920 ice hockey fans had their fingers crossed in vain for their Black Wings in the last home game of this messed up season. The bottom light that on Sunday (5.30 p.m., live ticker on nachrichten.at) in Innsbruck for the “summer break”, Fehervar lost 3:6.
Interim coach Mark Szücs had put his trust in 21-year-old Steel Wings goalkeeper Luca Egger, who defused 28 shots. In return, Gerd Kragl, who is a frequent player, will try today (7 p.m.) to lead the Steel Wings to a home win over Meran in the second-rate Alps Hockey League and thus get them back on course for the play-offs. The talent factory is under pressure after a 1:3 defeat in Zell am See. The Black Wings captain Brian Lebler, who was loaned to Salzburg, has returned to winning ways. The 32-year-old scored on his debut against Innsbruck (5:4) in the 25th minute to make it 3:2.
Today (10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.) the Linz IceCats invite sports-mad girls to “GirlsHockeyDay” in the Donauparkhalle.
Steel Wings under pressure
The Steel Wings, coached by the future sports director of the Black Wings, Philipp Lukas, slipped out of the play-off ranks in the second division.
Linz lost 3-1 to the Zeller Eisbären away from home, today (7 p.m.) they want to return to winning ways with a home advantage against Meran. “We didn’t find our usual game from the start, but we could have won,” said Lukas. “We have to check that off, regenerate well and look ahead.” The chance is alive, three matches are still to be completed in the qualifying round. For ICE Hockey League stragglers Black Wings, a disappointing season comes to an end on Sunday (5:30 p.m., live ticker on nachrichten.at) in Innsbruck.
Source: Nachrichten
