Top-5 open 2021 with a win

Bolzano kicks off 2021 with shootout win
The year 2021 in the bet-at-home ICE Hockey League has started for leader HCB Südtirol Alperia with a 5:4 shootout win at EC Red Bull Salzburg. The "Foxes" also won the second duel of the season with the sixth-placed "Bulls" and promptly returned to winning ways after the defeat in Dornbirn on December 30th. The leader let slip away a two-goal lead because he was struggling, especially when shorthanded that evening conceding a Salzburg power play goal three times. As a result, Salzburg also made it into overtime, but there the box-play of the guests held, who then rewarded themselves in a long shootout, and thanks to Andreas Bernard, with the extra point. Dustin Gazley was Bolzano's best playerr, recording a goal, two assists and also netting decisively in the penalty shootout.


Fehérvár reaches 100 goal mark in overtime win
In a 5:4 home win after overtime, Hydro Fehérvár AV19 became the first team in the bet-at-home ICE Hockey League to break the 100-goal mark this season. Alex Petan's 2:0 was the anniversary goal. However, the Steinbach Black Wings 1992 fought against the defeat, as the bottom ranked team turned the 1:3 deficit into a 4:4 after regulation in the final third thanks to a Juha-Pekka Hytonen brace and a powerplay goal by Oskars Bartulis. Anze Kuralt set up the OT game-winner after just 30 seconds, scoring twice. Fehérvár thus also won the fourth duel of the season against the Linzers.

Strong middle frame gives Vienna win
The spusu Vienna Capitals also managed a temporary season sweep. The third-placed team in the bet-at-home ICE Hockey League won 5:2 at the iClinic Bratislava Capitals and thus also won the fourth duel of the season with the league newcomers, in which goalie Jared Coreau made his debut. After a scoreless opening frame, Vienna provided the preliminary decision with three goals in the middle period. Ali Wukovits (21.), Ty Loney (29.) and Nikolaus Hartl (39.) scored for the two-time champions. Filip Ahl (40.) reduced the score before the break, but Mario Fischer (51.) and Ty Loney (52.) followed up and gave the Austrian side their third win in a row.


Klagenfurt cheers another huge road-win
The fourth-placed EC-KAC took revenge on the Moser Medical Graz99ers for the narrow defeat at the end of the year and won the "back-to-back" duel in Styria clearly with 6:2, thus also the fourth encounter of the season was finished victoriously by the road team. The "Rotjcken” thus also picked up points in their seventh consecutive away game (six wins). Lukas Haudum (7.) and Thomas Koch (19./PP1) secured Klagenfurt a two-goal lead after the first period. Graz managed to halve the deficit twice in the course of the game, but was without a chance against the KAC closing offensive with three goals within five minutes. The EC-KAC had six different players scoring.


Jevpalovs hits second game winner in a row
The Dornbirn Bulldogs celebrated a win at the start of the year as the fifth-placed team in the bet-at-home ICE Hockey League too. The team from Vorarlberg won the “West-Dbery” against HC TIWAG Innsbruck - Die Haie 4:2 and is now three points ahead of Salzburg, which has played three games less. After a high-scoring first period with two goals for each team, the goalies kept their sheet clean for the rest - before Nikita Jevpalovs scored his second game-winner, as he did in the Vorarlberg's 2-1 win over Bolzano on December 30th. Andrew Yogan fixed the final score with an empty-netter. After three years, the team from Vorarlberg managed to win in Innsbruck after regulation.

Bet-at-home ICE Hockey League | Freitag, 1. Jänner 2021:
Hydro Fehérvár AV19 – Steinbach Black Wings 1992 5:4 OT (2:0, 1:1, 1:3, 1:0)
Referees: NAGY, SOOS, Kis-Kiraly, Nemeth.
Goals AVS: Kuralt (14./PP1), Petan (17.), Erdely (38.), Horvath (53.)
Goals BWI: Umicevic (38.), Hytonen (44., 55.), Bartulis (52./PP1)

iClinic Bratislava Capitals – spusu Vienna Capitals 2:5 (0:0, 1:3, 1:2)
Referees: BALUSKA, HRONSKY, Jedlicka, Konc.
Goals BRC: Ahl (40.), Hults (57./PP1)
Goals VIC: Wukovits (21.), Loney (29., 52.), Hartl (39.), Fischer (51.)

Moser Medical Graz99ers – EC-KAC 2:6 (0:2, 1:1, 1:3)
Referees: BULOVEC, TRILAR, Riecken, Zgonc.
Goals G99: Fejes (34.), Sointu (48./SH1)
Goals KAC: Haudum (7.), Koch (19./PP1), Ticar (38.), Petersen (54.), Bischofberger (57.), Ganahl (60.)

HC TIWAG Innsbruck – Die Haie – Dornbirn Bulldogs 2:4 (2:2, 0:0, 0:2)
Referees: BERNEKER, RUTZE, Seewald, Tschrepitsch.
Goals HCI: Jennes (7.), Herr (19./PP1)
Goals DEC: Pöschmann (7.), Schwinger (9.), Jevpalovs (54.), Yogan (60./EN)

EC Red Bull Salzburg – HCB Südtirol Alperia 4:5 SO (1:3, 2:1, 1:0, 0:0)
Referees: FICHTNER, SMETANA, Kontschieder, Nothegger.
Goals RBS: Huber (11.), Raffl (26./PP1), Schütz (33./PP1), Schofield (47./PP1)
Goals HCB: Fournier (4.), Gazley (16., 65./PS), Halmo (20.), Giliati (30.)