EBEL - third round (2nd part of the season)

TOP6 GAMES:

HDD TILIA Olimpija Ljubljana – KHL Medvescak Zagreb  6:4 (2:2, 2:0, 2:2)
It was ninth consecutive game between Olimpija and Medvescak - since the Croatian team joined EBEL – in Ljubljana, that gave Olimpija their first win! That way Olimpija also grabbed their first points in the Top6. Right at the beginning of the game Dario Kostovic (Medvescak) earned himself Game Misconduct penalty for rough foul oon Igor Cvetek. Peter Sachl used the following power play and scored for home team in 5th minute (1:0). Frank Banham deflected Sasha Pokulok’s shot to beat JP Lamoureux in 12th minute to equalize (1:1). Bostjan Golicic renewed the home team’s lead in 15th minute (2:1), but the guests levelled things in the following minute (Siddall, 2:2). John Hughes effectively used a scramble in front of Robert Kristan’s goal in 24th minute (3:2). Both teams cancelled each other out in the following minutes, but then Miha Verlic scored his second career goal for Olimpija in 36th minute (4:2). Bostjan Groznik (Olimpija) as usual, had to fight with one of the guests at the beginning of second period and he was given 5 penalty minutes (alongside Matt Siddall, Medvescak). When Domen Vedlin scored the fifth goal for the home team in the 47th minute (5:2) the game looked to be over, but the guests from Zagreb did not agree. Groznik got into another fight and was sent off the ice. Greg Day scored in the 52nd minute (5:3) to give his team some hope. A power-play for Olimpija in the 57th minute then decided the game, as Scott Hotham scored (6:3). It was Day eight seconds later who scored once again (6:4), but it was the final goal of the night. Winning their first two points, Olimpija is now fifth, Medvescak is third with five points.

SAPA Fehervar AV19 – EC-KAC  2:1 (2:1, 0:0, 0:0)
Historic success in Salzburg on Tuesday, packed Sapa’s ice-hall to the rafters.  The Devils, the home team, were quite confident prior to the game, as the record-breaking Austrian Champions hadn't won any of this season’s previous games in Szekesfehervar. Chad Klassen was first to score in the game, as he beat Rene Swette on a rebound in the seventh minute to give the home team a well deserved lead (1:0). Mike Siklenka equalized for KAC in the 9th minute (1:1) and the teams went back and forth in the following minutes. Red Jackets (KAC) were given a minor penalty in the 19th minute for too many players on ice. It proved to be lethal, as Arpad Mihaly one-timed a puck into the away teams' net to give the home fans another chance to celebrate (2:1). The second period was totally dominated by Sapa, but Swette was unbeatable. The Devils also played their defence on a very high level, with no unnecessary mistakes and no fouls. On the other side, Tyler Scofield earned himself 10 minutes of rest for misconduct. The guests were of course eager to score and level things up during the final period, but Adam Munro in the home net was brilliant. The home team deservingly won, plus they weren’t penalized during the whole game. Sapa is now second with 6 points, KAC is fourth with 3.

EHC LIWEST Black Wings Linz – EC Red Bull Salzburg 4:3 (0:2, 2:1, 2:0)
The reigning champions from Salzburg continue to struggle to find their form before the play-offs. They were on the right track last night in Linz, but then again, Linz is currently the best team in the league. Thomas Raffl scored for guests in the 11th minute to open the scoring (0:1). Daniel Bois added another for guests in the 19th minute power play (0:2). Black Wings found their play during the second period and young Austrian prospect, Patrick Spannring scored in the 31st minute (1:2). Daniel Welser extended the guests’ lead in the 36th minute (1:3), but Spannring added his second goal of the night in the 38th (2:3). Jan-Axel Alaavara, Linz’s new signing, scored his first goal for Black Wings in the 45th minute to equalize (3:3). Alex Westlund, the home team goalie, was forced to show all of his skills in following minutes – and he did just that, as he kept the score tied. Mike Ouellette then added the winning goal for Linz in the 53rd minute on the power-play. It was his 74th goal in EBEL, and it was his 11th game-winning goal. Black Wings already opened a gap between them and the another teams. They are on top of Top6 teams with ten points, four points clear of the closest followers, Sapa. Red Bulls were defeated for the fourth time in a row and are on the bottom of Top6 group with two points.

QUALIFICATION GROUP GAMES:

HC Orli Znojmo – HK Acroni Jesenice  4:1 (0:0, 1:1, 3:0)
Orli Znojmo won their fifth consecutive game against Jesenice this season. That way they remain in the running for the top two positions in qualification group, which will be rewarded with a play-off spot. The home team was very aggressive right from the start of the game, but the guests defended well. Nobody expected the points from a weak Jesenice side, but those youngsters surely demonstrate how to fight for their team! Many chances were missed for Orli and David Hajek’s shot was deflected into the frame of guests’ goal by Michal Fikrt, the guests’ goalie in the 10th minute. Orli were really dominant on the ice, but could not score. Znojmo started the second period with a power-play. They didn’t score, but they once more enforced their style of play. Jan Seda scored an opener as a result of that in the 24th minute (1:0). The guests were forced to defend by all means necessary after that. Martin Skadra (holding) and Ales Stanek (delaying the game) were given minor penalties inside 20 seconds in the 29th minute and it offered Antti Pusa a chance to equalize (1:1). Later during the game, the home team also had a two men advantage, but could not score, although there were some good chances to do so. A huge defensive blow in front of Jesenice goal gave the home team the lead in 43rd minute (Stanek, 2:1). Adam Havlik scored another goal for the Eagles in the 50th minute (3:1) and the guests were left without any answer. Guests were actually trying to put some pressure, but they rarely threatened, giving the home team opportunities for counter attacks. Jan Lattner scored on one of such opportunities in 59th minute (4:1) to finish the scoring. Znojmo remain fourth, but only one point behind three of the Austrian teams. Jesenice are pointless on bottom.

EC REKORD-Fenster VSV – UPC Vienna Capitals  1:0 (0:0, 1:0, 0:0)
It was really un-attractive game in Villach. The importance of the game forced both teams to focus on defence, and they surely did. Tomaz Razingar’s nice solo effort was denied by the guests’ goalie during the first period, but Francois Fortier returned the favour to the other side. There was a single minor penalty during the first period, when Martin Oraze was sent off for boarding in 15th minute, but VSV failed to capitalize on that. The second period was dominated by the home team and Benjamin Petrik, Rob Shearer, Shayne Toporowski and Markus Peintner failed to score one after another. Gerhard Unterluggauer finally did it in 29th minute from the blue line (1:0). As a consequence to that Benoit Gratton (Vienna) lost his nerves and was given 10 minutes of penalty for misconduct. Roland Kaspitz on the other side was given the same medicine in the 38th minute (plus 2 minutes for charging). Derek Damon was penalized for slashing only five seconds later, and Vienna had a big chance to equalize with a two men advantage on the ice. It didn’t happen though. VSV had a chance to extend their lead at the beginning of the third period on the power play, but nothing happened. They focused on defence later and they managed to keep their net clear until the end of the game. Both teams are now levelled with Graz (5 points each) on top of Qualification Group.
Schedule for 4th round (2.part of the season):

TOP6 Group:

Klagenfurt: EC KAC – BW Linz
Szekesfehervar (HUN): Sapa AV19 – KHL Medvescak
Ljubljana (SLO): Olimpija – RB Salzburg

Qualifiaction Group:

Jesenice (SLO): Acroni Jesenice – EC VSV
Graz: Graz 99ers – Orli Znojmo

 

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