“Win or go home”: quarter-final show­downs as Kapfen­berg face Kundl and Hohenems take on WEV

Quarter-final 2 – Game 3: KSV Kängurus vs. EHC Kundl
Wednesday, 18 February 2026, 18:30, Stadthalle Kapfenberg

The KSV Kängurus will face EHC Kundl in the decisive quarter-final game at Stadthalle Kapfenberg on Wednesday. After two games, the best-of-three series is tied at 1:1. The Tyroleans sensationally won the first away game against the Division East winners in the Böhlerstadt 2:1 after a shoot-out, but failed to seal the deal and secure their place in the semi-finals in Saturday's home game.

On the contrary: the Styrians put in a dominant away performance in Tyrol from the outset, scoring at the right moments and deciding the game with six goals after just 40 minutes. In addition, goaltender Felix Nußbacher stopped all 23 shots he faced to record a shutout.

At the other end, Jakub Kostelny conceded six goals from 40 shots on his net, leaving the otherwise so reliable Slovak goaltender with a save percentage of just 85%. To take their semi-final chance, Kundl must be as defensively sound as they were in the first game in Kapfenberg. The Kängurus found their scoring touch in the away game, ensuring a fascinating starting point for a heated play-off clash.

Kapfenberg player-coach Kristof Reinthaler knows how his team can beat Kundl in the decisive game and hopes for the fans’ support: “We have now brought the whole series back to Kapfenberg, where we naturally want to advance to the next round. It will be extremely important that we deliver our performance from the start again, keep driving towards goal, get in front of the opposing goalie and spread our shots around more. We would of course be very grateful for the support from the stands; it helps us enormously and gives us the necessary determination to reach the semi-finals!”

Kapfenberg president Franz Gärtner is also appealing to the fans and promises a great ice hockey game on Wednesday evening: “It is important that plenty of fans get behind us from the stands on Wednesday. The fans will certainly see a great game, and if we give it everything again as we did in Kundl, the door to the semi-finals will be wide open for us!”Kundl chairman Stefan Rainer

wants his team to show a genuine play-off response in Kapfenberg: “After our bitter home defeat, in which we did not show even the slightest sign that it was a play-off game, we now have another chance to prove exactly that. We want to show that we too can play real play-off hockey. Naturally, everything will have to come together perfectly for us to take the step into the semi-finals against this strong, well-drilled team!”Quarter-final __OEHV_NUM_S_A__ – Game __OEHV_NUM_S_B__: SC Samina Hohenems vs. Wiener Eislauf-Verein

Quarter-final 4 – Game 3: SC Samina Hohenems vs. Wiener Eislauf-Verein
Wed, 18 February 2026, 19:30, Rheinhalle Lustenau

SC Samina Hohenems will welcome Wiener Eislauf-VereinVienna Ice Skating Club at Lustenau's Rheinhalle – the match was postponed due to the current weather conditions – for a place in the semi-finals. Both teams have won their respective home quarter-final games in the best-of-three series. The Steinböcke won 5:1 at Herrenried. The final score was more emphatic than the course of the game. For a long time, it was a close contest, with the Vorarlberg side only securing a decisive advantage in the 53rd minute through Benjamin Kyllönen's 4:1.

Last Saturday at Heumarkt, WEV claimed a narrow 3:2 victory in a fiercely contested and intense game, forcing a decider in Vorarlberg. After falling behind early to a goal by Christian Haidinger (3rd), the Viennese side turned the game around with three unanswered goals from Patrick Bolterle (18th), Rupert Fichtinger (30th/PP1) and Richard Gruber (46th).

Hohenems showed great character and pulled one back through Marcel Wolf on the power play two minutes from the end to make it 2:3, but WEV held on to their narrow lead. That guarantees high drama for the showdown at Lustenau's Rheinhalle. Will the Schlittschuhclub secure their third playoff win in a row against WEV – the Emser side won the quarter-final in 2024 and the semi-final in 2025 against the Viennese side – or will WEV overcome the Vorarlberg side for the first time?

Hohenems sporting director Matthias Fritz looks back at the away game and knows that the smallest details will decide between progression and the end of the season on Wednesday: "It was an evenly matched game on ice that was very difficult to play on. Both teams delivered an intense game with many hard-fought situations, in which the smallest details made the difference. In the end, it was a genuine 50:50 game, which unfortunately was narrowly decided against us!"

WEV head coach Philipp Ullrich is hoping for a performance from his team in the showdown similar to the one they produced at home: "We played a superb game against Hohenems in front of our fans and deservedly forced a third game. I expect the same intensity and passion from my team on Wednesday, then anything is possible!"

