The Mighty Roos have had a perfect campaign at the 2017 IIHF World Championships (Div II Group A) in Romania so far: winning all three games in impressive fashion. As a result the Aussies are riding high on top of the Group standings with eight points, two ahead of their nearest rival with two games remaining.

Punctuating the solid start to the tournament is the standout play of Sydney Bears’ goalkeeper Anthony Kimlin.

Kimlin has been a tower of power in the net for the Mighty Roos. On opening night, he stopped 41 shots in a 4-3 overtime win over Serbia. He followed that up with 28 saves in a 3-2 win over Iceland, before staring down 29 shots in a determined 5-3 win over the Spanish last night.

With these performances, Kimlin solidifies his status as Australia’s number one net minder, and says that with the help of the Australian team support staff, he’s bringing his A Game every time he steps on the ice.

“I feel excellent due to the efforts of our expanded training team this year, said Kimlin.

“Dr Danny George has continued with us and we have been lucky enough to have Dr Rod Weiland and physiotherapist Valeri Chan from Active Back Care.

“The support team have provided us with extensive recovery capabilities, therapeutic options, and a Metrifit athletic analytic system – their efforts combined have ensured all players perform at their maximum potential.”

The Puck Stops Here with Kimlin 

In the first three games of the tournament, Kimlin has been awarded Best Player of the Game twice. His 92.23% save percentage and 2.65 Goals Against Average (GAA) is giving the ambitious Mighty Roos the stability they need. The international stopper says the pre-tournament preparation also played a factor in their success.

“This has been one of the best years where players have been able to focus solely on the job at hand which has created a high efficiency in camp and strong team unity, continued Kimlin.

“The practice facilities in Litomerice (Czech Republic) were first class, which made the pre-tournament camp very productive.

“The team has come together thanks to the outstanding off ice efforts of the management, coaches and training staff.

With three wins under their belts, Kimlin knows the Mighty Roos need to build on their strong start if they expect to come home with a Gold medal, feeling that the teams’ tactics will be key to maintaining momentum.

“Execution of our systems and work ethic will keep the momentum going, stated Kimlin.

“After beating Spain, we are looking forward to our toughest test yet - Romania. We’re looking forward to the challenges ahead and appreciate all the support we’ve received from home!”

Support the Mighty Roos ahead of their next IIHF World Champs game

The Mighty Roos are back in action tomorrow (Saturday Morning 3AM AEST), when they take on host nation Romania. The Romanians are coming off a 2-0 loss to Iceland and expect strong support from a vocal home crowd.

Aussie fans can get behind our boys by Tweeting the team using the hastag #MightyRoos and follow all the action on the IIHF live stream http://aihl.net/2nyGAlq.