Playing the first match in both Stockholm and in Group A, Finland had the chance to lay down a marker against the Austrians. By the eighth minute of the first period, the Leijonet looked well on their way to doing just that by taking a 2-0 lead.
The Finns' first goal of the 2025 World Championship took four minutes 38 seconds to arrive, after a breakaway down the right side resulted in Leni Hameenaho tapping the puck back to Robin Salo, who played it in front of the net where Patrik Puistola was arriving to steer it home.
Seven minutes in, Finland were scrapping hard to keep the puck alive in the attacking zone, before New York Rangers' Juuso Parssinen took matters into his own hands by creating space on the left side, playing a perfect one-two with Mikael Seppala and sweeping the puck past Atte Tolvanen.
But as the period wore on, Austria were seeing more and more of the Finnish zone, and eventually grabbed a goal to halve the deficit with just over six minutes to play, when Bernd Wolf's initial shot was saved by Juuse Saros, but the puck rebounded back to the EHC Kloten man, who buried the second attempt from a tight angle.
In the second period, the momentum was back with Antti Pennanen's side, who forced Tolvanen into eight saves, compared to just two efforts on target for the Austrians. Hameenaho and Puistola were among those testing the goaltender, but Finland were unable to find their way through.
Neither side could profit on the powerplay either, with each side guilty of a tripping call, but on both occasions, a penalty for diving was also called, meaning their was no man advantage to be had.
Austria, 10th at the 2024 World Championship, were keen to make Finland pay for not taking their chances in the third period.
Paul Huber set the tone in the third minute when he wrestled the puck back in front of the net and forced a save from Saros, and though the shot count was fairly equal, Austria were creating the more dangerous chances, including one from Marco Kasper which Saros reacted well to.
Roger Bader's men thought they had completed the comeback five-and-a-half minutes from time, when, after another physical passage of play in front of the Finnish net, Kasper's shot found its way through the crowd.
However, Pennanen challenged the call, and following a review the goal was disallowed for interference from Dominic Zwerger on Saros.
Austria pulled the goaltender in the final minutes, but their best chances to equalise had come and gone, and Finland held on to begin their 2025 World Championship with a 2-1 victory.
It is the first time in 12 meetings between the sides that Finland failed to score at least three goals. But the Lions won't mind that, they take a victory into their second match, on Sunday against France.