Slovakia, which won silver at the 2019 FISU World University Games, utilized a balanced scoring attack, which saw seven different players record a point.

Defensemen David Hilek and forward Peter Sandor scored one goal each in the second period, while Ian Marcinko and Richard Petras netted one goal each in the third. Petras also had two assists in the win.

“We knew that it would be a tough game because everybody’s a strong team here,” Slovakia head coach Roman Sykora said in a statement. “We tried to push hard from the beginning, but the most important thing was that we scored that first goal, and our momentum was much higher then.”

After a scoreless first period, Slovakia took control of the game in the second, outshooting Hungary 11-2 in during the middle frame. Slovakia finished the contest by outshooting Hungary 38-18.

“Coming into the second period we just couldn’t get comfortable with our system and the game. Slovakia found the goal and that gave them confidence,” Hungary head coach Marton Vas said.

Slovakian netminder Michal Vojvoda recorded an 18-save shutout, while Hungary’s goalkeeper, Karoly Balazs Toth, had 34 saves in the loss.

With the victory, Slovakia moves to 1-0 in pool play while Hungary falls to 0-1. The top two teams in the pool, which consists of Slovakia, Hungary, Great Britain, Kazakhstan, Korea and the United States, will advance to play in Olympic Center’s 1980 Herb Brooks Arena. The men’s semifinals will take place on Jan. 21, with the gold medal game on Jan. 22.

The Slovakia-Hungary game was the first of five total hockey games that took place on Wednesday prior to the Winter World University Games Opening Ceremony. The games featured three men’s games and two women’s.

The following men’s hockey games included: Latvia vs. Japan and the United States vs. Great Britain. The following women’s games included: Canada vs. Slovakia and Great Britain vs. Czech Republic.

Results were not available by press time.