Release from 03.09.2026

KAC opens CHL season with a win | Defeats for Graz and Salzburg

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To kick off the Champions Hockey League, EC-KAC celebrated a 2–1 overtime home victory against Bordeaux on Thursday. The Moser Medical Graz99ers and EC Red Bull Salzburg, however, suffered defeats. In the day’s only preseason game, FTC-Telekom recorded a blowout win.

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EC-KAC began its seventh CHL campaign with a home win over French champions Bordeaux. After an early goal by the visitors, Thimo Nickl equalized in the second period. The match went to overtime tied 1–1, where Nick Petersen scored on the power play to seal the decision.

Almost seven years after their last appearance in the Champions Hockey League, the Moser Medical Graz99ers made their CHL comeback against reigning Swiss champions Fribourg-Gottéron. Despite several absences, the Graz side put up a fierce fight against the favored Swiss and were the more dominant team for long stretches. Chris Collins netted the 1–1 equalizer late in the first period. The game remained tight for a long time before Fribourg struck decisively in the closing stages. A power-play goal by Marcus Vela was no longer enough—the 99ers lost 2–4.

EC Red Bull Salzburg also suffered a home defeat against Cologne Sharks. The DEL representative scored twice in the first period. The Red Bulls pulled within 1–2 and 2–3 in the second period through goals by Peter Schneider and Mario Huber. In the end, however, the hosts went down 2–5.

Budapest celebrates clear preseason home win
FTC-Telekom recorded a convincing 12–1 preseason victory over Slovakia’s HC Nové Zámky on Thursday. After leading 2–0 after the first period, the Hungarians extended their advantage to 7–0 in the second. On home-ice debuts, new signings Rasmus Heljanko and Carter Savoie scored five and four goals respectively for the Budapest side.

Champions Hockey League
Thu, 03.09.2026:
Moser Medical Graz99ers - HC Fribourg-Gottéron 2:4 (1:1, 0:0, 1:3)
EC-KAC - Bordeaux Boxers 2:1 OT (0:1, 1:0, 0:0)
EC Red Bull Salzburg - Kölner Haie 2:5 (0:2, 2:2, 0:1)

Preseason win2day ICE Hockey League
FTC-Telekom - HC Nové Zámky 12:1