Jukka Jalonen (back), the Azzurri head coach, is satisfied. © ANSA / FAZRY ISMAIL

"It is impossible to ask more of my team."

Italy's national ice hockey team nearly defeated Slovakia in their second game. Ultimately, however, the upset failed to materialize, and the "Azzurri" lost 2-3. The reactions were correspondingly disappointing.

February 13, 2026

From: kp

"After the game, the mood in the locker room was terrible," said Italy's defender Daniel Glira After the unfortunate 2-3 defeat against Slovakia, he added: "Such narrow defeats sometimes hurt more than a resounding loss. We deserved more."

The 31-year-old from Toblach formed the third defensive pairing with his club teammate Greg DiTomaso and was on the ice for just under ten minutes. "We started better than against Sweden. The first 20 minutes were really good. In the second period, we lost our rhythm and came under a lot of pressure. The equalizer breathed new life into us. In the end, we were very close to tying the game. Unfortunately, we couldn't get the 3-3 equalizer," Glira lamented.

"After the game, the mood in the locker room was terrible." Daniel Glira

The HC Pustertal defender admits that he "didn't expect such strong performances from Italy. After all, we're playing against opponents who are, at least on paper, far superior. Both goalkeepers have been a great help to us so far. But we've also held our own defensively. Against Slovakia, we applied pressure and created some good scoring opportunities."

The head coach is proud

"It's difficult, even impossible, to ask more of my team; I'm very proud. Everyone gave every last drop of energy on the ice, and that allowed us to have a chance to equalize in the final minutes. It's a shame it turned out that way. The decision to pull Damian Clara with five minutes left is easily explained: trailing by two goals, we had to increase the tempo, otherwise it would have been too late. Now we'll prepare as best we can for the game against Finland. That one will be special for me," said Italy's head coach. Jukka Jalonen Satisfied despite the defeat.

Damian Clara had to reach behind him once after being brought on. © APA/afp / JULIEN DE ROSA

“We delivered another great performance. It’s a shame we were just a little short of equalizing or even winning: in the final minutes, we undoubtedly believed we could do it. We’re satisfied with the intensity we showed on the ice. After these first 120 minutes of the Olympics, we know we can compete with these really strong teams,” said the Val Gardena forward. Diego Kostner.