KAC ends Linz's winning streak - Pustertal extends its lead in the table!

KAC ends Linz's winning streak - Pustertal extends its lead in the table!

In the 18th round of the win2day ICE Hockey League, the EC KAC ended the Black Wings Linz's winning streak with a 5:3 win. The KAC showed a strong performance from the start and took the lead in the second minute through captain Thomas Hundertpfund. Just a minute later, Mario Kempe increased the score to 2-0. The Linzers were able to score a goal through Travis Barron in the 19th minute, but Hundertpfund put the KAC back in the lead 3-1 with his second goal in the 29th minute.

However, the Black Wings did not remain without a chance and reduced the deficit again through Brian Lebler, who made it 2-3 in the 31st minute. But the KAC's response didn't take long to arrive: Jesper Jensen Aabo scored in the 33rd minute to make it 4:2, followed by Mathias From, who increased the score to 5:2 shortly before the second period break. Although Lebler scored his second goal in the 52nd minute, reducing the lead to 5:3, Linz was unable to catch up decisively due to two penalties in the last two minutes. This defeat puts the Black Wings in ninth place in the table, while the KAC now moves up to third place.

Top game for Pustertal

At the same time, HC Pustertal also won 5-3 in the top game against Olimpija Ljubljana and thus consolidated their lead in the table. Pustertal took an early lead through Darin Glira in the 3rd minute, but faced a deficit in the first half when Ljubljana briefly gained the upper hand through a goal from Oskar Meyer in the 14th minute and a power play goal from David Brennan in the 20th minute.

In the second third, Marco Di Tomaso equalized to make it 2-2. Shortly afterwards, Yannik Ierullo put HC Pustertal back in the lead (3:2), followed by another goal from Rueschoff in the 39th minute, which extended the score to 4:2. Ljubjlana came within 4:3 in the 45th minute thanks to Luka Simsic's goal, but Bowlby and Saracino decided the game 5:3 in the 57th minute.

Table overview

With the results, HC Pustertal extends its lead to 38 points, while Olimpija Ljubljana follows with 34 points. The KAC now has 32 points and is in third place. The other teams in the table are also important, especially the Vienna Capitals, who slipped to eleventh place after their defeat against Ferencvaros and have now lost three games in a row. Kevin Constantine, the Capitals' new head coach, was disappointed, but reported progress in the team's game.

The ICE Hockey League, in which EC KAC and HC Pustertal are chasing points, always remains exciting thanks to the regular updates from Sport-Fan. In one of the most prominent ice hockey leagues in Europe, every point is hotly contested, and fans can look forward to exciting encounters in the coming match days.