Daugavins reveals the Latvian team’s trump card for the matches against Switzerland

Kaspars Daugavins | Photo: LHF

Latvia’s hockey team’s trump card in the test match against Switzerland will be the tactics used, said the captain of the Latvian national team, Kaspars Daugavins, before the upcoming match.

On Friday, Latvian hockey players in Lausanne at 20:45 will play the first of two test matches with Switzerland. The last time the two national teams met on the pitch was in last year’s world championship in the subgroup game, in which Latvia prevailed 4:3 in extra time.

“A fast and technical team that will play fast hockey. They try to outplay their opponents with speed and skill. We have to be ready tactically, we know what we want to play, and most importantly, to “turn on” our legs, because we will have to keep up with the speed,” described Daugavins in a conversation with the Latvian Hockey Federation (LHF) opponent team.

He emphasized that the Latvian ice hockey players will try to limit the opponents’ attacks and take advantage of their mistakes on the ice. “Our trump card is our tactics, we try to play closely and not allow the opponent to create quick attacks, but when they make mistakes, we have to counterattack ourselves and punish them for it,” said Daugavins.

At the beginning of the training camp, the Latvian hockey players played two test matches with Austria, celebrating a 3-2 victory in the shootouts in both games, but last week the Latvians lost twice to the Finns with a score of 2-3. The Latvian national team is scheduled to play six test matches at home and two away this spring. On May 3 and 4, the Latvians will meet Norway at home.

In the Latvian national team, the head coach Harijs Vītoliņš is assisted by coaches Lauris Dārziņš, Artūrs Irbe, Petri Nummelins, Ville Peltonens, Raimonds Vilkoits, video coach Pēteris Groms and physical training specialist Āriks Visockis.

The Latvian national team will go to the world championship in the Czech Republic on May 9. The 2024 championship will take place in Prague and Ostrava from May 10 to 26.

Sweet memories from last year – Latvia will play the first test match with Switzerland