The Steel Wings – reinforced by the ICE cracks Niklas Bretschneider, Stefan Gaffal and Gerd Kragl – started the game ambitiously. In the 12th minute, Niklas Bretschneider was able to take advantage of Linz’s first majority game to give the Upper Austrians a 1-0 lead.
In the second half, the guests initially took control and caused dicey situations in front of Leon Sommer’s goal. In the 30th minute, Mathias Böhm netted to make it 1-1. However, the hosts answered exactly seven minutes later: Jakob Mitsch completed a Wilding assist to make it 2-1 for Linz.
Penalties played a big role in the final third. The Steel Wings were able to keep themselves harmless in a manpower situation and then increased the lead to 3:1 (51./pp) through Brodie Stuart with a manpower. Captain Marcel Mayrhofer finally decided the game in the 56th minute with the 4:1.
“It was a difficult task today that we didn’t make easier for ourselves, especially at the beginning of the game. Vienna played well and we acted in a complicated way at first. As the game progressed we got into it better and better, which secured our exit . In the end, I’m proud of the team that they were able to bring this important game home,” said coach Philipp Lukas after the game.
Top game in Val Gardena on Saturday
Thanks to the three points and Feldkirch’s victory after extra time against Zell am See, Linz are second in the table with 18 points. The Zeller Eisbären are one point behind in third place, which would also be enough for the playoff qualification. VEU Feldkirch is three points behind in fourth place. Because Linzer achieved the better results in a direct duel against Feldkirch, they are already firmly in the pre-playoffs.
In the last round of qualifying round B, the second-placed players from Linz will meet leaders Gherdeina away from home in the top game. For the people of Linz it is about second place in the qualifying group in a long-distance duel with Zell am See. In the pre-playoffs, you would face Red Bull Hockey Juniors as runners-up in the qualifying group. Third place would be against SG Cortina, EHC Bregenzerwald or Rittner Buam. In any case, the opponent has reached home.
Source: Nachrichten
