Release from 15.04.2024

Salzburg has a chance of a "three-peat" in front of home crowd

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EC Red Bull Salzburg could become the first team in history since the league was founded to be crowned champions of the win2day ICE Hockey League for the third time in a row on Tuesday. If Salzburg manages a home win in game six, they would also be the first team since 2018/19 (KAC) to lift the Karl Nedwed Trophy in front of a home crowd. However, the EC-KAC could also achieve this, but they now need two wins in a row to do so.

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win2day ICE Hockey League | 16.04.2024 | Final 6:
Tue, 16.04.2024, 19:30: EC Red Bull Salzburg - EC-KAC
Referees: SMETANA, ZRNIC, Nothegger, Ofner. >> PULS24 & JOYN <<
Standings in the "best-of-7" series: 3:2

RBS-KAC: Finals with overtime guarantee
The final series of the win2day ICE Hockey League could hardly be more exciting. Three of the five final games were decided in overtime. This number of overtimes in the finals has only been seen before in 2011, when the EC-KAC and EC Red Bull Salzburg also faced each other. Back then, Klagenfurt won the first two overtimes in games four and five before Thomas Koch scored the winner for the "Red Bulls" in the seventh final game. The EC-KAC has yet to win an overtime game in the current finals series, as the reigning champions are too cold-snouted in sudden-death. The Red Bulls recorded their fourth overtime win in the 2024 playoffs on Sunday. Four overtime wins in the playoffs - without an OT defeat in between - was only achieved by the EC-KAC in league history in 2019. However, Klagenfurt's OT playoff series was snapped at the start of the final series. Salzburg could therefore be the first team ever to march through the playoffs with a white overtime vest (with at least four wins). The fact that there was a overtime  on Sunday was due to the latest equalizer in the history of the final: four seconds before the supposed end, Thomas Raffl put the puck over the line with his shin. Only once in league history has a play-off equalizer been scored later (quarter-final 2018 KAC-HCB). Nicolai Meyer - the man of the "big goals" - was once again responsible for the overtime victory last Sunday.

First "three-peat" in league history possible - this in front of a home crowd
EC Red Bull Salzburg has defended its title four times in the league's history, meaning it has won a total of eight championships. However, no team has ever been crowned champions three times in a row. If Salzburg wins the title on Tuesday, it will also be the first team since EC-KAC 2019 to lift the trophy in front of a home crowd and the second team in the last ten seasons to do so. Of a total of 22 championship celebrations in the history of the win2day ICE Hockey League, the "Karl Nedwed Trophy" has only been lifted eight times in front of a home crowd. The "Red Bulls" celebrated only the first of their eight championship titles (2007) on home ice.

Salzburg high percentage on match pucks to win title
In total, EC Red Bull Salzburg had the chance to win the title with one win in ten seasons. In eight of these seasons, the "Red Bulls" were able to lift the Karl Nedwed Trophy in one of the following games. Only once has Salzburg not been crowned champions despite a 3:2 lead: in 2018, HCB Südtirol turned around a 2:3 series deficit to win the finals. In seven of the Red Bulls' eight title wins, they used their first match puck to win the title. Only last season against HCB Südtirol Alperia did the Red Bulls miss two chances before prevailing in Bolzano.

Previous KAC-RBS finals series always over seven games
A good omen for the EC-KAC on Tuesday, however, is that the two previous finals series between the EC-KAC and EC Red Bull Salzburg have always gone to seven games. in 2009, the EC-KAC went into the sixth game with a 3:2 lead, which the "Red Bulls" then won in overtime before the Klagenfurt team was crowned champion in the seventh game. The KAC also had a 3:2 advantage before the sixth game in 2011. Back then, the Salzburgers won two games in a row (Game 7 in overtime).

The most postseason games in history
The sixth final game also sets a new playoffs record. Including the pre-playoffs, Tuesday will be the 45th postseason game. This beats the previous season's record of 44 postseason games. If the EC-KAC manages to win on Tuesday, another new record will be set: Never before have there been three series in a playoff campaign that were decided in a seventh game. After HC Pustertal's 4:3 quarter-final win over Hydro Fehérvár and EC Red Bull Salzburg's semi-final victory over HCB Südtirol Alperia, the finals would be the third series to go the full distance.