PARDUBICE, Czech Republic, August 31 (R-Sport) - Finland inflicted a first defeat upon Russia in the opening round of the 2013-14 four-nation Euro Hockey Tour on Saturday.
A goal in each of the first two periods from Sakari Salminen and Pekka Jormakka gave the Finns a 2-0 victory and sent them top of the standings with a 2-0 win-loss record.
Russia, which started with a 2-0 win over world champion Sweden, goes to 1-1 and stays in second place.
The Euro Hockey Tour is a four-stage tournament between Russia, the Czech Republic, Finland and Sweden, with each country taking a turn as host. The Czech Hockey Games run August 29 to September 1.
It has special significance this year as a warm-up event for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