Ö Ice Hockey League 2025/2026 – Playoffs – Quarter-finals

Game 3:

KSV Kängurus vs. EHC Kundl
Wed, 18 February 2026, 18:30, Stadthalle Kapfenberg – >> to the livestream

Best-of-three series score: 1:1

SC Samina Hohenems vs. Wiener Eislauf-Verein
Wed, 18 February 2026, 19:30, Rheinhalle Lustenau – >> to the livestream

Best-of-three series score: 1:1

Game 2:

ATSE Graz vs. EHC Lustenau 1:4 (0:1,0:0,1:3)
Sat, 14 February 2026, 18:30, Graz Merkur Eisstadion (Hall A)
ATSE Graz goalscorer: Filip Matijević (43:49 mins.)
EHC Lustenau goalscorers: Lucas Haberl (02:14), Martin Grabher Meier (40:38) Robin Wüstner (47:51), Christopher D’Alvise (58:58/SH1/EN)

Final result in the best-of-three series: 0:2

EHC Kundl vs. KSV Kängurus 0:6 (0:3,0:3,0:0)
Sat, 14 February 2026, 17:30, Eisarena Kundl
KSV Kängurus goalscorers: Kevin Moderer (09:19), Pierre Graf (10:24/PP1), Christoph Draschkowitz (13:26, 28:30), Stefan Trost (33:10), Phileas Lyssy (38:18/PP1)

HC Kufstein vs. UEHV CAM4DENT Sharks Gmunden 4:3 after penalties (2:2,0:0,1:1,0:0,1:0)
Sat, 14 February 2026, 17:30, Eisarena Kufstein
HC Kufstein goalscorers: Stefan Reiter (12:30, 41:22), Aleksi Airaksinen (19:31), Clemens Paulweber (65:00/decisive penalty)
Sharks Gmunden goalscorers: Moritz Neurauter (02:24), 09:53 Hubert Berger (09:53), Jonas Kail (52:57/PP1)

Final result in the best-of-three series: 2:0

Wiener Eislauf-Verein vs. SC Samina Hohenems 3:2 (1:1,1:0,1:1)
Sat, 14 February 2026, 18:00, WEV Arena Heumarkt
Wiener Eislauf-Verein goalscorers: Patrick Bolterle (17:05), Rupert Fichtinger (29:11/PP1), Richard Gruber (45:21)
SC Hohenems goalscorers: Christian Haidinger (02:55), Marcel Wolf (57:51/PP1)

Game 1:

EHC Lustenau vs. ATSE Graz 7:2 (2:0,2:0,3:2)
Sat, 07 February 2026, 17:30, Rheinhalle Lustenau
EHC Lustenau scorers: Christopher D‘Alvise (12:22, 32:25, 50:14), David Slivnik (12:53), Daniel Stefan (33:42), Manuel Metzler (52:50/PP1), Ricardo Bell (59:14)
ATSE Graz scorers: Cody Wickstrom (43:42), Mathias Werkl (47:46)

KSV Kängurus vs. EHC Kundl 1:2 SO (1:0,0:0,0:1,0:0,0:1)
Sat, 07 February 2026, 19:30, Stadthalle Kapfenberg
KSV Kängurus scorer: Lukas Telsnig (17:58/PP1)
EHC Kundl scorers: Sebastian Schild (51:48), Michal Kluka (65:00/decisive penalty)

UEHV CAM4DENT Sharks Gmunden vs. HC Kufstein 3:4 OT (2:1,0:1,1:1,0:1)
Sat, 07 February 2026, 18:30, muki Arena
Sharks Gmunden scorers: Lukas Stöttner (03:40), Fabian Richter (19:36), Paul Pirklbauer (50:51/PP1)
HC Kufstein scorers: Markus Prock (06:24/PP1, 44:00/PP1), Clemens Paulweber (35:01/SH1, 60:50)

SC Samina Hohenems vs. Wiener Eislauf-Verein 5:1 (1:0,2:1,2:0)
Sat, 07 February 2026, 17:30, Eisstadion Hohenems
SC Hohenems scorers: Marcel Wolf (03:52), Patrick Spannring (20:23, 57:36/EN), Christian Haidinger (34:57), Benjamin Kyllönen (52:15)
Wiener Eislauf-Verein scorer: Lukas Kaider (23:02)

Playoff format and further dates

The play-off match-ups, from the quarter-finals through the semi-finals to the final, will each be decided in a best-of-three series (H/A/H). The teams that record two wins first advance to the semi-finals. If the score is level after regulation time, a five-minute three-on-three overtime period will be played, as in the regular season. Should overtime also fail to produce a winner, the game will go to a penalty shoot-out. In the semi-finals, the highest-ranked quarter-final winner after Phase 1 will face the lowest-ranked quarter-final winner after Phase 1. The semi-final winners will meet in the final.

Semi-final series
Sat, 21 February 2026 | Sat, 28 February 2026 | Wed, 04 March 2026 (if necessary)

Final series
Sat, 07 March 2026 | Sat, 14 March 2026 | Sat, 21 March 2026 (if necessary)

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