Release from 15.04.2023

Salzburg has first chance to defend title for fourth time

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EC Red Bull Salzburg has the first of three chances to be crowned champion of the win2day ICE Hockey League season 2022/23. It would be the fourth time that the "Bulls" win the title "back-to-back" - meaning in two consecutive years. However, for the first time in a final against HCB Südtirol Alperia. The South Tyroleans, meanwhile, will be looking to make up ground in Bolzano on Sunday to beat Salzburg in a final series for the third time.

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2007 and 2008, 2010 and 2011, 2015 and 2016 - in each of these years EC Red Bull Salzburg managed to lift the "Karl Nedwed Trophy" in succession. The signs are good that the title defense will also succeed for the fourth time. The reigning champions are leading in the final series against HCB Südtirol with 3:1 - so they are only one win away from winning the entire eighth championship. The "Bulls" have a total of three chances to clinch the last victory still needed. The first of them already on Sunday in Bolzano - and deciding games are among the special discipline of the seven-time champion.

Salzburg is an Elimination Game specialist
The Red Bulls have never given up a 3:1 lead in eleven cases in their club history, and nine times they have decided the respective "best-of-7" series in their favor as early as game five. The record of the team from Salzburg in elimination games is more than respectable: 30 of 41 such encounters (in "best-of-7" mode) have been won, including each of the last six since the semifinal elimination against the Vienna Capitals in game seven in 2019.

Bolzano crowned champion once before after falling short in final against Salzburg
A considerable share of Salzburg's eleven defeats in "elimination games" can be attributed to HCB Südtirol Alperia. Thus, the "Foxes" have already managed to turn around a deficit in a final series against EC Red Bull Salzburg. In the 2018 championship, the "Red Bulls" were 3:2 in front before the South Tyroleans won two "do-or-die" games in a row and were crowned champions. However, a 1:3 deficit was turned around only once in league history. In 2010, the Steinbach Black Wings Linz managed the turnaround in the semifinals even after trailing 0:3 against the spusu Vienna Capitals.

Final series dominated by goalies
Especially the two goalies of EC Red Bull Salzburg and HCB Südtirol Alperia put their stamp on this series. Atte Tolvanen holds an incredible 98.2% save percentage in the finals. In the entire current postseason, it is still 95.8% of the shots that the Finn can defuse. This puts Tolvanen on course for a record. The best postseason to date by a goalie was completed in 2013 by René Swette for the EC-KAC, who succeeded with a saving percentage of 95.6%. The second-best figure by a goalie in a completed playoff campaign comes from Tolvanen himself: in 2022, the Salzburg shot-stopper crowned himself playoff MVP with a 95.4% save percentage. But his counterpart's numbers are also more than respectable. Sam Harvey holds a save percentage of 94% in the playoffs, which would still mean the eighth-best value of a keeper in a completed postseason campaign.

No power play goals for the first time in first four finals games
Another special feature of this finals series is the excellent penalty killing. In the league, which was newly formed in 2000, it has never been possible not to score a single power-play goal in the first four final games. While Salzburg, who had the third-best power play in the league in the regular season, failed to score in ten powerplays, Bolzano - the second-best power play in the regular season - was unable to score in 14 situations in which they had numerical superiority.

win2day ICE Hockey League | 16.04.2023 | "best-of-7" final series | Schedule:
Sun, 16.04.2023, 17.30: HCB Südtirol Alperia - EC Red Bull Salzburg
Referees: NIKOLIC K., STERNAT, Nothegger, Seewald. | >> Free-Livestream <<
Standings in the "best-of-7" final series: 3:1
>> LIVE from 17.05 on PULS 24