Read below for information on the eighth-final series between Skelleftea AIK and Eisbaren Berlin. Skelleftea won 7–3 on aggregate to advance to the quarter-finals.

Game 2

Coming home with a 3-goal advantage, there was little in the way of drama as Skelleftea hosted Eisbaren Berlin. The Polar Bears got an early goal from Marcel Noebels to put a small dent in the deficit, but Martin Lundberg replied less than three minutes later and Erik Forsell scored on the power play with 3:24 remaining to make sure that Skelleftea won the hockey game as well. 

“Of course it’s a relief that we are through to the next stage, we have the ambition to win this tournament. Tonight's game was far from our best performance but I’m proud of my team anyways – they come from a week-long break and we’ve had eight boys on different national team camps,” said Skelleftea coach Hans Wallson. “Eisbaren Berlin were a good opponent, they have a skilled team that will punish you if you let your guard down. And that was exactly what we did in the early stage of this game, but we were lucky to have a excellent Marcus Svensson in the net and at that point he saved us.”

GAME HIGHLIGHTS | LIVE BLOG & STATS

Game 1

Die Eisbaren were confident at the start on home ice, but gave up 2 goals in the first 12 minutes and were never able to recover. Tim Heed and Erik Forsell each had 3 points for a Skelleftea team that is now in a very good position heading home. Laurin Braun and Barry Tallackson had 2 points each for a Berlin squad that now faces an uphill climb.

GAME HIGHLIGHTS | LIVE BLOG & STATS

Preview

Skelleftea AIK and Eisbaren Berlin are two teams that have taken different paths to meet up in the Round of 16. While everyone expected Skelleftea, they nearly weren't after dropping the first game of their Round of 32 series in Kosice, needing to rally on home ice to advance. Eisbaren Berlin actually had a more comfortable ride through the Round of 32 against the Stavanger Oilers, which was a bit of a surprise considering their struggles over the past couple of years and their less-than-stellar showing in the group stage. Both teams are currently battling near the tops of their respective domestic leagues, however the Swedish Hockey League is considered to be considerably stronger than the Deutsche Eishockey Liga, and Skelleftea will be seen as heavy favourites to advance to the quarter-finals. Both teams can play defence and have strong goaltending, but Skelleftea are a lot more potent offensively. To have a chance, Die Eisbaren will have to walk a thin line by playing a physical game, while staying out of the penalty box and avoiding Skelleftea's strong power play. That won't be an easy task, but as both teams saw in the last round, nothing is for sure.  

Closer look: Skelleftea AIK

(4-1-0-1, 14 points, 22:10)

Recognized as one of Europe's top clubs, Skelleftea aren't happy with coming up short in both the CHL and SHL last season – falling to regional rivals Lulea in the CHL semi-finals and the Vaxjo Lakers in the domestic finals. They meant business in the group stage, dropping only one point – a home shootout win over HK Nitra – in their Group D win. Their two games against Nitra were tight games, and their trouble with Slovakian teams continued into the Round of 32, where they needed to rally on home ice to avoid what would have been a shocking defeat at the hands of HC Kosice. Having avoided that scare, they now face another team in Eisbaren Berlin that conventional wisdom says they should beat, but you can never count your eggs before they hatch. Domestically, they are not surprisingly near the top with the 2nd-ranked defence in the league, although well off the pace of front-running Frolunda Gothenburg, who are skating away from the rest of the Swedish pack. 

Janne

Pesonen

4+3, +4

 

Top Forward & CRAMO Top Scorer: Janne Pesonen has an impressive array of offensive tools but the thing that stands out most is his ability to create scoring chances from something that doesn't even look like a chance. Together with Patrik Zackrisson and Andrew Calof, they are a big threat every shift they get. The return of Jimmie Ericsson to the lineup also gives Skelleftea the opportunity to put together one of the absolute best power-play units in SHL and CHL. This unit has already impressed with some highlight-reel goals.

 

Tim

Heed

2+2, even

 

Top Defenceman: The offensive-minded Tim Heed has a rocket of a shot from the point, which is especially an asset on the power play. Heed is a late-bloomer that had some tough years prior to last season, in which all the pieces finally fell into place and he dominated from the blueline. With a rocket-like wrister and a sensational game sense, he impressed all through the season and got rewarded with the best defenceman award in the SHL. Overall, the team's defensive corps is an interesting mix of young and upcoming stars together with older and more experienced  SHL veterans.

 

Markus

Svensson

97.18%

 

Goaltender: Markus Svensson continues to improve each season and, if this progress continues, it is highly likely that he will be one of the Swedish National Team goaltenders this season. He's split duties with Erik Hanses so far in the CHL, but Svensson's numbers are considerably better, with his 97.18 save percentage, 0.67 goals-against average and 2 shutouts making him the CHL's second-ranked goalie statistics-wise after Karpat's Sami Aittokallio.

 

Click here for team statistics.

Closer look: Eisbaren Berlin

(2-0-1-3, 7 points, 18:16)

Objectively, the group stage was not a massive success for Eisbaren Berlin. With only one win in three games, the German side qualified in lieu of their improved goal difference against the Gap Rapaces. However, they more than made up for that with a win in the Round of 32 over the perennial Norwegian champion Stavanger Oilers. The biggest key to the Polar Bears' win was the goaltending of veteran Petri Vehanen, whose Game 1 shutout gave them a three-goal lead heading to Norway. If they've got any chance against the powerful Skelleftea squad, they are going to need Vehanen to be larger than life in goal, and the Finnish World Champion and and KHL champion has shown throughout his career that he can rise to the occasion. Die Eisbaren are playing well domestically – they are off to a good start in the DEL, battling near the top in a tight race between several teams in which the order changes almost daily.  

Marcel

Noebels

2+3, even

 

Top Forward & CRAMO Top Scorer: Marcel Noebels came to Berlin in the middle of last season from the Adirondack Phantoms of the AHL. Expectations were high, but he has so far been able to succeed. He never gives up on a play, he is a good skater and strong on the puck. During the first game of this year's CHL against Gap he scored a beautiful goal with just one hand on his stick. Noebels is one of four Eisbaren players with 5 points after six games, with no one player overly-dominant up front.

 

Jonas

Mueller

1+4, +3

 

Top Defenceman: 19-year-old Jonas Mueller from Germany was a positive surprise for Berlin last year. Due to injuries he got way more ice-time than expected, and Mueller was able to stand his ground and satisfied everybody with is solid smooth two-way game. With 5 points, he is one of four players tied for Eisbaren's scoring lead. In fact, they do get a fair bit of offence from their back end, with three of the club's top five scorers being defencemen – Micki Dupont and Bruno Gervais are the others. 

 

Petri

Vehanen

90.51 %

 

Top Goaltender: This year marks Petri Vehanen's second year in an Eisbaren Berlin jersey. Last year he was one of the best goalies in the DEL. His start to this season was a little bit slow, but he's picked up his play as of late. A veteran goalie and World Champion, 38-year-old Vehanen showed that his days as an impact goalie are not finished against Stavanger. Coming up now is an even bigger challenge in Skelleftea, and Vehanen knowns he'll have to stay at the top of his game to give his team a chance. 

 

Click here for team statistics.