Release from 03.02.2026

Intermediate Round begins on Wednesday and Thursday

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The regular season of the Alps Hockey League concluded last Sunday and is now followed by the Intermediate Round. The opening game takes place on Wednesday with EC Bregenzerwald facing the Rittner Buam SkyAlps in Qualification Round B. The visitors from South Tyrol will enter the game with a new head coach: former assistant coach Mike Halmo takes over from Dave MacQueen, who was dismissed after the two-time champion failed to qualify for the Master Round. The Master Round gets underway on Thursday with the matchups EK Die Zeller Eisbären vs. Wipptal Broncos Weihenstephan and KHL Sisak vs. regular season champion Red Bull Hockey Juniors. Qualification Round A also begins on Thursday with Adler Stadtwerke Kitzbühel hosting HC Meran/o Pircher and S.G. Cortina Hafro taking on the Hockey Unterland Cavaliers.

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EC Bregenzerwald enters Qualification Round B as the top seed with three bonus points, followed by the Rittner Buam SkyAlps with two bonus points. The two teams meet directly in the opening game on Wednesday. During the regular season, the Vorarlberg side won two of the three encounters. Last week, Bregenzerwald suffered two consecutive defeats, while Ritten is winless in four games. As a result, the South Tyrolean club parted ways with head coach Dave MacQueen. Former assistant coach Mike Halmo has now taken over as head coach, assisted by Roberto Scelfo.

Zell am See hosts Sterzing in Master Round opener
The regular-season runners-up, EK Die Zeller Eisbären, face fifth-placed Wipptal Broncos Weihenstephan on Thursday in the opening game of the Master Round. The South Tyroleans secured their place in the Master Round with a 4–0 road win in Sisak on the final matchday of the regular season. They now enter the Intermediate Round without bonus points, while Zell am See starts with three bonus points. The Pinzgau team lost their final regular season game in Meran 1–4, after previously winning three straight games. Sterzing has won four of its last five matches. In the head-to-head comparison this season, the Broncos suffered two defeats against the Polar Bears, but won the most recent meeting in Zell am See 4–3.

Regular Season champions Salzburg visit Sisak
Also on Thursday, KHL Sisak will host regular season champions Red Bull Hockey Juniors in the Master Round. The Juniors begin the Intermediate Round with four bonus points, while Sisak, who finished third in the regular season, start with two bonus points. The Croatian side lost their final home game against Sterzing 0–4 and missed out on second place. Salzburg, meanwhile, suffered a 3–4 overtime loss at Unterland but collected the crucial point needed to secure first place. Prior to that, the Juniors recorded three consecutive victories, while Sisak won only two of their last five games. However, Sisak won two of the three previous meetings with the Juniors this season.

Qualification Round A opens with two games
In Qualification Round A, Adler Stadtwerke Kitzbühel host HC Meran/o Pircher on Thursday. The Tyroleans lost their final three regular season games and dropped the crucial fifth place to Sterzing on the last matchday. Now they enter Qualification Round A as the top seed with three bonus points. Meran finished the regular season in tenth place and start with one bonus point. The South Tyroleans are in good form, having won their last two games while conceding only one goal. However, they have yet to defeat Kitzbühel in a head-to-head meeting this season.

The second Qualification Round A matchup features S.G. Cortina Hafro against the Hockey Unterland Cavaliers. While regular season bottom team Unterland starts the Intermediate Round without bonus points, ninth-placed Cortina enters with two bonus points. Cortina has won its last three games, while Unterland recently recorded a surprising 4–3 overtime home win over Salzburg after suffering three consecutive defeats. In direct comparison, the Cavaliers won the most recent road game 4–3, while Cortina claimed victory in the other two encounters.

Alps Hockey League:
Qualification Round B:
Wed, 04.02.2026:
19:30 Uhr: EC Bregenzerwald – Rittner Buam SkyAlps
Referees: HUBER R., SPIEGEL, Rinker, Seewald J.

Master Round:
Thu, 05.02.2026:
19:30 Uhr: EK Die Zeller Eisbären – Wipptal Broncos Weihenstephan
Referees: UNTERWEGER, WINKLER, Dummermuth-Haas, Strimitzer

19:30 Uhr: KHL Sisak – Red Bull Hockey Juniors
Referees: METZINGER, SNOJ, Arlic, Legat

Qualification Round A:
Thu, 05.02.2026:
19:30 Uhr: Adler Stadtwerke Kitzbühel – HC Meran/o Pircher
Referees: BROCK, HOLZER, Divis, Wendner

20:30 Uhr: S.G. Cortina Hafro – Hockey Unterland Cavaliers
Referees: BENVEGNU, LAZZERI, Cristeli, Ilmer

Watch all games live on Valcome.TV.