Alps Hockey League: Zell am See on the brink of title after victory in Jesenice

EK Zeller Eisbären are just one win away from winning the Alps Hockey League title. The Pinzgau side won 4:3 after overtime at HDD SIJ Acroni Jesenice on Sunday in front of 1.750 spectators, taking a 3:1 lead in the best-of-7 final series. Game five will take place in Zell am See on Tuesday.

13 April 20251 min read

There was another superb atmosphere for the fourth game of the final series in Jesenice. The hosts started strongly, but it was the well-attended away section that had the first reason to celebrate: Nick Huard scored from a swift counter-attack in the seventh minute. Jesenice looked for a quick response, but EKZ goaltender Max Zimmermann made a save. At the other end, the Austrians made it 2:0 as Hubert Berger fired the puck into the top corner.

The Slovenians called a timeout and, backed by their vocal fans, struck back just a minute later. Tjas Lesnicar (10th) deflected a shot from the blue line beyond reach. The first intermission arrived with the score at 1:2. Jesenice came out strongly again after the restart. When the visitors were unable to clear the puck from their own zone, the equaliser followed – Martin Bohinc caught Zimmermann out at the near post.

The Slovenians had the momentum, but Zell am See continued to show flashes of their quality. In the 30th minute, Kilian Rappolt was set up perfectly by Berger and kept his composure in front of Us – 2:3. In the third period, Jesenice goaltender Zan Us denied Matt McLeod twice, before the hosts finally equalised: with three minutes remaining, Erik Svetina sent the puck into the net with a backhand from a tight angle.

The game went to overtime, where Zell am See scored the decisive goal. Nick Huard deflected a Devin Steffler shot to make it 4:3. The Pinzgau side can now win the title in front of their home crowd on Tuesday.