World Championship: Faksa assists as Czechs win fifth straight game

Stars center Radek Faksa picked up one assist as Czech Republic won its fifth straight game at the 2018 IIHF World Championship in Denmark, holding off Austria, 4-3, Monday.
Tomas Hyka scored two goals for the Czechs who wrapped up their preliminary round schedule and clinched third place in Group A. Czech Republic will face the second place team in Group B in the quarterfinals. That opponent will be determined Tuesday which is the final day of preliminary round play.

Along with the one assist Monday, Faksa had three shots on goal and a minus-3 rating in 16:40 of ice time while centering the second line. His assist came on the power play, sending the puck from the goal line to Hyka, who scored from the right circle to give the Czechs a 4-1 lead midway through the third period.
Austria made it interesting by scoring twice to cut the lead to 4-3, and Faksa almost made it 5-3 in the final two minutes, but his shot on a breakaway rang off the post.
Faksa has two assists and an even rating in seven games and is averaging 17:31 of ice time. He has won 55 of 113 faceoffs (48.7 percent).
There are some key games on tap on Tuesday as preliminary round play concludes. Sweden (John Klingberg, Mattias Janmark) will play Russia with first place in Group A at stake. Finland (Miro Heiskanen, Julius Honka) can take first place in Group B with a regulation win over the U.S.

Monday's results

Russia 4, Slovakia 0
Norway 3, Korea 0
Czech Republic 4, Austria 3
Canada 2, Latvia 1 (OT)

#

Tuesday's schedule

Switzerland vs. France, 5:15 a.m.
Finland vs. USA, 5:15 a.m.
Belarus vs. Slovakia, 9:15 a.m.
Canada vs. Germany, 9:15 a.m.
Russia vs. Sweden, 1:15 p.m.
Latvia vs. Denmark, 1:15 p.m.
This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Mark Stepneski is an independent writer whose posts on DallasStars.com reflect his own opinions and do not represent official statements from the Dallas Stars. Follow him on Twitter @StarsInsideEdge.