Continental Cup: Cortina defeat Gyergyó in a dramatic, momentum-swinging semifinal opener

The Continental Cup semifinal round opened with a thriller in front of 388 spectators, as Italian champions S.G. Cortina Hafro battled past Gyergyói HK with a 5–3 victory. The game featured wild momentum swings: Cortina dominated the opening minutes, Gyergyó controlled most of the middle stretch, and the Italians delivered the decisive blow late in regulation.

Cortina came out flying, striking three times in the first 6:43 on their way to a 7–10 shot count in the opening period.
At 3:31, Filippo Pompanin made it 1–0, assisted by Massimo Pietroniro and Oskari Kalajanniska. Just 96 seconds later, Chad Pietroniro doubled the lead (assists: Talamini, De Zanna), and at 6:43 Jakob Stöffling added the third, again with Kalajanniska and Massimo Pietroniro involved. Stöffling would finish the night with a game-high +4.

A much-needed Romanian timeout slowed the Italian surge, and at 14:06 Gyergyó pulled one back: Brance Orban scored on the power play (Väyrynen, Bodo), cutting the deficit to 3–1.

The middle frame belonged entirely to Gyergyó, who outshot Cortina 13–5 and pinned the Italian champions in their own zone for extended stretches. Despite the pressure, Cortina were held together by an outstanding performance from Antti Karjalainen, who stopped 30 of 33 shots (90.0%) on his way to being named Man of the Match.

The Romanians made it 3–2 at 27:28, when Owen Williams capitalized on a chaotic scramble in front (Szigeti, Haaranen). Defender Matias Haaranen, who logged heavy minutes and added an assist, was later selected as Gyergyó’s Man of the Match.

Gyergyó closed the period with all the momentum, while Cortina increasingly relied on icings and desperation clears to relieve pressure.

The third period began with Gyergyó still in control, eventually tying the game at 48:50. On another man advantage, Péter Vincze hammered home a one-timer (Bodo, Orban), capping a surge that saw the Hungarian forward finish with 1 goal but a difficult –4 rating, mirroring teammate Christopher Bodo’s –4 despite his two assists.

At that stage the Romanian side looked fully poised for a comeback win. Cortina managed no shots for most of the period — until a single counterattack changed everything.

At 57:15, with Gyergyó pressing deep, Luca Barnabò broke loose and restored the Cortina lead with a deflected shot, assisted by Marco Sanna and Chad Pietroniro. Barnabò finished with 1 goal, 1 assist, +1, delivering the game’s turning point.

Gyergyó pulled goaltender Rasmus Rinne — who ended with 17 saves on 21 shots (76.47%) — but the Italians sealed the win at 59:40 through Oskari Kalajanniska, who scored into the empty net and closed the night with 1 goal, 2 assists, +2.

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