DEL – Clash of Titans continues

Eisbären Berlin vs Kölner Haie 3-3 (0-3, 1-0 OT, 5-1, 0-4, 4-1, 1-5)

It has become a strange, but very exciting series between the two teams with the biggest arenas in Germany. While the series itself is tight and nobody can really predict who'll come out of it as the winner, the single games always seem to be a one-sided affair. At least if you look at the scores.

And so it happened again yesterday in Köln. The Sharks scored 61 seconds into the contest through a blue line slapshot from Fredrik Eriksson. Unlike Köln in game 5, the Polar bears could not answer right away (in game 5 both teams traded goals in the first 77 seconds of the game), but they did eventually. Three minutes into the second period Petr Pohl was left alone in the slot and could fire a shot past Gustaf Wesslau.

Afterwards Berlin kept pressuring the Sharks defense for almost the full period, but Wesslau helped his team keeping two other features of this series alive. The team, that scores first, always wins and the losing team never scores more than one goal. Consequently Torsten Ankert scored on a breakaway with three minutes left in the second period on what turned out to be only the third Sharks shot in the period. Köln carried a surprising lead into the second break and used it wisely in the last frame.

Obviously Berlin had to open up more rooms now, which Alexander Sulzer, Johannes Salmonsson and Philip Gogulla used for three more goals to even the series with a 5-1 victory.

The decisive game 7 will be held in Berlin's O2-World on monday.

EHC München vs Straubing Tigers 4-1 (5-0, 2-1 OT, 4-0, 1-2, 2-1)

After a quick 3-0 lead for the team from Bavaria's capital, the Tigers put up a fight in their home game on thursday. In Munich they wanted to do the same and indeed they met München on the same level, but in the end the Bulls prevailed. Blaine Down could make things interesting with his go ahead goal for Straubing in the second periond, but Michael Wolf stopped their run with two last period goals. München will now face either Köln or Nürnberg.

Iserlohn Roosters vs Nürnberg Ice Tigers 2-4 (4-0, 2-4, 1-4, 1-7, 4-2, 2-3)

Iserlohn was able to benefit from its home strength one more time in game 5 beating the Ice Tigers 4-2, but in Nürnberg the Ice Tigers dominated again. Leo Pföderl opened the scoring late in the first period with a shot from the slot. In the second period Kurtis Foster and again Pföderl upped the score to 3-0, which left Iserlohn looking at an uphill battle to stay in the race for the championship before the last period.

They accepted the challenge and even came back to a 2-3 as Brooks Macek scored twice due to mistakes in the Ice Tigers' defense, but the goals came too late and so Nürnberg could celebrate reaching the Semis, where they will meet either München or Berlin.

Wolfsburg Grizzlies vs Düsseldorfer EG 4-1 (1-4, 3-2, 5-1, 1-0 OT, 4-1)

The Grizzlies didn't waste any time in securing their Semi-Final spot in game 5 at home. Despite Bernhard Ebner getting Düsseldorf in the lead, Wolfsburg came back with 4 unanswered goals to continue their dominance in this series. Jeffrey Likens scored twice, Gerrit Fauser and Mark Voakes added the other two.

Wolfsburg will either host Nürnberg or travel to Berlin in the next round.

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