A little more than 2 years later, Team Luxembourg returned to Bulgaria with dreams of repeating their success of 2017.
Only 7 of the 25 players that played in the gold medal game in 2017 returned this year. In the weeks leading up to the tournament the Luxembourg coaching staff of Petr Fical & John Bierchen put an emphasis on youth in their team selection.
The youngest member of the 2019 class was Vladislav Shelest at 16 years 5 months young. With 25% of the squad under 20, this was a team built for the future. With that being said, team Luxembourg entered the tournament full of optimism and the focus was squarely on the gold medal.
First up for the Lions was a match-up they have struggled to win in the past, in fact, the last time Luxembourg faced Turkey it was the men from the East of the Balkan peninsula who walked out 10-2 winners. That was 2016, this is 2019 and the young Lions would ultimately erase the demons of that loss to win the opening match 3-2 on the back of the stellar goal-tending of rookie Marcus Anselm.
Game 2 would see Luxembourg face Chinese Taipei. The squad from the East China Sea entered the tournament without a full roster. Canadian head coach Ryan Lang electing to bring only 17 of the allowed 20 players to Bulgaria. However, among those 17 players were offensive powerhouses To Weng and Hung-Ju Lin who would combine to score 27 points in just 5 games.
Despite a spirited effort it would be Chinese Taipei that upset the favourites Luxembourg en route to a 5-4 victory. A missed opportunity for the Lions to stay at the top of the standings.
After a rest day filled with video review and training sessions on Wednesday, Luxembourg approached game 3 against South Africa with renewed purpose.
With South Africa winless at this point having lost 12-2 and 7-2 to Bulgaria and Turkmenistan respectively Luxembourg were expected to secure the 3 points with ease. Reality though would be different. It was South Africa that would score first which served as a necessary wake-up call to the Lions. A dominating 2nd period from Sacha Backes and Benny Welter with 2 goals each would settle the nerves and Luxembourg would get past South Africa 5-2 and put themselves back into contention for the gold medal.
On day 4 of the tournament Luxembourg had a clear path. Defeat newcomers Turkmenistan and hosts Bulgaria and they would be crowned champions once again. After arguably the Lions’ best 20-minute period of the tournament, they entered the 2nd leading 2-0 and cruising towards a gold medal game. However, as rapidly as Luxembourg would gain their advantage, they would lose it.
A nightmare 2nd period ended with the scores locked at 3-3. A draw would give them a mountain to climb, a loss would end the gold medal dream. In heartbreaking fashion, it would be Turkmenistan that would secure a famous victory and crush the Lions’ spirits.
On Saturday there would be no games so team Luxembourg took the opportunity to rest their battered bodies. A week-long tournament is physically challenging for the most experienced of players and this squad was filled with talent competing for the first time in such an environment.
In game 5 on Sunday against the newly crowned champions Bulgaria, it would show. The host nation would hammer the youthful Lions in a resounding 7-0 win, ending Luxembourg’s small chance of leaving the tournament with a medal.
Though Luxembourg would travel home empty-handed, there are plenty of positives to take away from the 2019 World Championships.
As previously stated, this was a very young team, but the professionalism they showed throughout the week demonstrated that they are serious about their roles of representing Luxembourg on the world stage. Early success can be dangerous long-term as arrogance can creep into a team’s play. These young players now know that in order to win a world championship medal they need to continue their growth as players both on and off the ice. Building their bodies to last 5 gruelling games in 7 days will be a priority, along with expanding their tactical knowledge from the world class coaching staff Luxembourg has to offer.
The 2019 IIHF Division III world championships are now in the past and after a few weeks of rest, the attention of the Luxembourg national team will turn to preparing for the 2020 games and another shot at a gold medal and promotion to Division 2B.
North Korea, United Arab Emirates and Chinese Taipei will join Turkey and Turkmenistan, who showed incredible respect to the Lions with a guard of honour following the loss to Bulgaria, as the opposition in 2020.
The dates and location of the tournament will be revealed after the IIHF congress in the summer.
