- Bern wins game 1 in the playoff quarter-final series against Zug 4:3 away.
- After a 1:3 deficit, the Bernese come back in the final third and force a turnaround.
- Tristan Scherwey scored the game-winning goal in the 57th minute.
Thanks to great morale, Bern gained home advantage right at the start of the playoff quarter-finals against Zug. The guests were better in two out of three thirds at the Bossard Arena – so the 1-0 lead in the series was not stolen.
Tristan Scherwey was celebrated as the big hero of the evening. The offensive warrior put a lot of physical effort in front of the goal in the 57th minute and made it 4-3. He completed the turnaround after a 1:3 deficit.
Romain Loeffel brought the Bernese team within 2:3 at the start of the final period. With a clear view, his shot didn’t seem unstoppable for goalie Leonardo Genoni – and brought back confidence among the guests. Simon Kindschi promptly equalized with the third goal of the evening by a Bernese defender in the 53rd minute. After a deflection from Andreas Wingerli, the disc found its way between Genoni’s legs and into the goal.
Strong middle third from Zug
The hosts turned things on their head for the first time in the middle section. Marc Michaelis (22nd), top scorer Lino Martschini with a big slapshot (28th) and Sven Senteler almost two minutes before the second siren rewarded Zug with their goals for an improvement in performance and turned a 0:1 into 3:1.
After a disappointing opening third, from Zug’s perspective everything seemed to be in place for a perfect start to the playoffs – before Dan Tangnes’ team fell back into the old ways.
Genoni defeated early in a record game
The game had started anything but well for the home team. Genoni had to reach behind himself for the first time after just over two minutes. Patrik Nemeth used an early power play after a penalty against Wingerli to make it 1-0. Genoni, who equaled Reto Pavoni’s goalie record with his 907th appearance in the top Swiss league, didn’t run out of work after that either.
Legend:
His world was still in order then
Leonardo Genoni is honored before kick-off for his 907th game in the National League.
Keystone/Philipp Schmidli
Zug was still well served by being 0-1 behind after the first 20 minutes. Bern was unable to convert a double majority that lasted over a minute and a half into another goal. Ville Pokka also failed with his shot against the crossbar – the missed opportunities should not take revenge for once.
Zug will have the chance to react in Game 2 in Bern on Tuesday.