Ö Ice Hockey League: North-East Group gets fully under way on Saturday

The North-East Group opens the new Ö Ice Hockey League season on Saturday. The preseason is finally over; for the clubs, the first matchday is the moment of truth and an initial genuine assessment of where they stand.

UHT Dukes Graz are newcomers, meaning six clubs will compete for a place in the interregional playoffs. The top three teams in the regular-season final standings will advance to the knockout stage.

Kapfenberg finally back at home against ATSE Graz

Kapfenberger Kängurus, winners of the North-East Group regular season and eventual runners-up in the inaugural season, go into the new campaign as favourites. The team led by player-coach Kris Reinthaler has made winning the title its clear objective for the season.

Due to the refurbishment of Kapfenberg Stadthalle, Kapfenberg had to play their home games in Leoben in their first ÖEL year, but the Kängurus are now celebrating their return to their natural ice hockey habitat. Paul Matscheko, Christoph Draschkowitz (twin brother of captain Lukas Draschkowitz) and Rupert Fichtinger have joined the team.

ATSE Graz have expanded their squad and want to have a major say in the battle to reach the playoffs.

Kris Reinthaler, player-coach, Kapfenberger Kängurus: "A lot of players were missing, so we were not really able to rotate during preseason and try out much. It will take another tough week of training, and I hope we have all players available so that we can make a positive start to the season at the weekend."

Rupert Strohmeier, player-coach, ATSE Graz: "We are looking forward to an exciting new ÖEL season, hopefully free of complications, and to attractive games. I believe that all teams in the group have been able to carry the momentum from the first ÖEL season into this one and strengthen themselves, although KSV must once again be considered favourites in our group this year. Our objective remains the same. We want to reach the playoffs and take the next step in our long-term development. To achieve this, we have managed to expand and rejuvenate the squad by enlarging our changing room. Now it is a matter of integrating the younger players into the system as quickly as possible. The opening duel against KSV presents us with a huge challenge, but one we are happy to accept. Kapfenberg have set themselves high targets for the season with the title. That means the pressure is on them to perform immediately in their first home game. We see the game as a benchmark to better assess where we currently stand, and we are delighted that it is finally getting under way again!"

EV Zeltweg - Murtal Lions await WEV

For EV Zeltweg - Murtal Lions, the 2022/2023 season is an anniversary season. 70 years of ice hockey in Zeltweg are being celebrated; the small black puck has been chased in the Upper Murtal town since 1953. Wiener Eislauf-Verein visit the Murtal Lions Arena for the opener.

The two teams know each other from preseason and now have something of a "back-to-back game": the two clubs faced one another at the Gösser Cup in Kapfenberg, with Zeltweg eventually narrowly prevailing in a penalty shoot-out after a 3:3 draw following 60 minutes. The team's star is Oliver Setzinger, who has extended his contract and is expected to provide the necessary offensive power. According to sporting director Christian Popatnig and chairman Christian Mayerl, the Lions' primary objective is to develop young players.

WEV want to celebrate ice hockey festivals at the legendary Wiener Heumarkt for several home games this year and revive the WEV spirit. The Viennese side has set reaching the playoffs as its objective and worked hard over the summer in preparation for the new season.

Christian Mayerl, chairman, EV Zeltweg - Murtal Lions: "Our objective is to play in the ÖEL with the maximum possible number of Zeltweg players and to develop young players. Results are not our primary concern. Of course, it is all the nicer when you win games, that is clear. But we have a first and a second team, and the focus is clearly on developing our players. We played two good games at the Gösser Cup in Kapfenberg, and we want to build on them while keeping our focus on the future!"

Michael Vorlaufer, Managing Director Hockey WEV: "We worked hard over the summer to make this season more successful than the last. We were able to significantly increase our sponsorship volume, while departures were replaced on the sporting side by promising new players. Our team is in transition, and it will still need some time before everything works. Our objective is ambitious but achievable: we want to reach the playoffs. To achieve this, we are relying on a return to the WEV Arena during the season; the traditional venue will reignite the old WEV spirit. Zeltweg are a strong team and their arena can become a cauldron, so we need to remain calm and focus on our own game."

Dukes Graz make their debut against Sharks Gmunden

Universitäts Hockey Team Dukes from Graz are the great unknown ahead of Saturday's opener. According to board member Fabian Weinhandl, the Styrian side wants to connect ice hockey at this level of performance with business and higher education institutions in the region through partnerships. It also aims to provide young, ambitious players with a pathway for further development.

Their opponents, UEHV RAUCH Technology Sharks Gmunden, were the surprise team of last season and ultimately made it into the playoffs. The Traunsee Sharks, for whom leading scorer André Flatscher is serving as player-coach this year, have once again stated reaching the playoffs as their objective.

Fabian Weinhandl, board member of UHT Dukes Graz: "Cooperation with the Graz 99ers and the Styrian Ice Hockey Academy is intended to create an even more seamless pathway for performance-oriented ice hockey players in Graz. As a university city, Graz also offers broad fan potential, which will be targeted even more intensively with this young team!"

Thomas Schatzl, chairman of UEHV RAUCH Technology Sharks Gmunden: "We are certainly the youngest team in the group this year. Unfortunately, there have been more changes to the squad than expected or planned. None of the nine departures for this season had been planned, and some hurt a great deal. Fortunately, we were also able to bring in eight new players, some of whom are very young and all still need to come together as a team. That will take some time, but we are optimistic about fielding a strong side. Our objective for the season is at least third place in the group and therefore to be back in the playoffs. Having sensationally achieved that last season, we naturally want to do so again this year. The Dukes are completely unknown to us. In fact, all we know is that they have a strong inline team. I rate them on a par with ATSE, which is why we will not underestimate them."

Ö Eishockey Liga - 1st matchday, North-East Group

EV Zeltweg - Murtal Lions vs. Wiener Eislauf-Verein
Sat, 08 October 2022, Murtal Lions Arena/Sportzentrum Aichfeldhalle, 19:00

Kapfenberger SV vs. ATSE Graz
Sat, 08 October 2022, Stadthalle Kapfenberg, 19:00

UHT Dukes Graz vs. UEHV RAUCH Technology Sharks Gmunden
Sat, 08 October 2022, Merkur Eisstadion, 19:15

ÖEL matches will be shown on the Austrian Ice Hockey Federation's new livestreaming platform at LIVE.eishockey.at.

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

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