Kapfen­berg win derby against Murtal Lions – Hohenems comfort­ably beat leaders Kufstein

The crackle in Zeltweg's Aichfeldhalle during the Upper Styria derby in the North-East Group of the Ö Eishockey Liga between EV Zeltweg Murtal Lions and league leaders Kapfenberger SV could be felt from the first shift.

The two teams engaged in an intense battle featuring plenty of hard challenges and some emotion. The Kangaroos took advantage of a power play at 15 minutes to take a 1:0 lead through Florian Hoppl. The team coached by player-coach Kris Reinthaler struck again on the next power play, with Stefan Trost making it 2:0 for Kapfenberg at 17 minutes.

Exactly ten seconds had elapsed in the second period when Peter Mateicka gave the Lions something to roar about for the first time that evening with the goal that made it 1:2.

Kapfenberg stuck to their game plan and restored their two-goal lead at 27 minutes through Florian Hoppl's second goal. The travelling Kapfenberg fans were celebrating again at 36 minutes, when Lukas Draschkowitz made it 4:1 for the Kangaroos while shorthanded. Ö Eishockey Liga superstar Oliver Setzinger breathed new hope into Zeltweg, scoring to make it 2:4 for the Murtal Lions at 38 minutes.

The derby rivals gave nothing away in the final period either. The Murtal Lions pressed for a goal to close the gap but were unable to capitalise on a power play. Paul Matscheko effectively sealed the win for Kapfenberg when he made it 5:2 at 53 minutes. Rupert Fichtinger added the goal that made it 6:2 for the league leaders at 56 minutes, as they celebrated their fifth win in their fifth game.

WEV edge Sharks Gmunden

A nervous start characterised the clash between the Wiener Eislauf-Verein and the UEHV RAUCH Technology Sharks Gmunden. Both teams showed the tension of knowing they urgently needed points to avoid losing touch in the standings.

Oscar Marchhart broke the deadlock and gave Vienna a 1:0 lead after just under nine minutes at Eishalle Leithana in Bruck an der Leitha. The Sharks from Lake Traun equalised at 16 minutes to make it 1:1. The game remained a tight affair in the second period, with the Upper Austrians making the better start: Elias Haas gave the visitors the lead for the first time at 22 minutes, making it 2:1.

But Vienna showed character and equalised at 29 minutes to make it 2:2. Oscar Marchhart beat Rudi Hummel – the Vienna native in the Gmunden net – for the second time that evening.

Nothing changed in the final period, with both teams fighting for the three points, which WEV ultimately claimed: Stephan Brozovsky scored the winning goal to make it 3:2 for the team coached by player-coach Mario Kubeczka at 52 minutes. The Sharks from Gmunden thus also lost their fifth game.

West Group: Hohenems beat leaders Kufstein

The top clash in the West Group between second-placed SC SAMINA Hohenems and League leaders HC Kufstein at Herrenriedstadion lived up to all expectations in the opening period.

The hosts made a lightning start to the blockbuster clash and took the lead with their first real chance. Martin Grabher Meier scored the early 1:0 for the Steinböcke in the second minute. The Vorarlberg side set the tone in the opening minutes, while HC Kufstein were solid defensively and initially focused on counter-attacks. Florian Eder fired home the 1:1 equaliser in the twelfth minute.

The game then opened up, with the visitors also able to establish themselves in the attacking zone at times. Hohenems goaltender Karlo Škec made some good saves and gave his team the necessary support after the equaliser. Just under three minutes later, Marcel Wolf restored the lead for Head Coach Bernd Schmidle's team with the 2:1.

The visitors started the second period more aggressively, but the league leaders from Tyrol had nothing to show for their efforts in this phase. The Vorarlberg side were far more clinical. Martin Grabher Meier capitalised on a power play to make it 3:1 for SC Hohenems at 30.

Hohenems kept pushing, with Thomas Auer converting a rebound for the 4:1 at 36. Just 42 seconds later, Johannes Hehle scored the 5:1 after Kufstein goaltender Patrick Fuchs made a short save, sealing the outcome of the blockbuster clash.

With 49 seconds remaining in the period, Thomas Auer scored his second goal to make it 6:1 for Hohenems. There were no further goals in the final period as SC Hohenems impressively avenged last week's 2:4 defeat in Kufstein and drew level with the Dragons in the standings.

VEU Feldkirch celebrate emphatic win vs. HC Innsbruck II

In the "Young Guns" clash between VEU Feldkirch and HC TIWAG Innsbruck - Die Haie II at the Vorarlberghalle, the hosts made a perfect start: Alessandro Togni gave VEU the 1:0 lead in the third minute.

The young Montfort players subsequently dominated their young Innsbruck counterparts and put the game beyond doubt in the opening period with two goals within 33 seconds in the 19 minute, scored by Lukas Göggel and Benjamin Kyllönen, to make it 3:0.

