Are you the future master? The ZSC Lions are also extremely confident in game 3. Image: keystone
Familiar picture in Zurich: The ZSC Lions prevail again against the EVZ and are only one win away from the playoff final. Meanwhile, Lausanne manages a break in Friborg.
06.04.2024, 22:3406.04.2024, 22:35
Zurich – Zug 5:2
Serie 3:0
The ZSC Lions are literally running over their competition in these playoffs. After a 5-2 win, the qualification winner has four match pucks in the semi-final series against Zug.
After just twelve seconds, Zug’s Brian O’Neill received the first penalty, after 91 seconds Juho Lammikko scored the advantage to make it 1-0, then the 12,000 spectators in the once again sold-out arena in Zurich-Altstetten saw one-way hockey in which the Lions could always step up a gear when necessary.
The Zug team, who had put up a lot more resistance in Wednesday’s 1-0 defeat at home, only seemed to be able to bring some excitement into the game – and the semi-final series – for a very short time. However, it took ZSC goalie Simon Hrubec, who was lying helpless on his back after a collision with their own defender Dario Trutmann and striker Marc Michaelis, for Zug to score. Niklas Hansson was able to shoot into the practically empty goal to make it 1-2.
The people of Zurich, who had previously become somewhat frugal, responded immediately by increasing the pace. Less than two minutes after the connecting goal – and 28 seconds before the second break – Rudolfs Balcers completed a remarkable combination via Yannick Weber and Sven Andrighetto to make it 3-1. The fact that the result was not higher was also due to EVZ goalie Leonardo Genoni, who prevented almost certain goals against Denis Malgin (33rd) and again Balcers (53rd) and Malgin (55th) three times.
Leonardo Genoni prevented an even greater defeat.Image: keystone
Even at the goalie position, the Zugers don’t have an advantage like they often do in the playoffs; Genoni’s counterpart Hrubec is also a wall that can hardly be overcome. In general, the people of Zurich are outstanding from front to back. At Zug, the American O’Neill returned for the first time since suffering a serious cervical vertebra injury in December, but had a rather unfortunate evening.
1:42 minutes before the end – Genoni had long since made way for a sixth field player – Hrubec had to admit defeat a second time by Fabrice Herzog. The 2:3 made for an unnecessary, but only briefly exciting final phase from Zurich’s point of view – until two goals into the empty goal immediately clarified the balance of power.
Two years ago the EVZ made up a 3-0 deficit in the final, but this time there is no reason for that.
ZSC Lions – Zug 5:2 (1:0, 2:1, 2:1)
12,000 spectators. SR Borga/Piechaczek (GER), Schlegel/Wolf.
Tore: 2. Lammikko (Lehtonen/Powerplaytor) 1:0. 25. Marti (ground man) 2:0. 38. Hansson 2:1. 40. (39:32) Balcers (Andrighetto, Weber) 3:1. 59. (58:18) Herzog (Kovar) 3:2 (without goalkeeper). 59. (58:55) Rohrer 4:2 (into the empty goal). 60. (59:31) Lammikko (Sigrist, Weber) 5:2 (into the empty goal).
Punish: 1 time 2 minutes against ZSC Lions, 5 times 2 minutes against Zug.
PostFinance top scorer: Grant; Wingerli.
ZSC Lions: Hrubec; Weber, Kukan; Lehtonen, Geering; Trutmann, Marti; Blaser, Bodenmann; Andrighetto, Malgin, Balcers; Fröden, Grant, Denis Hollenstein; Rohrer, Lammikko, Baechler; Riedi, Sigrist, Schäppi.
Zug: Genoni; Bengtsson, Geisser; Hansson, Stadler; Smurf, Gross; Muggli; Simion, Michaelis, Duke; O’Neill, Kovar, Wingerli; Martschini, Senteler, Allenspach; Derungs, Leuenberger, Suri.
Remarks: ZSC Lions without Zehnder (injured) and Harrington (surplus foreigners), Zug without Biasca, Hofmann, Riva (all injured), Eder and Sheen (both surplus foreigners). Train from 57:37 to 58:18, 58:34 to 58:55 and 59:20 to 59:31 without a goalkeeper.
7
A leader who can decide a game and make his team better on and off the ice.
6-7
A player with so much talent that on a good evening he can decide a game and is a leader.
