SC Hohenems over­come HC Kufstein – Kapfen­berg end WEV winning streak

The SC Samina Hohenems hosted HC Kufstein in the Division West on Boxing Day. At the start of the game, the visitors were on top thanks to an early power play. The Dragons continued to forecheck well after the first numerical advantage. The Steinböcke initially struggled to launch their attacks, but had the first major scoring opportunity after a counter-attack. 

The next major opportunity gave the side from Vorarlberg the lead. Kufstein goalie Patrick Fuchs allowed a rebound from Jürgen Fussenegger to slip through, with the puck just crossing the line for 1:0 (11.). Hohenems now had the game better under control and added another: two minutes before the end of the period, Benjamin Kyllönen converted a fine cross-ice pass from Michael Novak from close range to make it 2:0 (19.).

The hosts extended their lead to 3:0 with their first quick attack down the right in the second period. Christian Haidinger found the ideally positioned Benjamin Kyllönen, who struck for a second time from the slot after 42 seconds (21.). Hohenems then had a power play, but Kufstein produced a textbook counter-attack and Valentin Hammerle finished shorthanded to make it 1:3 (27.). 

The Tyroleans were now able to make the game more open and at times apply pressure in the offensive zone. However, they did not manage to pull one back; quite the opposite: Jürgen Fussenegger scored his second goal from the slot to make it 4:1 for the Schlittschuhclub (37.). 

With two goals within 21 seconds, the team coached by Andreas Luchner suddenly made the game highly exciting again in the final period: Herbert Steiner first made it 2:4 (48.). Moments later, Patrick Hager fired from just behind the blue line and caught HSC netminder Karlo Škec off guard to make it 3:4 (48.). 

Kufstein pulled goalie Fuchs at the end, but could not find the equaliser. With 25 seconds remaining, Felix Vonbun sealed the 5:3 win for Hohenems with a lofted shot into the empty net from his own defensive zone, securing his team second place in the table.

EHC Crocodiles Kundl celebrate hard-fought win against Dornbirner EC

The EHC Crocodiles Kundl faced bottom side Dornbirner EC in their home arena. The Bulldogs made a dream start: Theo Riedler beat Crocodiles goalie Johann Bauer with a powerful shot to make it 1:0 (3.). After five and a half minutes, Kundl's Lion Ramoser received a five-minute major and game misconduct for kneeing, but the side from Vorarlberg were unable to use the lengthy numerical advantage to score again. 

The two teams then engaged in a fast and open exchange, with the Crocodiles finding the equaliser: Maximilian Agerer made it 1:1 with a rebound after a save by Dornbirn netminder Cosmo Reichhalter (14.).

The hosts continued to struggle for a long time against the Vorarlberg side, who fought hard, in the second period. The Unterinntal side only took the lead for the first time on their first power play: Simon Brandner turned the puck over the line from close range following a rebound to make it 2:1 (32.). Two and a half minutes later, the Crocodiles struck again: Alexander Frandl converted a cross-ice pass following a quick attack to make it 3:1 (34.). 

However, the aggressively playing Dornbirn side would not be shaken off, as Aaron Matt pulled one back just 35 seconds later with a close-range rebound to make it 2:3 (35.). In the final period, the Messestädter survived a penalty kill early on before having two successive opportunities to level the score on the power play. 

The game became more intense with every passing minute. Following a quick attack down the right, Felix Koschek finished a cross-ice pass from Sebastian Schild to make it 4:2 (48.). Just 38 seconds later, Dornbirn again pulled one back, with Theo Riedler forcing the puck over the line after a scramble in front of goal to make it 3:4 (49.). The game entered crunch time and became more heated. After a foul by Kundl's Alexander Frandl, Sebastian Koberger took revenge and received a five-minute major and game misconduct. 

With four skaters per side on the ice, Maximilian Agerer made it 5:3 for Kundl from close range (52.). In the end, the Crocodiles celebrated a hard-fought 6:3 victory – Adrian Schuster had scored into the empty net on the power play with 51 seconds remaining before the final buzzer (60.) – and are now third in the table ahead of HC Kufstein.

