Read below for information on the Quarter-Final series between Fribourg-Gotteron and Vitkovice Ridera Ostrava. Fribourg won on aggregate 8-4 to advance to the Semi-Finals.

Preview

The match-up of Friboug-Gotteron and Vitkovice Ridera Ostrava features two teams that not many picked to make it this far. Domestically, both have struggled to start the season, but coming on more lately. Vitkovice are 9th in the 14-team Extraliga, while Fribourg are 11th out of 12 NLA teams. In the CHL, however, both teams were solid through their group stages and Round of 32, but faced stiff opposition in the Round of 16. Fribourg got past KalPa Kuopio and Vitkovice past Bili Tygri Liberec – both in overtime – and now both are in the CHL Quarter-Finals for the first time. In making it this far, both teams have been very stingy defensively, giving up 11 and 12 goals in eight games respectively, so don't expect this to be a high-scoring series.

Historically, this is already the farthest Fribourg have ever advanced in a European club championship, whereas Vitkovice were silver medallists at the 1981-82 European Cup.

Closer look: Fribourg-Gotteron

(4-0-3-1, 15 points, 21:11)

Group F winners Fribourg-Gotteron started with two home games and scored a pair of three-goal wins, first shutting out Red Bull Munich 3-0 and then beating Orli Znojmo 5-2. After winning in Znojmo 3-1, they lost their final game by the same score in Munich; however, that result assured them top spot in the group. Like all Swiss teams, Fribourg looked very strong in the group stage and that continued in the Round of 32, where they earned a draw in Kosice, then won at home by 3 goals to advance. They got a tougher test in the Round of 16 against KalPa Kuopio from Finland, and there wasn't much to choose from the teams. After tying both games, it was decided in overtime by defenceman Yannick Rathgeb. 

Roman

Cervenka

5+3, +7

 

Top Forward: Roman Cervenka joined Fribourg-Gotteron in the summer of 2016. The Czech forward has easily found his role within the Swiss club and scored right from the beginning – as he did before in other leagues he has played in. The 30-year-old centre has played previously in the NHL and KHL, and has represented the Czech Republic numerous times, including two Olympics and the recently completed World Cup of Hockey. He is scoring at over a point per game in the NLA; however, his World Cup duty caused him to miss six games, so he trails Julien Sprunger in team scoring domestically. The visit to Ostava will be the second time in this year's CHL that he plays in his native Czech Republic. 

Yannick

Rathgeb

2+7, +9

 

Top Defenceman & CRAMO Top Scorer: Even though he is still very young, Yannick Rathgeb made a big impression to the fans and the coaches during his first complete NLA season in 2015-16. The 20-year-old Swiss rearguard was even invited for the Prospect Camp of the Chicago Blackhawks this summer. In this year's CHL campaign and in the early part of the NLA season, Rathgeb has shown himself to be solid defensively with the ability to contribute offensively as well. Not only is he Fribourg's top scorer in the CHL, but he's second in the whole competition. He also scored the overtime goal against KalPa to send them through to the Quarter-Finals.  

Benjamin

Conz

94.89%

 

Top Goaltender: In front of the Fribourg net, Benjamin Conz has performed very well this season. He's played in six of the team's eight games so far and allowed only 9 goals against, for an impressive average of 1.49. The low number of goals against is one of the main reasons Fribourg are still in the competition and he will need to keep those numbers low against a Vitkovice team that has been very good defensively in the CHL, meaning every goal will be important. 

Click here for team statistics

Closer look: Vitkovice Ridera Ostrava

(4-0-1-3, 13 points, 22:12)

It's been a tale of two Vitkovice teams in their first eight CHL games this year. They lost their first three games in the group stage, scoring only 2 goals in total. Then they won their next three, scoring 17 in total. Defensively, they've been solid all along. They started with a 4-2 home-ice loss to Karpat Oulu, followed by a couple of tight-checking, defensive games on the road in which they were shut out in both Krefeld and Oulu. They needed a regulation win in their last group game against Krefeld to stay alive, and their offence finally woke up as they scored 3 early goals and eventually won 5-3 to overtake Die Pinguine in the standings. In the Round of 32 against HK Nitra, the team exploded for 12 goals and they didn't allow any in the most lopsided series in CHL history. The next round against Liberec, the reigning Czech champions, was more difficult, however. The low-scoring series was tied 2-2 after 120 minutes and went to overtime, where Radoslav Tybor provided the heroics to send Vitkovice through to the Quarters. 

Ondrej

Roman

2+3, even

 

Top Forward: As mentioned, Vitkovice struggled offensively in their first three games before waking up in their last group game and then really breaking out against Nitra. The team now has 22 goals with four players recording 5 points each. One of those is Ondrej Roman, who accomplished the feat in only five games. The 27-year-old has been an offensive leader in Vitkovice for a few years now and is leading the team again in the Extraliga as well this season. He's not alone, though. Other forwards who can score include David Kveton and captain Rostislav Olesz. 

Karol

Sloboda

3+2, +2

 

Top Defenceman & CRAMO Top Scorer: Slovakian defenceman Karol Sloboda is a familiar face in Ostrava, now in his sixth season on Vitkovice's defence. Not only is he very reliable defensively, but he can contribute on offence as well, and is one of four players on the team with 5 CHL points so far – with 3 goals, he wears the Top Scorer jersey. Another Slovak who is a steadying force on the blueline is 31-year-old Ivan Barinka, a new acquisition this season, who played seven seasons in the KHL. Both players have represented Slovakia at the World Championships in the past.

Patrik

Bartosak

89.19 %

 

Top Goaltender: Even though Daniel Dolejs has better numbers in this CHL season, it’s Patrik Bartosak who is is the clear No. 1 in Vitkovice’s crease. He started three games and played a key role in Vitkovice's only win in the group stage, which came in their last game on home ice against Krefeld. He returned from North America in the spring and soon made it clear he wants to be a leader on the boyhood team that he left five years ago. Dolejs has been very solid against Nitra and Liberec, and we might see him in at least one game against Fribourg.

Click here for team statistics.