5-6
A good NL player: Often talented Iridescent butterflies, sometimes serious workers who make a lot of their talent.
4-5
A player for the 3rd or 4th block, a veteran warrior or a newcomer.
3-4
The future still ahead of you or the future already behind you.
The rating is the North American hockey grading scale, which ranges from 1 (minimum) to 7 (maximum). There are no grades below 3, because those who play in the top league are at least barely enough.
Friborg – Lausanne 0:2
Serie 1:2
The Lausanne Hockey Club has an advantage for the first time in the French-speaking Swiss semi-final series. Lausanne wins 2-0 in Freiburg and leads the series with 2-1 wins.
One thing is clear: Lausanne’s away win came about in a fortunate way. HC Fribourg-Gottéron dominated the game. The Freiburg team put their stamp on the game in the St-Léonard Arena, which was of course sold out again. They shot almost three times more on goal than their opponents (38:17 shots on goal). They restricted the Vaudois at times. But they didn’t score.
Everyone has probably heard the saying: If you don’t score the goals at the front, you’ll concede them at the back. That’s exactly what happened after 44 minutes. Damien Riat evaded Freiburg and from a narrow angle, Riat beat Gottéron’s goalkeeper Reto Berra in the near corner at the end of his solo. The national goalkeeper did not cut the best possible figure in this scene.
Berra’s counterpart, Lausanne’s goalie Connor Hughes, became “Man of the Match”. The 27-year-old parried everything that came towards his goal. Connor Hughes “stole” the victory for the Lausanne Hockey Club in Freiburg. In ice hockey, a “stolen victory” is said to occur when the goalie of the winning team makes at least 10 more saves than the goalkeeper of the losing team. Hughes made 38 saves, Reto Berra only made 15. Hughes had already parried the last 35 shots at his goal in Game 2 on Wednesday.
But: Despite Gottéron’s stark superiority, the Vaudois never acted confused, hectic or despondent. Rather, the LHC radiated great serenity in Freiburg. That was also probably due to goalie Connor Hughes, who exuded an uncanny sense of security.
Lausanne goalie Connor Hughes didn’t let anything or anyone happen.Image: keystone
Nevertheless, Lausanne managed the break with a good deal of luck, because Gottéron actually scored the all-important first goal of the game. Nathan Marchon poked the exposed target into the goal after 36 minutes. However, the goal was not recognized because the referees had already interrupted the game (somewhat hastily).
Théo Rochette secured the win in the 55th minute with a shorthander. Lausanne had already scored a goal when they were outnumbered (through Michael Raffl) on Wednesday. Shortly before Lausanne’s second goal, Jacob de la Rose and Chris DiDomenico missed Gottéron’s best chance to equalize the score at 1-1.
Gottéron has to go over the books before the fourth game of the series on Monday evening in Lausanne. The bitter defeats in the last two games – first in the third-longest playoff game in history, then the home defeat despite stark superiority – must first be overcome.
Fribourg-Gottéron – Lausanne 0:2 (0:0, 0:0, 0:2)
9095 spectators (sold out). SR Stricker/Kohlmüller, Fuchs/Urfer.
Tore: 45. Riyadh 0:1. 55. Rochette (Raffl/shorthanded goal!) 0:2.
Punish: 3 times 2 minutes against Fribourg-Gottéron, 4 times 2 minutes against Lausanne.
PostFinance top scorer: Sörensen; Finnish.
Fribourg-Gottéron: Berra; Gunderson, Streule; Diaz, Borgman; Dufner, Sailer; Pacifiers; Sörensen, Wallmark, Bykov; Bertschy, De la Rose, DiDomenico; Marchon, Walser, Jörg; Sprunger, Schmid, After; Binias.
Lausanne: Hughes; Glauser, Djoos; Heldner, Frick; Pilut, Genazzi; Jelovac; Rochette, Suomela, Sekac; Riat, Fuchs, Salomäki; Bozon, Jäger, Raffl; Holdener, Almond, Pedretti; Kenins.
Remarks: Fribourg-Gottéron without Emmerton, Jecker, Mottet (all injured) and Grégoire (supernumerary foreigners), Lausanne without Bougro, Marti, Perrenoud (all injured), Haapala and Kovacs (both supernumerary foreigners). Fribourg-Gottéron from 57:14 to 58:59 without a goalkeeper. (nih/sda)