It was good while it lasted: Norway’s national hockey team had some solid victories in the World Championships playing out in Germany, but a spectacular defeat as well. Ironically, a loss by Canada eliminated Norway from a spot in the quarter-finals.
It was Canada that had trounced Norway just a few days before, by a stunning score of 12-1. Norway was slaughtered, after having scored a sensational victory over the Czech Republic last week and another victory over France.
Norway also had a triumphant 3-2 victory over Switzerland on Monday, a fitting celebration for the Norwegians on their own national day, the 17th of May.
But when Canada lost to the Czech Republic on Tuesday, the game was over for Norway. It ended as the fourth-best hockey nation in the Nordic countries, since Sweden, Denmark and Finland were all moving forward, but not very prestigious given that there’s only five countries in the Nordic area.
The Norwegians were nonetheless satisfied. “When all is said and done, Norway did a great job in the World Championships,” Petter Salsten, head of the national hockey association, told newspaper Aftenposten. “We played one bad game (against Canada), otherwise the Norwegian team did well.”
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