Release from 31.12.2023

Full league action on New Year's Day

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The year 2024 begins with six games in the win2day ICE Hockey League, with free TV partner PULS 24 showing the match between EC-KAC and the spusu Vienna Capitals live. League leaders Hydro Fehérvár AV19 welcome HK SZ Olimpija, while EC iDM Wärmepumpen VSV and Steinbach Black Wings Linz face off in a clash between two top six teams.

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win2day ICE Hockey League | 01.01.2024:
Mon, 1.1.2024, 17:30: Moser Medical Graz99ers - EC Red Bull Salzburg
Referees: RENCZ, SOOS, Muzsik, Vaczi | >> live.ice.hockey <<

Graz ended the year with a 4:1 win in Linz. The Styrians are still in last place, but are only one point behind Asiago. Salzburg delivered a very compact performance in their 5-2 home win over Bolzano, with captain Thomas Raffl celebrating a hat-trick after almost three years. Anthony Salinitri has improved for the Styrians so far this season; the 25-year-old already has 14 goals, making him the fifth-best league goalscorer together with Salzburg's Peter Schneider and three other forwards. The two duels so far this season have been fiercely contested, with Salzburg emerging victorious on both occasions: the Red Bulls won 4:3 after over time in mid-September and earned to a narrow 2:1 victory in Graz at the end of October.

Mon, 1.1.2024, 17:30: EC iDM Wärmepumpen VSV - Steinbach Black Wings Linz
Referees: HLAVATY, SMETANA, Bärnthaler, Bedynek | >> live.ice.hockey <<

EC iDM Wärmepumpen VSV celebrated its first road win in almost two months on Saturday, beating HC Pustertal Wölfe 6-3 after trailing 3-0 and scoring five goals in ten minutes. The Carinthians, for whom Alexander Rauchenwald scored a hat-trick, thus defended sixth place. The Steinbach Black Wings are currently four points and two places ahead of Villach. The Upper Austrians enjoyed a sold-out Linz AG Eisarena for the first time since March 2020 yesterday, but suffered a bitter defeat against Graz in front of 4,863 spectators. The team of head coach Phil Lukas has lost four of its last five games, in all of which the Upper Austrians always had to concede the first goal and thus came under pressure to come from behind. With 13 wins from 16 games, Villach is one of the strongest teams in the league at home. The Carinthians won the first two season meetings and have even won five in a row against Linz.

Mon, 1.1.2024, 17:30: Hydro Fehérvár AV19 - HK SZ Olimpija
Referees: FICHTNER, NAGY, Gatol-Schafranek, Jedlicka | >> live.ice.hockey <<

Fehervar go into the new year as leaders of the win2day ICE Hockey League. The Hungarians recently suffered two defeats in a row - for only the second time this season. Fehervar even went without a goal for the first time in the 2-0 defeat against the KAC. Olimpija won against Asiago on Saturday and scored important points in the race for the pre-playoffs. The tenth-placed Slovenians currently have a six-point lead over Vienna. With eight wins from 16 games, Ljubljana is one of the top six away teams. However, Fehervar have won the two duels so far this season. While Olimpija is the fairest team in the league, the Hungarians' special teams are in the top three in the league.

Mon, 1.1.2024, 19:30: EC-KAC - spusu Vienna Capitals
Referees: PIRAGIC, ZRNIC, Snoj, Zgonc | >> LIVE on PULS24 <<

The EC-KAC has been in good form in recent weeks: The record champions have gained at least one point in 19 of their last 21 games, winning 14 of them - most recently with a 2-0 win at league leaders Fehérvár. While second-placed Klagenfurt are on course for direct play-off qualification, the Vienna Capitals are only in eleventh place. Vienna's current winning percentage of 35.5 per cent is once again well below the lowest figure in their 22 years in the league to date (43.6 per cent in the 2011-12 season). The capital club is hoping to have reversed the trend: They are currently on a run of three successive wins, equalling their longest winning streak of the season. Klagenfurt won each of their first two matches of the season 5:2 and will be looking to prove their home strength in the Heidi Horten Arena, which will be sold out for the fourth time in a row: No team in the league has gained more points per home game this year than the KAC (2.33).

Mon, 1.1.2024, 19:45: Migross Supermercati Asiago Hockey - BEMER Pioneers Vorarlberg
Referees: GROZNIK, HUBER, Miklic, Rigoni | >> live.ice.hockey <<

The 2:4 in Ljubljana was the fourth defeat in a row for Asiago. The Italians are already ten points behind the top 10, and 13 points behind their upcoming opponents from Vorarlberg. Although the Pioneers lost their last game of the year in Innsbruck, Stanley's side had 13 points from five games before that. The two teams are tied 1:1 in the head-to-head season duels, with both teams winning their home games. While the team from Feldkirch is only one of five teams to score over 100 goals, Asiago has the weakest defence in the league (123 goals conceded). Pioneers forward Steve Owre leads the scoring rankings, while the Austrians also have the best power play in the league.

Mon, 1.1.2024, 19:45: HCB Südtirol Alperia - HC TIWAG Innsbruck
Referees: K. NIKOLIC, REZEK, Pardatscher, Puff | >> live.ice.hockey <<

After five wins in a row, Bolzano had to admit defeat once again in Salzburg on Saturday. The South Tyroleans are in fifth place and have a six-point lead over seventh-placed Innsbruck. The HCI recently celebrated two victories and are back in the race for direct play-off qualification. This Tyrolean derby has already taken place twice this season, with the home team coming out victorious on both occasions. The season opener in the TIWAG Arena was a clear 5:1 for the Sharks, while Bolzano won 4:2 at home at the end of November. The HCB has been unbeaten in the Sparkasse Arena since 20 October. Since that 5-2 defeat against Linz, the team from Bolzano has won nine home games in a row.