Krejci, Pastrnak Lead Czech Republic in Upset of Russia

Wednesday morning, David Krejci and David Pastrnak stood by their lockers at Warrior Ice Arena on Breakup Day. They discussed the disappointment of being eliminated in round two of the Stanley Cup Playoffs just days earlier.
By Thursday morning, the two Czech Republic natives had travelled thousands of miles to represent their country and the Bruins at the 2018 IIHF World Championships in Denmark. Coming off a battle with the Eastern Conference's top team, Krejci and Pastrnak joined a Czech team set to face a powerful Russian squad that had yet to allow a goal in three previous games.

Russia entered Thursday's contest having outscored their opposition 20-0 en route to dominating victories over France (7-0), Austria (7-0) and Belarus (6-0). The Czech's entered the game with an 0-2-0-1 record, having squeezed extra time victories over Slovakia and Switzerland while falling to Sweden.
The Bruins teammates made an instant impact for the Czech's, as the duo carried the team to a 4-3 OT victory. Krejci (1-3=4) and Pastrnak (2-1=3) combined for seven points, with at least one of them scoring or assisting on each of the teams four tallies.

Krejci got the Czech's on the board when he corralled a bouncing puck in front of the net and rifled it into the top left corner of the net to tie the game at one at 14:41 of the first period. They took the lead a few minutes later, as Krejci turned the puck over behind the net and found Pastrnak, who then located Dmitrij Jaskin in front for a quick score to snatch the 2-1 lead.
Russia tied the contest early in the second, but Pastrank quickly found the back of the net to reclaim the lead. Russia again tied the game in the second, and the two teams played a scoreless third to send the game into OT.
In the extra frame, the two David's connected for the winning goal. Skating in on a 3-on-2, Krejci found Pastrnak streaking down the left side. Pastrnak narrowly missed ending the game when a slick backhand move ricocheted off the post. Pastrnak stuck with it, collecting the puck behind the net and banking it in off a Russian defender to win it.

The Czech's are back in action against Belarus at 2:15 p.m. ET, Friday, May 11. The team currently sits in the fifth spot in Group A with six points, just one point back of fourth place Slovakia. The top four teams from each group advance to the quarterfinals, beginning May 17.