Latvian U20 hockey team forward Daniil Serkin has become the best in face-offs after five matches at the World Championship, according to the official tournament statistics, reports LETA.
After the quarter-finals and relegation matches, all teams have played five games, but only the top four teams continue to compete for medals. Latvia lost to Sweden 3:6 in the quarter-finals and finished the tournament in seventh place.
In five matches, Serkin won 18 out of 25 face-offs — 72%, which is the best performance in the tournament. Second place is held by American Kamil Bednarik, who won 20 out of 29 face-offs (68.97%).
Just like after four matches, Latvian defender Albert Schmitz ranks second in ice time. On average, he spent 23 minutes and 40 seconds on the ice — 22 seconds less than German defender Carlos Hendel. Schmitz, with one goal and four assists, shares eighth place among the tournament's top-scoring defenders, led by Canadian Zane Parekh with ten points (4+6).
Parekh also leads the list of top scorers, while the most productive Latvian is Kristers Ansons, who, with three goals and three assists, shares 18th place. In the list of top snipers, Ansons shares 10th place, while among the top assist providers, Bruno Osmanis shares ninth place with five assists.
Goalkeeper Nils Maurinsh, who played in four matches, ranks seventh among goalies with 87.93% of saves. Leading this statistic is Canadian Jack Ivankovich with 95.92%.
The Latvian team converted 12 out of 102 shots on goal, showing an 11.76% conversion rate — sixth place. In power plays, the Latvians scored seven goals and, with a conversion rate of 41.18%, took third place in efficiency.
While shorthanded, the Latvians conceded four goals and, with 71.43%, ranked fifth. Over five matches, the team accumulated 63 penalty minutes, making them the second most undisciplined team after the Danes, who had six more minutes.
On average, 3,665 spectators attended Latvia's games — the third lowest figure in the tournament. However, the host of the tournament — the USA team — did not play in Group B, and Latvia's matches took place in an arena with nearly half the capacity, which is why all teams in this group occupied the bottom four positions in attendance. The USA team attracted the most spectators, averaging 14,341 per match.
