Kapfen­berger SV claim the title in front of a record crowd of 3.200 fans!

Kapfenberger SVKapfenberger SV went into Saturday's decisive second leg and title decider in the Ö Eishockey Liga against the with a three-goal lead following the 4:1 away win.SC Samina Hohenems at Stadthalle Kapfenberg with a three-goal lead after their __OEHV_NUM_E_A__ away win.

Following the Austrian national anthem, both teams began the first period in front of 3.200 fans. Backup netminder Karlo Škec started in goal for the Vorarlberg side, while Oliver Zirngast was between the pipes for the Kangaroos. Spurred on by the sensational atmosphere, the hosts were nervous in the opening minutes.

The Steinböcke immediately looked to attack and had two early power plays – one of them even featuring more than a minute of five-on-three – giving them the chance to reduce the aggregate deficit. Kapfenberg then had a 5:3 power play, and the Styrians showed how to make the most of such a numerical advantage. Daniel Oberkofler fired a quick cross-ice pass to Christoph Draschkowitz, who simply had to tap the puck in from close range for 1:0 (14).

The Mürztal side were now in control and were unlucky when Pierre Graf hit the post. Shortly before the end of the first period, player-coach Kris Reinthaler’s team extended their lead again on the power play. Following a shot by Patrick Huppmann, Lukas Draschkowitz was in the right place at the right time to score for 2:0 with 34 seconds remaining before the siren (20nd minute).

Early in the second period, the hosts picked up where they had left off at the end of the first: Daniel Oberkofler danced through the Hohenems defence and scored a fine goal to make it 3:0 (24nd minute). 48 seconds later, the Vorarlberg side reduced the deficit to 1:3 as Benjamin Kyllönen scored on the power play from the left face-off circle (25th minute). Just under three minutes later, Hohenems defenceman Felix Vonbun fired home to make it 2:3 (28th minute).

The visitors were now enjoying their best spell and even pushed for an equaliser, with Kapfenberg netminder Oliver Zirngast suddenly having considerably more to do. Following a face-off, Benjamin Kyllönen struck again from the slot on the next power play to make it 3:3 (33th minute). Kapfenberg appeared stunned by Steinböcke’s comeback, and their legs grew heavy.

Head coach Thomas Sticha's team even came close to taking the lead, but the Kangaroos held firm, tried to regroup and took the draw into the second intermission. During the break, Kapfenberg hockey greats Christoph Brandner, David Schuller and Gregor Baumgartner were honoured by the municipality of Kapfenberg in an atmospheric ceremony.

The decisive final period then got under way. After almost four minutes, Johannes Hehle had the chance to put Hohenems ahead, but he was denied by KSV netminder Oliver Zirngast. The Steinböcke now had nothing to lose and continued to press for the lead. Kapfenberg played cautiously and offered little in attack during the opening minutes.

Until the 49th minute: the Kangaroos produced a wonderful move, with the puck going via Christoph Draschkowitz and Pierre Graf in a classic tic-tac-toe play to Lukas Draschkowitz, who netted to make it 4:3 for the Mürztal side (49th). The Schlittschuhclub rallied once more: Matthias Fussenegger fired from the blue line and the equaliser to make it 4:4 came quickly (50th).

That was all the Vorarlberg side could manage, as Kapfenberg saw out the draw and claimed their first Ö Eishockey Liga title with an aggregate score of 8:5. The Styrians failed to secure their 21st win in their 21st game; apart from the 4:4 draw in the second leg of the final, the Kangaroos dropped points only once during the regular season – against ATSE Graz in mid-January, when they prevailed only in overtime. SC Hohenems finished as runners-up in the Ö Eishockey Liga for the second consecutive year.

After the second final, ÖEHV President Dr. Klaus Hartmann presented the championship medals to the Kapfenberger SV players in an atmospheric awards ceremony. Kapfenberg captain Lukas Draschkowitz lifted the Ö Eishockey Liga 2023/2024 championship trophy at the end of a sensational season.

Play-offs – Final games:

Final – Second leg:

Kapfenberger SV vs. SC Samina Hohenems 4:4 (2:0,1:3,1:1)
Sat, 16 March 2024, 19:30, Kapfenberg Town Hall
Kapfenberger SV goalscorers: Christoph Draschkowitz (at 13:23, PP2), Lukas Draschkowitz (at 19:26, PP1; 48:30), Daniel Oberkofler (at 23:26)
SC Samina Hohenems goalscorers: Benjamin Kyllönen (at 24:14, PP1; 32:30, PP1), Felix Vonbun (at 27:07), Matthias Fussenegger (at 49:10)

The Kapfenberger SV are champions with an aggregate score of 8:5 in the Ö Eishockey Liga 2023/2024. First-leg result – 4:1.

Final – first leg:

SC Samina Hohenems vs. Kapfenberger SV 1:4 (0:3,0:1,1:0)
Sat, 09 March 2024, 18:30, Eisstadion Hohenems
SC Samina Hohenems goalscorer: Martin Grabher Meier (at 49:10)
Kapfenberger SV goalscorers: Daniel Oberkofler (at 00:47), Manuel Trost (at 01:48), Lukas Draschkowitz (at 02:10), Christoph Draschkowitz (at 37:42)

Play-off format:

From the quarter-finals onwards, ties are decided in Champions Hockey League (CHL) format over a first and second leg. The club that finished higher in the regular season begins with the away game. The aggregate score from the two matches played is used. The team leading on aggregate after the first and second legs are champions of the Ö Eishockey Liga.

Should the aggregate score be level at the final buzzer after 120 minutes, the decision will be made in a ten-minute three-on-three overtime and, if necessary, a penalty shoot-out with five shooters per team. This means there is no overtime in the first leg. Each first leg ends after 60 minutes either level or with a winner in regulation time.

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