Five games tonight in the Champions Hockey League, with qualification at stake for some teams – and survival for others.
Bili Tygri Liberec vs. TPS Turku
Group H; Home Credit Arena, 18:00
After dropping a point at home due to a last-minute equalizer from Lorenskog, Liberec play their final CHL group stage home game under a little pressure to get a result and pull away from their Norwegian opponents. Having beaten Lorenskog at home, TPS sit top of the group and will move further in front of Liberec with a win tonight, and be on the verge of making the next round.
"TPS Turku is a club with such a great history and one of the best teams of the Finnish SM-Liiga. Despite disappointing results in the past two seasons, the team is strong and of course they want to be successful again," said Liberec head coach Filip Pesan. "The CHL can help them with this goal. I think their next season will be much better so I expect an attractive, traditional and tough opponent."
Sparta Prague vs. Comarch Cracovia
Group O; O2 Arena Prague, 18:00
It really is quite simple for Cracovia tonight – anything less than a win, either in regulation or after 60 minutes in overtime or penalty shots, or they are eliminated. A win in any fashion for Sparta on the other hand not only ensures they qualify to the Round of 32, but also puts Farjestad through as well.
"The first game against Cracovia was good quality, from that we know that all opponents in the CHL are very strong," said forward Tomas Netik ahead of the game. "We didn't know what to anticipate from the Poles, but they made it tough for us before and we were glad to win."
"We know what to expect from Sparta. We can't fear them as it will be important for us to also create chances," said coach Rudolf Rohacek in a press conference before the team left Poland yesterday. Top scorer for the team, Damian Kapica, added: "We have learned from our mistakes. I hope we will do better tomorrow against Sparta in our third CHL game."
Lukko Rauma vs. ZSC Lions
Group D; Kivikylan Areena, 18:00
Lukko Rauma, who made the CHL Quarter-Finals in the first season and the semis last time around, begin their campaign with a home match against the ZSC Lions.
With ZSC having beaten Ingolstadt in both of their two meetings in the competition, Lukko now have a chance move ahead of the DEL side in the race to get points on the board. "Similar to Ingolstadt, Zurich has had success in the past and is a club now looking to get back on top again with new coaching staff," says Lukko head coach Juha Vuori. "I’m expecting up-tempo, high-intensity games with ZSC. We are fortunate to have a chance to play against Zurich right away in at beginning of the league for us.”
The visit to Rauma will be "excellent preparation and experience" for the new NLA season, added ZSC GM Edgars Salis. A point for the Lions will see them qualified for the next round.
Karpat Oulu vs. Vitkovice Ostrava
Group E; Oulun Energia-Areena, 18:00
Having won the reverse match-up on opening day in Ostrava, Karpat host Vitkovice knowing that just a point will guarantee them a place in the Round of 32. For the Czechs, who also lost in Krefeld during their road trip last week, they are still yet to get on the board in terms of points and are in need of something to stay in control of their own destiny.
"Bounces haven't gone our way so far," bemoaned Vitkovice head coach Jakub Petr of the opening two losses. "We played well in both games, but we need to play consistently the whole game to have a chance to win. We were working on that before the game in Oulu."
EV Zug vs. IFK Helsinki
Group G; Bossard Arena, 19:45
IFK Helsinki start their CHL campaign on the road in Switzerland, having made the Round of 32 last season and the Quarter-Finals the one before that. Zug lead the group after a winning in Denmark in their opener, so while no team can qualify tonight a win for the hosts would put them six points clear at the top of the table.
"Our first home game of the 2016-17 CHL is going to be a very big test for our team. IFK Helsinki is a very strong, fast skating team and lost in the Finals of the SM Liiga last year," said captain Josh Holden. "We know we must be prepared for a hard fought, 60 minute game. Let's have some fun!"
Antti Tormanen, head coach of IFK added, "Zug is the fourth Swiss team we play against during the three seasons of CHL hockey and they've always been very tough games. We expect nothing less from Friday's game. We need to put in our very best effort if we want to win. Zug is one of the top teams in the Swiss league. They have a lot of talent both on defence and among forwards. It's great to start our season with a tough game like this." In those three previous meetings with NLA teams, IFK have failed to win in Switzerland – suffering two losses (one on penalty shots) and registering a tie.