In the end, Czech talent was too much for Ukrainian grit to overcome. The men in blue and yellow held a 30-19 shots on goal advantage but fell 5-2 in the end Friday night at Helsinki's Hartwall Arena.
The Czechs came alive in the second period and showcased their effectiveness when getting scoring chances in the second period as they went on to beat Ukraine 5-2. In their big second period Peter Kadlec scored a controversial goal to make it 2-0, and star sniper Milan Hejduk got numbers three and four.
"I am very happy that we could win this game," said Slavomir Lener, head coach of the Czech Republic. "We didn't play with the right tempo, and our skating and passing didn't work the way they should."
Ukraine managed to score two goals and draw close once again in the second half of the game, but it was their ineffectiveness early in the game that really ruined their chances.
Jaroslav Hlinka and Martin Straka had the other goals for the Czech Republic, and Vasyl Bobrovnikov and Vadym Shakhraychuk scored for Ukraine.