Hohenems back up to second in the table after victory over Kundl – Sharks Gmunden beat WEV

After Friday evening’s clash, in which Kundl secured a playoff place with a narrow 2:1 win, SC Samina Hohenems and EHC Kundl faced each other for the fourth and final time in the regular season in a Division West back-to-back on Sunday.

At the unusual start time of 12:00, the two teams exchanged open blows in daylight, with the hosts taking the lead on their first power play through Ricards Purins, who made it 1:0 after an ideal pass from Patrick Spannring (4 min). Sebastian Schild fired from the right after a face-off, and HSC goaltender Karlo Škec allowed the puck to trickle into the net for 1:1 (10 min).

The closing stages of the first period were turbulent: Ricards Purins again sent the puck into the net from the left face-off circle to make it 2:1 for the Vorarlberg side (19 min). Kundl responded quickly with the equaliser: 33 seconds before the first buzzer, Valentin Ploner got his stick blade to a cross-ice pass from Maximilian Mackern to make it 2:2 (20 min).

The home side again struck quickly in the second period: Fabian Mandlburger fired home on the counter-attack to make it 3:2 after exactly 62 seconds (22 min). Mandlburger himself initiated another quick attack while shorthanded via Benjamin Kyllönen and followed up the rebound from close range to make it 4:2 (28 min).

Hohenems were now on fire and added another. After quickly moving through the neutral zone, Ricards Purins fired clinically to make it 5:2 (29 min), his third goal of the game. Shortly afterwards, Kundl were back in the contest: eight seconds before the halfway point, Michal Kluka finished a quick counter-attack from the slot to make it 3:5 (30 min).

The Schlittschuhclub then patiently waited for their chance on a 5:3 power play: Patrick Spannring hammered a one-timer from a Christian Haidinger pass into the Kundl net guarded by Johann Bauer to make it 6:3 (37 min).

The Tyroleans were unable to raise their game in the final period, while Hohenems extended their lead to 7:3 through a Benjamin Kyllönen rebound (49 min). Kundl had the final say, with Valentin Ploner putting the puck over the line with his backhand after a failed clearance by Škec to make it 4:7 (52 min). The Steinböcke move ahead of HC Kufstein in the table and, with one round remaining, currently sit second, one point clear.

East Division:

Sharks Gmunden draw level with Kapfenberg after victory over WEV

The UEHV CAM4DENT Sharks Gmunden faced Wiener Eislauf-Verein for the fifth and final time in the regular season on Sunday to conclude the East Division round. For the Viennese side, who celebrated a 4:0 win in Kapfenberg on Friday and a 4:1 victory against ATSE Graz on Saturday, it was their third game in three days.

The defending champions from Lake Traun made the better start at the muki Arena: defender Simon Reder fired from just behind the blue line in the offensive zone to make it 1:0 (4 min). In an intensely contested first period, Dominik Stöttner extended the Upper Austrians’ lead to 2:0 four and a half minutes before the first buzzer (16 min).

In the second period, Sharks player Lukas Stöttner and WEV’s Nils Granitz initially exchanged a few pleasantries. Shortly afterwards, WEV were unable to use their first power play to finally get on the scoresheet. The match remained a gripping affair, with every shift showing that the playoffs are just around the corner. Both goaltenders – Tobias Windhofer for the Sharks and Moritz Merkader for WEV – kept clean sheets in the middle period.

The Sharks carried a power play into the final period but, both then and on another power play, failed to extend their lead. Things became more frantic and emotional, with WEV player Lukas Kaider and Lukas Stöttner dropping the gloves with eleven minutes remaining. The game was over for both after this bout. With four and a half minutes left, WEV had the chance to get back into the game on the power play but could not find a goal in that spell.

In the end, Head Coach Philipp Ullrich pulled goaltender Merkader for an extra skater, but Moritz Neurauter won the puck and sealed the 3:0 result with an empty-net goal just under two minutes from time (58 min). Sharks netminder Tobias Windhofer was able to celebrate a shutout at the final buzzer.

The Sharks Gmunden are level on points with table leaders Kapfenberg once again. The final round features the direct showdown for first place in the East, while Kapfenberg will first face the WEV.

