- Defending champion Ambri-Piotta lost to Dynamo Pardubice (CZE) 2:3 nV in the opening game of the Spengler Cup
- The Ticino team lost an early 2-0 lead.
- In the evening (from 8:15 p.m. live on SRF two) Frölunda and Team Canada will play the first game of the Cattini group.
After just over a minute of play, things got really loud for the first time in the Davos ice stadium. Alex Formenton had evaded his opponents and shot Ambri-Piotta into the lead after 62 seconds alone in front of goalie Roman Will. The numerous fans of the defending champions cheered, the Leventiners had really arrived at the Spengler Cup early on.
Just a few minutes later, it was Formenton who scored again. The Canadian decisively deflected a power play shot from Jesse Virtanen to make it 2-0 (9th).
Pardubice strikes back
After Dynamo Pardubice was overrun at the start, the Czechs got better and better as the game progressed. They were rewarded for their effort for the first time at half-time. Matej Paulovic dribbled strongly in front of the goal and pushed in to make it 1-2.
And in the final third, Pardubice increased the pressure again. The deserved equalizer came in the 48th minute when Tomas Zohorna enjoyed too much freedom and skillfully exploited it with a slapshot to make it 2-2.
The equalizer was the can opener for a hard-fought and rough final phase. The Ticino team survived being outnumbered and saved themselves into extra time. It took 74 seconds before Lukas Sedlak was able to get ahead of Janne Juvonen and confidently score the 3-2 winner for the Czechs.
This is how it goes
For Ambri-Piotta, the Spengler Cup starts with a setback. But nothing is lost yet, the game continues against KalPa Kuopio on Wednesday from 3:10 p.m. Even then, the “Biancoblu” will again be supported by numerous fans. Pardubice gets one more day of rest. The last game of the Torriani group from the Czechs against the Finns from Kuopio will take place on Thursday, also from 3:10 p.m.