Clear home wins for Zell am See and Sisak to open the Master Round

EK Die Zeller Eisbären dominated the Wipptal Broncos Weihenstephan with a 7–2 win and took over first place in the Master Round standings. With six points, the team from Pinzgau now holds a one-point lead over Sisak. In front of 1,800 fans, Philip Putnik opened the scoring in the seventh minute, but Connor Sanvido equalized on the power play for the Broncos with 28 seconds remaining in the first period. Zell am See controlled the pace in the second period and pulled away to a 5–1 lead by the 37th minute. In the 47th minute, Ethan Szypula made it 6–1 and completed his hat trick. For last season’s MVP, it was his first hat trick of the current campaign in just his 11th game. The 29-year-old Canadian had missed time due to injury between October 17 and January 17. It was Zell am See’s third win in four meetings with Wipptal this season.

Sisak shuts out the Juniors
In their fourth meeting of the season with Red Bull Hockey Juniors, KHL Sisak claimed their third win. With a 4–0 home victory in the opening game of the Master Round, the Croatians gave the Salzburg-based Regular Season champions no chance. Sisak now sit second in the standings behind Zell am See, while the Juniors dropped to third place. Danila Larionovs put the hosts ahead in the 14th minute, followed by three goals in the middle period. No further goals were scored in the final frame, allowing Sisak goaltender Vilim Rosandic to record his third shutout of the season.

Kitzbühel rally against Meran
In Qualification Round A, Adler Stadtwerke Kitzbühel opened with a 3–2 shootout win over HC Meran/o Pircher. The Tyroleans fell behind 0–2 within the first nine minutes after goals by Reid Stefanson (1st minute) and Patrick Tomasini (9th), putting them in danger of a fourth straight loss. However, the hosts improved their performance and cut the deficit in the 17th minute through Matthias Mader. Kirill Maksimov equalized in the 42nd minute, scoring his first goal in his sixth game. No further goals were scored in regulation or overtime, sending the game to a shootout, where Mai Crnkic converted the decisive penalty shot. In the standings, Kitzbühel are tied on points with Cortina in second place, while Meran sit third, three points behind. For the South Tyroleans, it was their first defeat after two straight wins and already their fourth loss of the season against Kitzbühel.

No chance for Unterland against Cortina
In the second game of Qualification Round A, S.G. Cortina recorded a dominant 7–2 win over the Hockey Unterland Cavaliers and moved to the top of the standings. Unterland remain without a point at the bottom of the table. The last-place team from the Regular Season took an early lead in the seventh minute, and the 1–0 advantage lasted only until the 23rd minute. Cortina then took control and surged to a 4–1 lead by the 33rd minute. Cortina continued to dictate play in the final period and extended the margin to 7–1. Oskari Kalajanniska, Chad Pietroniro and Massimo Pietroniro each scored twice. The final goal of the night was netted by Unterland’s Erik Potsinok, who had earlier opened the scoring with the 1–0 goal.

Alps Hockey League:
Master Round:
Thu, 05.02.2026:
EK Die Zeller Eisbären – Wipptal Broncos Weihenstephan 7:2 (1:1, 4:0, 2:1)
Referees: UNTERWEGER, WINKLER, Dummermuth-Haas, Strimitzer
Goals EKZ: 1:0 Putnik P. (7.), 2:1 Steffler K. (22.), 3:1 Szypula E. (28.), 4:1 Coffman T. (36.), 5:1 Szypula E. (37.), 6:1 Szypula E. (47./PP1), 7:1 Zauner S. (55./PP1)
Goals WSV: 1:1 Sanvido C. (20./PP1), 7:2 Conci D. (57./SH1)

KHL Sisak – Red Bull Hockey Juniors 4:0 (1:0, 3:0, 0:0)
Referees: METZINGER, SNOJ, Arlic, Legat
Goals SIS: 1:0 Larionovs D. (14./PP1), 2:0 Cavlovic N. (21.), 3:0 Yeob K. (25./PP1), 4:0 Dobric P. (38.)

Qualification Round A:
Do, 05.02.2026:
Adler Stadtwerke Kitzbühel – HC Meran/o Pircher 3:2/SO (1:2, 0:0, 1:0, 0:0)
Referees: BROCK, HOLZER, Divis, Wendner
Goals KEC: 1:2 Mader M. (17.), 2:2 Maksimov K. (42.), 3:2/SO Crnkic M. (65./PS)
Goals HCM: 0:1 Stefanson R. (1.), 0:2 Tomasini P. (9./PP1)

S.G. Cortina Hafro – Hockey Unterland Cavaliers 7:2 (0:1, 4:0, 3:1)
Referees: BENVEGNU, LAZZERI, Cristeli, Ilmer
Goals SGC: 1:1 Pietroniro M. (23./PP1), 2:1 Pietroniro C. (27.), 3:1 Pompanin F. (29.), 4:1 Kalajanniska O. (33./SH1), 4:1 Pietroniro M. (42.), 5:1 Pietroniro C. (49./SH1), 6:1 Pietroniro C. (49./SH1), 7:1 Kalajanniska O. (51.)
Goals HCU: 0:1 Potsinok E. (7.), 7:2 Potsinok E. (56.)

Copyright: EKZ/Radlwimmer