. The match took place at the Avicii Arena in Stockholm, Sweden.

The Finns, playing the first match in both Stockholm and Group A, had an opportunity to set the tone against Austria. They seized this chance early, taking a 2-0 lead by the eighth minute of the first period. Despite a spirited effort from Austria, Finland managed to hold on for the win.

Finland's first goal of the 2025 World Championship came at 4:38, courtesy of a well-executed play. Leni Hameenaho initiated the move with a breakaway down the right side, passing to Robin Salo, who then delivered the puck to Patrik Puistola arriving in front of the net. Puistola expertly steered the puck home to open the scoring.

Finland's second goal came just seven minutes into the game, with Juuso Pärssinen of the New York Rangers scoring after a clever one-two with Mikael Seppälä on the left side. Pärssinen's shot found its way past Atte Tolvanen in the Austrian goal.

As the period progressed, Austria began to gain more possession in the Finnish zone. They managed to cut the deficit in half with about six minutes left in the period when Bernd Wolf's rebound found its way past Juuse Saros in the Finnish goal after his initial shot was saved.

In the second period, Finland regained momentum under coach Antti Pennanen, pressuring Austria's goalkeeper Atte Tolvanen into eight saves. Meanwhile, the Austrians managed only two shots on target. Despite chances from players like Leni Hameenaho and Patrik Puistola, Finland couldn't add to their lead.

Both teams had opportunities on the power play, but neither could capitalize. Each side committed a tripping infraction, but diving penalties were also called in both instances, resulting in no man advantage for either team.

In the third period, Austria, who finished 10th at the 2024 World Championship, pressed Finland to capitalize on their missed chances. Paul Huber set the tone early, forcing a save from Juuse Saros with a determined effort in front of the net.

Despite a relatively even shot count, Austria created the more threatening opportunities. Marco Kasper had a notable chance that Saros reacted well to, highlighting Austria's intent to take advantage of Finland's earlier missed chances.

Finland takes game number 1️⃣in Stockholm! ☝️

Game Recap👇https://t.co/ap1qz8uE18#MensWorlds #IIHF @leijonat pic.twitter.com/7vNNXTw0y7

— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) May 9, 2025

Austria thought they had staged a comeback with about five and a half minutes remaining when Marco Kasper's shot appeared to cross the line after a physical scramble in front of the Finnish net. However, Finland's coach Antti Pennanen initiated a review, arguing interference on goalie Juuse Saros by Dominic Zwerger. After review, the goal was disallowed.

Austria attempted to equalize by pulling their goalkeeper in the final minutes, but their best opportunities had passed, and Finland managed to hold on for a 2-1 win. This marked a rare occasion where Finland scored fewer than three goals against Austria, breaking a trend in their previous 12 meetings.

Despite the uncharacteristically low-scoring victory, Finland's win sets a positive tone heading into their next match against France on Sunday. The team will look to build on this result as they continue their 2025 World Championship campaign.