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The ZSC Lions went on an upward trajectory in the playoffs. This should culminate in winning the title.
For the first time since the 2018 title, the ZSC Lions are back in the playoff finals. After a tough start in the quarter-finals against Biel, the Zurich team got better and better and most recently mastered the semi-finals against Fribourg-Gottéron with a “sweep”.
In the final, the toughest possible task awaits with the defending champion and qualifying winner Zug. How do the Lions want to buy the guts from EVZ? “We’ll try everything so that Zug can’t play off its speed hockey,” reveals striker Simon Bodenmann, who became champion with SCB in 2016 and 2017. “We have to watch out for their ‘rushes’.”
DiDomenico apologized to me.
Patrick Geering, who has already been a four-time Swiss champion with the Lions, sees two “balanced teams” in the final and concludes: “The details will decide.” According to the ZSC captain, one thing that speaks for his team is that “we had a knife on our neck a few times in the playoffs. And we always found a way out. That gives energy.”
Nothing of Chris DiDomenico’s foul in the 4th semi-final game on Thursday stuck with Geering. “The knee is fine, I was lucky. DiDomenico apologized to me – he didn’t do it on purpose.”
We’re in the playoff finals. Everyone can tap into extra energy tanks.
While Zug has never lost in the playoffs, the Lions had to go the full distance against Biel and into overtime three times against Freiburg. Could the power reserves become a problem? Bodenmann denies: “We are in the playoff final. Everyone can tap into extra energy tanks.”
The question remains how the Lions plan to defeat Leonardo Genoni. The 6-time champion goalie has only conceded 11 goals in 8 playoff games – most recently in the 4 semi-final games only their 2nd floorman, who won the title with Genoni in Bern in 2017, says: “He doesn’t have it either like when there is traffic in front of his goal and he doesn’t see the shots. Then it will be difficult for him too.” So the Lions want to go where it hurts.
You will see what this looks like in an emergency from Easter Monday. At the ZSC, the anticipation of the final is visible and audible. In the case of Geering from Zurich, who has spent his entire career in the Lions organization, it sounds like this: “We are hungry. Very hungry.” Train should be warned.