Release from 17.09.2026

Final rematch between Pustertal and Graz to open the season

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The wait is over! The new win2day ICE Hockey League season gets underway on Friday with a full round of action. The highlight of the opening round is a rematch of last season’s Final between runners-up HC Falkensteiner Pustertal and champions Moser Medical Graz99ers. Another exciting matchup will see EC Red Bull Salzburg face EC-KAC, while league newcomers Milano Hockey Club make their debut on the road against HC TIWAG Innsbruck. The action continues on Saturday with three games of the second round. As usual, all games will be available live on Sporteurope.tv.

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On April 22, Graz were crowned champions for the first time in Pustertal. Exactly 150 days later, the two teams will meet again in Brunico to open the new season. While the 99ers have already played four competitive games in the Champions Hockey League, losing all four, Pustertal enjoyed a strong preseason with just one defeat. Last season, Graz won all four games of the Final against the South Tyroleans. The Styrians also had the upper hand in the Regular Season, winning three of their four meetings.

Salzburg face KAC
Another highlight of the opening round is the clash between Salzburg and Klagenfurt. Both teams fell short of their expectations last season, with their campaigns ending in the quarterfinals. In the current CHL season, both the Red Bulls and KAC have won one of their four games so far. Salzburg won three of the four head-to-head meetings in last season’s ICEHL Regular Season.

Milano make their debut in Innsbruck
There is also plenty of anticipation surrounding the debut of Milano Hockey Club. The league newcomers will begin their first win2day ICE Hockey League season with a road game in Innsbruck. The Italians already impressed during preseason, recording four wins in six games, including a victory against Vienna. Innsbruck also enjoyed a strong preparation, suffering just one defeat.

Bolzano take on Vienna
The opening round also features the matchup between Bolzano and Vienna. Last season, this was largely a successful matchup for the Capitals, who won three of the four meetings, each by a three-goal margin. Only the first encounter in Bolzano went the way of the South Tyroleans. The Capitals had a mixed preseason with five defeats and only two wins, while Bolzano won six of their eight preseason games. However, HCB suffered a 6-4 derby defeat at Pustertal in their final test.

Hungarian teams start with home games
Both Fehérvár and Budapest will begin the new season on home ice. Fehérvár host Linz, while FTC take on Ljubljana. The Slovenian side advanced all the way to the semifinals last season and once again have high ambitions for the new campaign. Their preseason results were less convincing, however, with just two wins from six games.

Pioneers face VSV
In the seventh game of the opening round, Pioneers Vorarlberg host EC VSV. Both teams had mixed results during preseason and will be looking to start the new campaign on a positive note when the competitive action begins.

Three games on Saturday
The action continues on Saturday with three games of the second round. Fehérvár take on Ljubljana, Innsbruck host Vienna and Pioneers Vorarlberg face reigning champions Graz.

win2day ICE Hockey League:
Fri, 18.09.2026:
18:30: FTC-Telekom – Olimpija Ljubljana
Referees: SMETANA, GEBEI GERGELY, Muzsik, Balazs

19:15: EC Red Bull Salzburg – EC-KAC
Referees: OFNER, STERNAT, Riecken, Zacherl

19:15: HC TIWAG Innsbruck – Milano Hockey Club
Referees: HUBER R., KAINBERGER, Bedynek, Strimitzer

19:15: Hydro Fehérvár AV19 – Steinbach Black Wings Linz
Referees: FICHTNER, HLAVATY, Kovacs, Durmis

19:30: Pioneers Vorarlberg – EC iDM Wärmepumpen VSV
Referees: HOLZER, NIKOLIC M., Divis, Fleischmann

19:45: HC Falkensteiner Pustertal – Moser Medical Graz99ers
Referees: NIKOLIC K., RIVIS, Dummermuth-Haas, Zgonc

19:45: HCB Südtirol Alperia – Vienna Capitals
Referees: HUBER A., SCHAUER, Pardatscher, Puff

Sat, 19.09.2026:
16:00: Hydro Fehérvár AV19 – Olimpija Ljubljana
Referees: HRONSKY, SNOJ, Durmis, Konc

17:30: HC TIWAG Innsbruck – Vienna Capitals
Referees: HUBER R., OFNER, Bedynek, Strimitzer

19:30: Pioneers Vorarlberg – Moser Medical Graz99ers
Referees: HOLZER, NIKOLIC M., Divis, Fleischmann