ATSE Graz celebrate away win at HDK Maribor

The HDK Mariborcalled for a response in the Division East on Sunday after the narrow 3:4 defeat against KapfenbergATSE Graz in the Styrian derby between partner cities on Sunday in the Eastern Division, following their narrow __OEHV_NUM_AC_A__ defeat against Kapfenberg. The Foxes made the better start and took an early lead: Adi Drnda scored from close range to make it 1:0 after a fine combination and a cross-ice pass from Danilo Tomašević (6.).

Graz equalised shortly after their first power play had expired: Florian Murg fired the puck into the net with a fine shot for 1:1 (16.). Although neither team had anything left to play for in the standings, the two sides engaged in a passionate and intense contest. The Slovenians wanted to give their fans a win in their final home game of the season, while ATSE stood firm, with netminder Lukas Troppenauer making good saves.

The game remained closely contested in the second period. After unused power-play opportunities at both ends, ATSE broke the deadlock: Cody Wickstrom fired home on another power play to beat HDK netminder Lazar Ilić and give his side a 2:1 lead (33.). Maribor, meanwhile, were unable to convert any of their four man-advantage situations into a goal.

Graz, on the other hand, were far more efficient: On a power play carried over into the final period, Filip Matijević beat Omar Ždralović, now in the Maribor net, after just 36 seconds to make it 3:1 (41.). Just under two minutes later, the visitors added their third successive power-play goal, with Florian Murg making it 4:1 for ATSE Graz (43.).

The hosts had two further power plays, but ATSE netminder Lukas Troppenauer continued to prevent any further goals with good saves. That remained the case until the final buzzer, as ATSE Graz celebrated a confident away win in their final regular-season game and can now prepare for the playoffs.

Ö Eishockey Liga - Division West:

SC Samina Hohenems vs. EHC Kundl 7:4 (2:2,4:1,1:1)
Sun, 25 January 2026, 12:00, Eisstadion Hohenems
SC Hohenems goalscorers: Ricards Purins (03:49/PP1, 18:35 Min., 28:25 Min.), Fabian Mandlburger (21:02 Min., 27:12 Min/SH1), Patrick Spannring (36:38 Min./PP2), Benjamin Kyllönen (48:08 Min.)
EHC Kundl goalscorers: Sebastian Schild (09:17 Min.), Valentin Ploner (19:27 Min., 51:49 Min.), Michal Kluka (29:52 Min.)

Ö Eishockey Liga - Division EAST:

HDK Maribor vs. ATSE Graz 1:4 (1:1,0:1,0:2)
Sun, 25 January 2026, 15:00, Ledna dvorana Maribor
HDK Maribor goalscorer: Adi Drnda (05:16 Min.)
ATSE Graz goalscorers:Florian Murg (15:44, 42:59/PP1), Cody Wickstrom (32:40/PP1), Filip Matijević (40:36/PP1)

UEHV CAM4DENT Sharks Gmunden vs. Wiener Eislauf-Verein 3:0 (2:0,0:0,1:0)
Sun, 25 January 2026, 18:30, muki Arena
Sharks Gmunden scorers:Simon Reder (03:26), Dominik Stöttner (15:24), Moritz Neurauter (57:56/EN)

Ö Eishockey Liga format 2025/2026

The Ö Eishockey Liga got the new season under way with its first matchday on 4 October 2025. In its fifth year, the format will undergo a change in Phase 1 in the two divisions: West, with six teams, and East, with five teams. In the East Division, the upcoming season will feature a two-and-a-half round robin, resulting in 20 games per team. In the West Division, as in the previous season, two home-and-away round robins will be played, likewise resulting in 20 games per team.

After Phase 1, an inter-regional play-off will once again take place, beginning with the quarter-finals on 07 February 2026. The play-off pick will also provide additional excitement after the regular season in the upcoming campaign. The highest-placed team in each of the West and East Divisions may select its quarter-final opponent from the team placed third or fourth in the other division. From the quarter-finals through the semi-finals to the final, the play-off match-ups will be decided in Best-of-Three series (H/A/H) from the upcoming season onwards.

All standings, statistics and fixtures for the Ö Eishockey Liga in the Gamecenter

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