Czech hockey juniors take bronze at IIHF in Ottawa

Czech hockey players won the bronze at the World Junior Championships after beating Sweden in a shootout on Sunday.

Eduard Sale scored in the 14th round of the shootout to lead his country past Sweden 3-2. The Czech captain beat goaltender Marcus Gidlof on his fifth attempt — and 28th between the teams — with a move to the backhand. Sale also tied the longest shootout in International Ice Hockey Federation history in the 13th round after Otto Stenberg put Sweden ahead.

Czechia, which settled for silver at the 2023 tournament in Halifax when Canada captured its 20th gold medal before securing bronze last year in Sweden, has now made the podium at three consecutive tournaments for the first time since Czechoslovakia's dissolution at the start of 1993.