New Zealand had no problem winning its first game of the 2003 IIHF In-Line World Championship, earning a convincing 8-4 win over Argentina.

New Zealand had no problem winning its first game of the 2003 IIHF In-Line World Championship, earning an 8-4 win over Argentina.

New Zealand held a convincing 7-1 lead at the end of the third period before it allowed Argentina to climb back into the game with back-to-back goals in the opening moments of the fourth period.  New Zealand Head Coach Noel Wilson a timeout just over three minutes into the fourth period to regroup his team and make sure Argentina didn’t stage a comeback. The strategy worked and New Zealand allowed only one additional goal the rest of the game and skated on to the 8-4 win.

New Zealand (1-0) will play Austria tomorrow at 19:00, while Argentina (0-1) will face-off against Japan.

Click here for photos from this game.