Release from 04.11.2023
Sunday sees the last gameday of the win2day ICE Hockey League before the upcoming international break and the six games of the 20th round have a lot to offer: The 353rd Kärntner derby will be played in Klagenfurt (live on PULS 24 from 5.05 pm), while Steinbach Black Wings Linz forward Brian Lebler will make his first attempt to take the sole lead in the all-time scoring charts in Salzburg. Runners-up HCB Südtirol Alperia have the chance to record their seventh win in a row at bottom-placed Graz.
HC Pustertal Wölfe (they have lost five of their last six road games) and Migross Supermercati Asiago Hockey, which have not won away from home since the end of January, want to put an end to their weakness on the road. The spusu Vienna Capitals travel to third-placed Hydro Fehérvár AV19.
Win2day ICE Hockey League | 05.11.2023 | Schedule:
Sun, 05.11.2023, 4.00 pm: Moser Medical Graz99ers – HCB Südtirol Alperia
Referees: NAGY, PIRAGIC, Nothegger, Seewald J. | >> live.ice.hockey <<
HCB Südtirol Alperia travels to bottom-placed Moser Medical Graz99ers on the last gameday before the international break and wants to extend its winning streak. The runners-up have now gone six games without defeat and have shone in defense in particular, as the Foxes have conceded just three goals in their last four wins in regulation. Goalie Gianluca Vallini, who celebrated his first shutout with 27 saves in the home win over Salzburg on Friday, has now gone over 115 minutes without conceding a goal. Bolzano has won all five games with him as starter. Graz, which have not won their last five games against the South Tyroleans, put in a good performance in Villach on Friday, only weakening when short-handed. Anthony Salinitri, who has scored six goals in the last seven games, has been strong of late. The Styrians should be able to field the same line-up as in Villach.
Sun, 05.11.2023, 4.30 pm: EC Red Bull Salzburg – Steinbach Black Wings Linz
Referees: FICHTNER, STERNAT, Bedynek, Seewald E. | >> live.ice.hockey <<
League leaders EC Red Bull Salzburg take on fourth-placed Steinbach Black Wings Linz on Sunday. The reigning champions were held scoreless for the first time this season on Friday in Bolzano, losing 0-3. Salzburg had a much younger line-up in the Sparkasse Arena due to the absence of ten regular players due to illness, including the goalie tandem of Tolvanen and Kickert – it is not yet clear whether players will be available again for Sunday. In their first meeting of the season, Salzburg came from two goals down to win in a shootout (4-3).
Linz come to Salzburg after good results in the past, as the "Black Wings" won their last two games (albeit at home) in commanding fashion and Brian Lebler in particular is on fire. The veteran set Thomas Koch's all-time record for goals scored (359) with a hat-trick on Friday. With another goal, he can take the throne on Sunday. Thomas Raffl is still waiting for his anniversary goal, as the "Red Bulls" captain, who has also been ill recently, has 299 goals in the win2day ICE Hockey League.
Sun, 05.11.2023, 5.30 pm: EC-KAC – EC iDM Wärmepumpen VSV
Referees: HRONSKY, ZRNIC, Jedlicka, Zgonc. | >> LIVE AUF PULS24 <<
The 353rd Kärntner derby between EC-KAC (186 wins) and EC iDM Wärmepumpen VSV (147) will take place in Klagenfurt on Sunday. 19 derbies have ended in a draw. The first duel of the season between the two local rivals went 4-2 to the "Adler", which also have the better form at the moment: Villach have won their last three games, while Klagenfurt have lost their last three - with Fury's team showing a weakness in scoring, making just three goals from 105 shots on goal (2.9% scoring efficiency). The "Rotjacken" are still the third-best home team in the league with a record of seven wins from eight games, but have to make do without a number of players: In addition to the five long-term injuries, Schwinger, Bischofberger and Petersen are also in danger of missing out. Villach is still without Marco Richter, Rene Swette and Anthony Luciani, who are all recovering from injury.
Sun, 05.11.2023, 5.30 pm: Hydro Fehérvár AV19 – spusu Vienna Capitals
Referees: OFNER, RENCZ, Durmis, Muzsik. | >> live.ice.hockey <<
Hydro Fehérvár AV19's second opponent this weekend is the spusu Vienna Capitals. The first meeting of the season between these two teams was a spectacle: the Hungarians were 0-3 down after ten minutes, turned the game around in the middle frame and then triumphed in overtime. After that, the Hungarians' performance curve (24 points out of a possible 30) went up, while the Austrians' (7/36) went down significantly. The 2022 runners-up are particularly impressive with their special teams, have the best PK unit (89.29%) in the league and are in second place in the PP ranking (21.67%).
However, the Viennese team has stabilized somewhat of late, bringing a small winning streak with them to Hungary, as the "Caps" were victorious in two consecutive games against Ljubljana (3-2) and Feldkirch (3-2 OT) for the first time this season.
Sun, 05.11.2023, 5.30 pm: HC TIWAG Innsbruck - Die Haie – Migross Supermercati Asiago Hockey
Referees: NIKOLIC K., SCHAUER, Martin, Pardatscher. | >> live.ice.hockey <<
HC TIWAG Innsbruck - Die Haie are only eighth in the table, but - together with third-placed Fehérvár - have played the fewest games (16) so far. The Tyroleans have lost their last three games, scoring just one goal (Brady Shaw on the powerplay in the 1-3 defeat against Salzburg). This losing streak happened away from home, and the "Sharks" also score much less often on foreign ice: ten goals in eight away games compared to 29 goals in eight home games.
Meanwhile, opponents Migross Supermercati Asiago Hockey boosted their confidence on Friday evening with a 2-1 overtime win over Klagenfurt and confirmed their improving form (the Italians have scored in four of their last five games). Head coach Tom Barasso's team is still without a win away from home: their last success on the road dates back to January 22 (6-5 OT in Vienna). There have already been four confrontations between these two teams in the win2day ICE Hockey League, with the "Sharks" winning three of them. The two teams are playing each other for the first time this season.
Sun, 05.11.2023, 6.00 pm: HK SZ Olimpija – HC Pustertal Wölfe
Referees: SIEGEL, SMETANA, Hribar, Mantovani. | >> live.ice.hockey <<
HC Pustertal Wölfe put an end to its four-game losing streak on Friday. The South Tyroleans defeated Innsbruck 2-0 - on Sunday, the Wolves have to face HK SZ Olimpija. Tomek Valtonen's team will have to overcome their weakness on the road: Pustertal has lost five of its last six "road games". They can rely on their strong power play (25.45% | #1). However, Ljubljana will not give them many opportunities to do so; with just 5 PIM, the "Dragons" are very disciplined. However, the Slovenians will need to improve if they are to confirm their win from the first game of the season (4-2) and defend their tenth place in the table.