- EHC Biel secured the final play-in ticket in the final qualifying round thanks to a 2-1 win against Geneva-Servette. The season is over for the SCL Tigers.
- In the play-in, Biel (9th) will meet champions Geneva (10th) on Thursday and Saturday, while Lugano (7th) will duel with Ambri (8th) in the derby.
- In the playoff quarter-finals the pairings Lausanne (3rd) – Davos (6th) and Zug (4th) – Bern (5th) have been determined.
Geneva-Servette – Biel 1:2
The Bielers were in 10th place before the matchday, which is the last place still entitled to play-in. With a win in Geneva, the Zealanders had the chance to secure the play-in and even push their opponents Servette out of 9th place. The Biel team was able to turn the deficit from the first third into a 2-1 lead thanks to goals from Ramon Tanner (23rd) and Luca Cunti (33rd). The reigning champion Servette ran in the final third – in vain. But it won’t be long until the next reunion: on Thursday and Saturday the two teams will meet again in the play-in, first in Geneva and then in Biel for the second leg.
Legend:
Have managed
The people of Biel celebrate the victory against Geneva.
Keystone/Salvatore Di Nolfi
ZSC Lions – SCL Tigers 2:1 aet
The team that could have challenged Biel for 10th place was the SCL Tigers. The people from Langnau were faced with the difficult task of having to get more points than Biel in Geneva from the established qualification winners ZSC. This task became even more difficult in the 7th minute when Yannick Zehnder put the favorites in the lead. But Zurich didn’t play with the utmost consistency and let the guests take over. In the 59th minute, the guests’ efforts and significant increase in chances (25:36) were finally rewarded: Saku Mäenalanen scored in the power play and without a goalkeeper. In extra time, Sven Andrighetto gave ZSC the extra point (65th).
Lausanne – Zug 4:1
The Vaudois clearly won the duel for third place in the table. Meanwhile, Zug suffered its 9th defeat from the last 10 games. Lausanne made the decision in the middle third. Miikka Salomäki (22′), Jason Fuchs (36′) and Damien Riat (38′) put the home team ahead 3-0. The EVZ gained hope again thanks to Riley Sheen, but Théo Rochette eliminated the last doubts about the outcome of the game with a 4-1 win. Lausanne will face sixth-placed HC Davos in the playoffs. Zug competes against fifth-placed SC Bern.
Freiburg – Bern 4:3 aet
Thanks to the one point in the overtime defeat against Fribourg-Gottéron, the Bernese defended fifth place. In a turbulent game, SCB turned the game around after being 0-1 behind. But Freiburg struck back and took the lead again through Kevin Etter and Maximilian Streule. Fabian Ritzmann helped Bern into extra time with his equalizer in the 52nd minute. Ryan Gunderson scored Freiburg’s extra point after 1:07 minutes. For the Saanestadt team, Marcus Sörensen was also happy about winning the scorer ranking. The Swede prevailed with 62 points (31 goals/31 assists) ahead of Lugano’s Calvin Thürkauf (28/32).
Ajoie – Davos 1:4
The Graubünden team ended the regular season with a befitting success against bottom team Ajoie. After falling behind, the HCD turned the game around against former coach Christian Wohlwend’s team thanks to Valentin Nussbaumer (18th/53rd), Matej Stransky (35th) and Leon Bristedt (60th).
Kloten – Ambri-Piotta 0:4
In the long-distance duel with Geneva-Servette, Ambri-Piotta had it in his own hands to secure 8th place and thus a better starting position in the play-in. In Kloten, Daniele Grassi brought the Leventiners to victory in the 19th minute. Jakob Lilja doubled in the 23rd minute when he was outnumbered. Tommaso De Lucas 3-0 in the 35th minute meant the decision. Dario Bürgler scored the final result in the 44th minute. In the play-in there will now be a derby against Lugano, Ambri will first play at home on Thursday.
Lugano – Lakers 3:6
Lugano lost its last chance of direct playoff qualification last Saturday with its clear defeat against Biel. After all, the South Ticino team was almost certain of 7th place before the last round. In the home game against the Rapperswil-Jona Lakers, the Luganesi suffered their third defeat in a row. After 28 minutes they were behind 1:4. Thanks to a double strike from Mark Arcobello and Thürkauf, the HCL came within 3:4. In the final phase, Roman Cervenka and Gian-Marco Wetter ensured the decision in favor of the guests in the Lakers’ last game of the season.