The same pattern continued in the second period. Benjamin Kyllönen became the man of the match, completing a perfect hat-trick in the next 20 minutes, scoring at 30, 31 and 39. But the forward was not finished yet. Kyllönen scored the 7:0 on the power play at 50 in the final period for the Vorarlberg side, his fifth consecutive goal across the periods as a 25-year-old.

Alessandro Togni made it 8:0 for Head Coach Thomas Sticha's team at 51, before Benjamin Kyllönen followed up with the 9:0 for his sixth goal. Alessandro Togni took the score into double figures with his third goal, the 10:0, on the power play at 56. Elias Stöffler scored a shorthanded consolation goal for the Innsbruck Haie at 57.

South Group: Althofen gain revenge against Spittal

The No. 1 EHC Althofen made a lightning start in the "back-to-back game" against EC LiWoDruck Spittal. Florian Kurath scored the 1:0 for the Rhinos after exactly 58 seconds.

As in the previous week, the game developed into a fast-paced contest with good attacking spells at both ends. Spittal equalised at 1:1 in the ninth minute through a power-play goal from Gert Karitnig. Just under two minutes later, the Hornets had turned the game around. Following a passing error in the Althofen defence, Noel Brunner said thank you and buried the puck from close range to make it 2:1 for the hosts.

Althofen made it 2:2 through Kevin Schettina following a fine counter-attack at 13. There continued to be chances at both ends, with Spittal goaltender Renè Zauchner and his opposite number Fabian Horn unable to complain about a lack of work.

Little changed in the second period, with both teams playing offensively, creating plenty of good scoring chances and engaging in intense battles. A goal finally came late in the middle period, as Marc Ettinger put Althofen 54 seconds before the second siren with 3:2 ahead. The final period was also fiercely contested, with neither team giving an inch. Gert Karitnig delighted the fans with his second goal for Spittal, levelling the score at 3:3.

In the 50th minute, Marc Ettinger scored his second goal of the evening to secure a 4:3 victory for 1. EHC Althofen. The away win provided the team coached by head coach Gerald Ressmann with perfect revenge for the 1:3 home defeat.

Matchday, West Group

SC SAMINA Hohenems vs. HC Kufstein 6:1 (2:1,4:0,0:0)
Sat., 05 November 2022, 17:30, Eisstadion Herrenried
SC SAMINA Hohenems scorers: Martin Grabher Meier (01:53, 29:24/PP1), Marcel Wolf (15:45), Thomas Auer (35:04, 39:11), Johannes Hehle (35:46)
HC Kufstein scorer: Florian Eder (12:34)

VEU Feldkirch vs. HC TIWAG Innsbruck - Die Haie II 10:1 (3:0,3:0,4:1)
Sat., 05 November 2022, 19:30
VEU Feldkirch scorers: Alessandro Togni (02:46, 50:27, 55:24/PP1), Lukas Göggel (18:19), Benjamin Kyllönen (18:52, 29:34, 30:14, 38:05, 49:32/PP1, 51:41)
HC TIWAG Innsbruck - Die Haie II scorer: Elias Stöffler (56:10/SH1)

Matchday, North-East Group

EV Zeltweg Murtal Lions vs. Kapfenberger SV 2:6 (0:2,2:2,0:2)
Sat., 05 November 2022, 19:00, Aichfeldhalle
EV Zeltweg Murtal Lions scorers: Peter Mateicka (20:10), Oliver Setzinger (37:18)
Kapfenberger SV scorers: Florian Hoppl (14:38/PP1, 26:13), Stefan Trost (16:07/PP1), Lukas Draschkowitz (35:32/SH1), Paul Matscheko (52:42), Rupert Fichtinger (55:32)

Wiener Eislauf-Verein vs. UEHV RAUCH Technology Sharks Gmunden 3:2 (1:1,1:1,1:0)
Sat., 05 November 2022, 19:15, Eishalle Leithana, Bruck an der Leitha
Scorers Wiener Eislauf-Verein: Oscar Marchhart (at 09:13, at 28:10), Stephan Brozovsky (at 51:33)
Scorers Sharks Gmunden: Laurens Ober (at 15:07), Elias Haas (at 21:43)

UHT Dukes Graz vs. ATSE Graz postponed
Wed, 16 November 2022, Merkur Eisstadion

Southern Group matchday

EC LiWoDruck Spittal vs. 1st EHC Althofen 3:4 (2:2,0:1,1:1)
Sat, 05 November 2022, 18:15, Eis-Sport-Arena Spittal
Scorers EC LiWoDruck Spittal: Gert Karitnig (at 08:11/PP1, at 43:07), Noel Brunner (at 10:27)
Scorers 1st EHC Althofen: Florian Kurath (at 00:58), Kevin Schettina (at 12:50), Marc Ettinger (at 39:06, at 49:14)

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