Poland’s first tournament of the year for the IIHF has already came and gone. For Poland, the U20 group would be without their star player, Krzysztof Maciaś. After four straight silver medals from 2016 to 2019 that put them on the cusp of promotion to Group A, Poland has struggled in Group B. Over the past three tournaments, they have finished fourth, sixth (relegated but saved by the suspension of Belarus and Russia), and fourth. This roster was not up to par with the silver medal teams, but would they be able to beat the streak?

Poland started the tournament with a common foe on all levels, Ukraine. Ukraine would easily dispatch the sloppy Polish team that failed to capitalize on the man advantage. The final would be 5-1. The dam broke late in the game, and Poland played worse as the game went on. Up next, the youth red and white had the host Slovenia. Slovenia shut out Poland 3-0 in one of the worst games I have seen from a Polish squad. It was a lifeless performance that cast doubts to me if Poland was even trying to really win. Apparently, the defeat would lead to a bad hangover the next day. Against the weakest team in the tournament, Poland blew a two-goal third-period lead to Croatia before losing in the shootout. Gameday four saw Estonia have the same fortune as Slovenia. The Polish offense sputtered as Estonia won 3-0. It seemed like Poland’s fate was sealed, and they went into Sunday with a matchup versus heavy favorite Italy. Instead, a miracle happened: Poland came back to beat Italy, Croatia lost, and Poland avoided relegation to stay in Division 1.

Goalies Keeping it Down

Both Jakub Ciucka and Igor Tyczynski kept Poland in this tournament. The goaltending performances were more than solid. The stats don’t look that good; Ciucka finished with a .883 save percentage and Tyczynski with a .882, respectively. A lot of goals came late or after defensive breakdowns from Poland. I think both goalies should hold their heads high. Tyczynski starting for Poland at just 17 shows how bright his future is. The goalie prospects Poland has right now are the best in a while.

Croatia Collapse

In the past few tournaments, when Poland was playing poorly, you could still count on one win. That win was usually the new team from Division 2 Group A. Poland seemed to have that same win coming in this game as they got out to a 4-2 lead with just three minutes remaining. With an empty net, Croatia scored twice to force overtime. Poland couldn’t score in overtime and then went one for four in the shootout to lose. You just can’t have that ending against any team, let alone a team that you are supposed to be far above. If the defensive structure can’t close out games versus bad opponents it is a trash one.

The Italian Game

Now we go to the game that was the complete opposite and somewhat a redemption for Poland. Going into the third period, they were down 4-2. Poland got a power play early and couldn’t capitalize, and it felt like that might be it for Poland. Instead, they scored two goals 20 seconds apart. A great goal from Gromadzki, and then Kusak would earn and bury a penalty shot. With 12 minutes to go Poland would protect their lead and not allow Italy to tie it. An amazing upset win that kept Poland in Division 1. This was the first game of the tournament, where we saw Poland’s best players like Kusak, Gromadzki, and Schafer being able to take over the game.

Consistently Inconsistent 

In every game of this tournament, Poland had moments where they looked good and hungry to win, but they never played a full game. Even against Italy, they struggled in the second period, spending almost all of it in their own zone and getting outshot 8-2. The first 10 minutes versus Slovenia showed a Polish team in control and a much better team, but that disappeared. The second and third periods were hockey that looked like a u16 squad versus a senior team. The shot totals can tell you a closer story of how close a game was. Ukraine outshot them by four (31-27), Slovenia by 19 (35-16), Poland outshot Croatia by four (30-26), Estonia beat them by three shots (35-32), and Poland outshot Italy by three (23-20). Outside the collapse against Slovenia, Poland was in all these games throughout them. They had their chances they couldn’t play clean and finish.

What’s Next?

Poland U20 will be a brand new team next year, as always at the junior levels. Still, it will be quite the change. Poland will only return seven players. The Hofman twins who showed well at forward in this tournament, defensemen Chodor, Onak, Rocki, and Sobecki, and starting goalie Igor Tyczynski. That is going to be a lot of turnover. From the U18 level, Kacper Prokopiak, Marcel Karnas, and Rafal Drabik could be newcomers next year. While Krystian Lisowski and Hubert Szarzynski, who play in Finland and Sweden should be options as well. The group won’t get any easier either, with South Korea earning promotion from Division 2, while Japan was relegated from Division 1 Group A.

Quick Thoughts

• Michal Kusak was a player I had really high hopes for in this tournament to lead Poland. The final game against Italy was fantastic and showed how good he can be. The other four games showed the same things we had heard from scouts about his ability to make an impact, not always being there.

• Piotr Ciepielewski seems to be developing well in Finland. I was impressed with his progress, while there is still plenty of room to grow. His forechecking was really strong at times in the tournament.

• Igor Ratajczak stood out on the penalty kill. I liked his effort, and he used his size to block quite a few shots.

• Poland took a really young defense to this tournament. Four of the seven defenders were born in 2005 or later. You definitely saw some of the inexperience at times, but It would be hard to argue these players were not the best defenders Poland had.

• Kacper Rocki is pursuing an interesting development path. The young defenseman left junior hockey to sign with Sudrets HC in the fourth level of Swedish senior hockey. Despite the limited playing time, he definitely arrived this year a better player than he was at last year’s U18s. His growth will be one of the most interesting to follow.

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