Southern men were to the fore as New Zealand won another medal at a world championship tournament yesterday.
Hot on the heels of the under-18 girls claiming gold in their event, the New Zealand under-20 men won silver at the division three, group A championships in Bulgaria.
The Baby Ice Blacks won four of their five games to seal second in Sofia.
After an opening 8-6 loss to eventual champions Israel, New Zealand posted wins over Kyrgyzstan (12-1), Mexico (5-3), Bulgaria (4-3) and Turkey (4-2).
"Playing a condensed schedule and managing energy levels was tough, but the team remained focused on each game as it was played, and this paid off well for us," coach Justin Daigle said.
"I am thrilled for the boys and beyond proud of the effort they put in."
The most exciting game was the clash with the home nation, which went to overtime.
New Zealand forward Ivan Dalmatau, from the Botany Swarm club, finished the second-leading scorer with 13 points (seven goals, six assists), while Swarm team-mate Jackson Fontaine was second in goal-scoring with eight.
Dunedin Thunder forward Luc Taillon added five goals and three assists, Thunder defenceman Ian Audas had a goal and five assists, and Thunder forward Max Simpson scored one goal.
Stampede goaltender Joel Gerard was credited with two wins and a save rate of 85.42%.
The New Zealand under-18 men play at their world tournament in Istanbul in March, and both the Ice Blacks and the Ice Ferns are in action in April.
