Jihlava U20 beat Mountfield HK U20 6-5 in the ELJ on Thursday night. Both sides arrived with a win and a loss already in the bag, so this was a chance to separate themselves in the table. The hosts have been the stronger side recently, winning five of their last five meetings.
By then, Jihlava had already shown they could score freely. They beat Slavia Prague U20 5-3 on September 5th, though they had lost to Plzeň U20 4-3 the day before. Mountfield HK U20 were less consistent, picking up a 3-2 win over Trinec U20 but dropping points against Vitkovice U20.
And here's the thing — this fixture has been one-sided in recent memory. On August 27th, Jihlava won 6-1 at home. Three days before that, they had a 6-1 victory over the same opponents. Mountfield HK U20 were struggling to contain them, and tonight was no different.
To be fair, a 6-5 scoreline suggests Mountfield HK U20 didn't just roll over. They found the net five times, which means they created something. But Jihlava's attack proved too much, and the hosts took all three points.
This was the sort of result we had called for. The home side were the clear favourites based on form and head-to-head records, and that prediction held up. Jihlava's attacking style continues to trouble this Mountfield defence.
Both teams remain level on points after two games. Jihlava sit sixth, Mountfield HK U20 thirteenth. The gap in the table tells its own story — experience and consistency matter in this age group.
The hosts close the gap on the teams above them, while Mountfield HK U20 are still searching for a way to string wins together. One loss after another has kept them adrift.