Sterzing faces league leaders Ritten in the top game

Tue, 19.12.2023, 19:00: SIJ Acroni Jesenice - HC Gherdeina valgardena.it
Referees: BULOVEC, WIDMANN, Bergant, Puff | >> valcome.tv <<

Jesenice have only won two of their last five games, the reigning champions are currently in sixth place. Gardena went into the international break with a clear home win against Kitzbühel. Despite an improved performance, the South Tyroleans are in 14th place, 16 points behind their upcoming opponents. The "Furie" have already picked up five wins from eleven road games, with Gardena even winning two of their last three games in Jesenice.

Tue, 19.12.2023, 19:00: HK RST Pellet Celje - EK Die Zeller Eisbären
Referees: MILOVANOVIC, WUNTSCHEK, Markizeti, Telesklav | >> valcome.tv <<

Celje recently suffered seven defeats in a row, but many games were only narrowly lost. Although the Slovenians are second last in the table and new to the league, they should by no means be underestimated. They have already beaten teams such as Lustenau and Bregenzerwald, especially at home. Zell am See is currently in second place, one point behind Ritten. The Salzburg side have won their last three games, picking up eight points from them. With nine wins from twelve games, the Polar Bears are currently the best away team in the league. In the first game of the season, the Salzburgers left the ice with a 6:1 victory.

Tue, 19.12.2023, 19:15: Red Bull Hockey Juniors - SHC Fassa Falcons
Referees: BROCK, MOIDL, Dieber, Matthey | >> valcome.tv <<

The Juniors' eight-game winning streak came to an end in their last game before the international break. After a poor start to the season, Salzburg have steadily improved and are currently in third place. They conceded the second-fewest goals of all teams (60) behind league leaders Ritten. Fassa are currently on the upswing, with the Falcons winning seven of their last nine games and moving up to eleventh place. However, with three wins from twelve games, things have not yet gone according to plan away from home. The Juniors have won seven of their eight AHL home games against the Italians.

Tue, 19.12.2023, 19:15: Steel Wings LINZ AG - EC-KAC Future Team
Referees: HLAVATY, VOICAN, Legat, Weiss | >> valcome.tv <<

In their last home game, the Steel Wings celebrated a 2:1 shootout win over Unterland and they have also beaten Sterzing at home this season. The Upper Austrians are 13th in the table, while Klagenfurt are the bottom club, having lost their last 16 games. The Red Jackets are now hoping to reverse the trend. They have won four of their five games in Linz so far.

Tue, 19.12.2023, 19:30: EC Bregenzerwald - EHC Lustenau
Referees: RUETZ, SCHAUER, Jäger, Rinker | >> valcome.tv <<

The Vorarlberg derby will take place in Dornbirn on Tuesday. Before the international break, the Tigers were the hottest team in the league and climbed up to fourth place in the table with seven wins in a row. In the process, head coach Jussi Tupamäki's team gained an advantage over their local rivals from Lustenau, who failed to pick up any points in their last two games before the break. In the first derby between these two teams in the current season, however, Lustenau still had the better end. Despite trailing 2:0, the Lions prevailed 6:4.

Tue, 19.12.2023, 20:00: Rittner Buam SkyAlps - Wipptal Broncos Weihenstephan
Referees: MOSCHEN, PINIE, Brondi, De Zordo | >> valcome.tv <<

The Rittner Buam took the lead in the table before the break with a sensational run. After ten wins in a row - without losing any points - the "Buam's" run came to an end in their last game. They were then able to defend their lead in the table with a victory over Celje. For the Broncos, however, the break came at the right time. The team from Sterzing was only able to win one of its last four games and slipped back to fifth place. The Broncos last won against Ritten almost three years ago. The five meetings since then have all gone to Tray Tuomie's team.

Tue, 19.12.2023, 20:30: S.G. Cortina Hafro - Hockey Unterland Cavaliers
Referees: BENVEGNU, GIACOMOZZI, Cristeli, Formaioni | >> valcome.tv <<

After a rather mixed November, S.G. Cortina Hafro started a race to catch up with the top 6 in December and are now only one point away from the Master Round places after three full victories in a row. The Hockey Unterland Cavaliers, on the other hand, have not managed to climb above mid-table and also lost three of their last four games before the break. In the first duel of the season between these two teams, the Cavaliers only narrowly missed out on a win. After leading twice, they were ultimately beaten in a shootout.

Tue, 19.12.2023, 20:30: HC Meran/o Pircher - EC Die Adler Stadtwerke Kitzbühel
Referees: LEGA, F. RIVIS, A. Rivis, Vignolo | >> valcome.tv <<

The clash between HC Meran/o Pircher and EC Die Adler Stadtwerke Kitzbühel sees two teams separated by just one point in the table. The Eagles currently have a narrow lead, with the Tyroleans also celebrating a 10:1 victory in the first duel of the season. Nine different Kitzbühel cracks got on the scoresheet on the first weekend of the new season. Chris Seto scored a brace - followed by two more games in which he also scored twice.

Photo: Oskar Brunner