Division East:

Kapfenberger SV win clash against WEV

The Kapfenberger SV hosted the Wiener Eislauf-Verein in a direct battle for second place in the Division East standings. In front of more than 800 fans, both teams engaged in intense battles from the outset, while initially also ensuring defensive stability at both ends. The defending champions from the Mürztal made the most of their first power play to take the lead, with Pierre Graf scoring a backhand goal for 1:0 after a fine power-play combination and a neat deke (at 10). Graf struck again for 2:0, lifting the puck from the slot into the top corner (at 13). 

Kapfenberg, led by player-coach Kris Reinthaler, now had the match under control, while WEV struggled to create good opportunities. And whenever the Viennese became dangerous, KSV netminder Oliver Zirngast was there with full concentration.

In the second period, the side from the federal capital had to take more risks, while the Kangaroos were dangerous on the counter-attack. Christoph Draschkowitz initially had 3:0 on his stick but was denied by WEV netminder Moritz Merkader. Following another good counter-attack, Florian Hoppl suddenly found himself in front of the WEV goal and buried the puck with a backhand shot (at 26). 

The Viennese found the right response and were finally back in the game on the scoreboard. Following a long clearance, Lukas Kaider fired home to make it 1:3 (at 28). Shortly after the midway point of the game, the Styrians pressed for 4:1 on a power play, but Moritz Merkader kept WEV in the game. Kapfenberg continued to apply the pressure, and Adrian Stühlinger fired from the slot to finally make it 4:1 during this phase (at 36). 

In the final period, the Kangaroos clinically saw out the game and added another goal just under four minutes from the end through Iacopo Granza, who put the puck into the empty net while shorthanded to make it 5:1 (at 57). 

Following 6:1 on National Day, Kapfenberg secured their second home win against WEV with 5:1. The Styrians moved above the Viennese in the standings and now sit in second place. WEV, whose run of six consecutive wins came to an end, face league leaders Sharks Gmunden in the big clash in front of Vienna Konzerthaus on Saturday in the final game of the year.

Ö Eishockey Liga - Division West:

SC Samina Hohenems vs. HC Kufstein 5:3 (2:0,2:1,1:2)
Thu, 26 December 2024, 17:30, Eisstadion Hohenems
SC Hohenems scorers: Jürgen Fussenegger (at 10:51, at 36:51), Benjamin Kyllönen (at 18:03, at 20:42), Felix Vonbun (at 59:35/EN)
HC Kufstein scorers: Valentin Hammerle (at 26:13/SH1), Herbert Steiner (at 47:13), Patrick Hager (at 47:34)

EHC Crocodiles Kundl vs. Dornbirner EC 6:3 (1:1,2:1,3:1)
Thu, 26 December 2024, 19:30
EHC Crocodiles Kundl scorers: Maximilian Agerer (at 13:32, at 51:07), Simon Brandner (at 31:25/PP1), Alexander Frandl (at 33:50), Felix Koschek (at 47:58), Adrian Schuster (at 59:09/PP1/EN)
Dornbirner EC scorers: Theo Riedler (at 02:41, at 48:36), Aaron Matt (at 34:25)

Remaining Division West schedule until the turn of the year:

WSG Swarovski Wattens Penguins vs. EHC Lustenau

Fri, 27 December 2024, 19:30, Eislaufplatz Wattens

HC Kufstein vs. Dornbirner EC

Sat, 28 December 2024, 17:35, Eisarena Kufstein

WSG Swarovski Wattens Penguins vs. SC Samina Hohenems

Sun, 29 December 2024, 19:30, Eislaufplatz Wattens

EHC Lustenau vs. EHC Crocodiles Kundl

Sun, 29 December 2024, 17:30, Rheinhalle

Ö Eishockey Liga – Division EAST:

KSV Kängurus vs. Wiener Eislauf-Verein 5:1 (2:0,2:1,1:0)
Thu, 26 December 2024, 18:00, Stadthalle Kapfenberg
KSV Kängurus goalscorers: Pierre Graf (09:27 min./PP1, 12:10 min.), Florian Hoppl (25:06 min.), Adrian Stühlinger (35:40 min.), Iacopo Granza (56:09 min./SH1/EN)
Wiener Eislauf-Verein goalscorer: Lukas Kaider (27:19 min.)

Remaining Division East schedule until the turn of the year:

Wiener Eislauf-Verein vs. UEHV CAM4DENT Sharks Gmunden

Sat, 28 December 2024, 18:30, WEV Arena, Lothringerstraße 22

All Ö Eishockey Liga tables, statistics and fixtures in the Gamecenter

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