Austria conclude their second week of prepa­ra­tions with a 3:2 win over Italy

Before the game, Dominic Zwerger was honoured for 100 international appearances. The Swiss-based player made his milestone appearance against our neighbours at the Deutschland-Cup last autumn, when we also beat them 5:2. Over the 60 minutes against Italy, Zwerger was one of the most eye-catching players on the ice, creating numerous chances and providing assists on all three goals. He was ultimately named Player of the Match.

While Austria repeatedly tried their luck from the blue line in the first period, it was Dominic Zwerger who gave the nearly 5.000 fans in Feldkirch their first reason to cheer with a fine solo effort after almost 16 minutes. Just moments later, Clemens Unterweger fired the puck off the crossbar. Peter Schneider almost scored a shorthanded goal before the end of the first period.

Italy registered their first major chance at the start of the second period, with the puck narrowly missing David Kickert's goal. After Mario Huber tested Italy goaltender Davide Fadani and Zwerger was narrowly denied following another solo effort, Benjamin Nissner gave Austria the deserved 1:0 lead. The 28-year-old struck again on the power play. However, the celebrations fell silent a minute later when Bryce Misley pulled one back for Italy.

Austria subsequently had several major chances, but were repeatedly denied by Fadani, who was also named Italy's Player of the Match.

Midway through the third period, Zwerger set up Nissner with a superb pass while shorthanded, but it did not find the net, nor did Clemens Unterweger's shot shortly afterwards.

With 55 minutes played, fortune favoured the visitors. David Kickert tried to stop the puck as it rolled behind the goal, but it took an awkward bounce and slid off his skate in front of the net, where Tommaso De Luca only had to push it over the line.

Austria dominated the ensuing overtime, with Peter Schneider scoring the deserved winner with 29,3 seconds remaining.

After a short break, the national team will gather in Vienna on Sunday and play two games against the 2024 world champions, Czechia, next week. There will be no changes to the squad, with only Elias Wallenta doubtful after leaving the Italy game injured following the second period.

Head Coach Roger Bader: “Every win naturally gives us confidence. I also believe that this win was deserved; it would even have been deserved after 60 minutes. The second goal was unfortunate, but that happens in ice hockey. We missed the chance to score a third or fourth goal. We created plenty of chances. It was no coincidence that their goaltender was named the best player. He earned Italy that one point. We will be challenged differently against Czechia, and that is great because it will allow us to take the next step.”

Dominic Zwerger: “Italy played very well. It was a hard-fought but deserved win. We want to play against the best in order to be well prepared for the World Championship, and the opposition will now get better. The team is like a family, and you can see that chemistry on the ice. We want to continue like this so that we are in top form at the World Championship.”

World Championship preparation

Austria vs. Italy 3:2 n.V. (0:0, 2:1, 0:1, 1:0)
Thu, 16 April 2026, 19:00, Dornbirn
Austria scorers: Benjamin Nissner (27 min, 29 min/PP), Peter Schneider (65 min)
Italy scorers: Bryce Misley (30 min), Tommaso De Luca (55 min)
Game Sheet

Further World Championship preparation
23.04, 19:00, Vienna: Austria vs. Czechia
24.04, 17:00, Jihlava (CZE): Czechia vs. Austria
30.04, 19:00, Zell am See: Austria vs. Germany
02.05, 17:00, Garmisch-Partenkirchen (GER): Germany vs. Austria
09.05, 16:20, Klagenfurt: Austria vs. Slovenia
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Already played
Latvia vs. Austria 3:4 (0:1, 3:3, 0:0)
Wed, 8 April 2026, 18:30, Riga (LAT)
Austria scorers: Maximilian Rebernig (9), Benjamin Nissner (21), Luca Erne (29), Lucas Thaler (39/PP)
Latvia scorers: Karlis Ozolins (30), Glebs Prohorenkovs (33/PP), Deniss Smirnovs (36)
Game Sheet

Latvia vs. Austria 1:0 (0:0, 0:0, 1:0)
Thu, 9 April 2026, 18:30, Riga (LAT)
Latvia scorer: Oskars Lapinski (51)
Game Sheet