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Linz’s final table and Villach’s penultimate celebrated away victories in the ICE ice hockey league on Christmas Day. The Black Wings won 2-1 in neo-coach Dan Ceman’s debut at the Vienna Capitals, the VSV won 3-1 at the Graz 99ers. In the long-distance duel for first place, HCB Südtirol held the lead with a 2-0 win against Red Bull Salzburg, while Fehervar (4-2 against Bratislava) remained tied for second despite their eighth consecutive victory.
Two days after Ceman was introduced as Pierre Beaulieu’s successor, the 47-year-old Canadian could look forward to a successful debut. He had the outstanding goalkeeper David Kickert to thank first and foremost. The former goalkeeper of the national team defended himself from 46 shots on goal and only fell behind on a power play from Vienna with a shot from Marco Richter (19th). Will Pelletier (20th) and Oskars Bartulis (28./PP) finally led the Black Wings to their first win after their last five losses.
“We had a lot of shots, a lot of chances. But on the one hand we weren’t looking for a straight enough finish. On the other hand, Kickert also showed great saves in Linz’s goal. My team did a lot of things well, for example defensively they only allowed 15 shots on target. In short, I liked everything except the result, “said Caps coach Dave Cameron after the fifth straight loss.
Eleventh defeat in twelve games
The 99ers’ downward trend continued in Graz with the 11th loss in the last twelve games. Matt Mangene scored the decisive goal for the 2-1 lead (37th), Jordan Caron sealed VSV’s success with a blow to the empty goal.
In the first game of the season between Bolzano and Salzburg, the South Tyrolese benefited from two errors by the Bulls in preparation for the game, which the leader of the table took advantage of for a 2-0 lead in the middle third. Salzburg captain Thomas Raffl had a great chance to score the next goal in the 50th minute, but missed with his penalty against goalkeeper Andreas Bernard, who also saved his “shutout” in the final.
The Dornbirn Bulldogs won a mob festival against Innsbruck 7: 4 in the West Derby and replaced Haie in fifth place. Vorarlberg’s side played a 3-0 lead between the 20th and 25th minutes, but quickly regained their position and shot a three-goal lead until the second break, which they never gave up. (apa)
