Respect from friend and foe: Langnau’s Finn Harri Pesonen receives an emotional farewell from his compatriot at the ZSC Lions, Juho Lammikko
Keystone
The final decisions will be made in the 52nd and final round of the National League. Above all, however, the evening is also marked by a number of farewells. These are the facts from Monday’s games.
The ZSC Lions closed out the qualifiers with their ninth away win in a row. The defending champions’ goals in their 2-0 win over the SCL Tigers were scored by Chris Baltisberger (33rd) and Rudolfs Balcers (39th), with Langnau goalie Robin Meyer not cutting the best figure before the 0-1. The shot ratio in the middle third was 12:2 in favor of the Lions. In the final period, Langnau created some good chances, but despite 18 shots on goal, they were unable to get the puck past the strong Simon Hrubec. The Czech celebrated his sixth shutout of the season, making him number 1 in this statistic. Captain Harri Pesonen’s time with the Tigers came to an end after seven seasons with the team.
Lugano with the useless victory
HC Lugano did their duty with a 4-1 win against EV Zug, but were unable to move up from 5th place to the top and thus improve their home ice for the playoff quarter-finals. They had previously squandered this chance with three defeats in a row. Einar Emanuelsson and Santeri Alatalo gave them a 2-0 lead in the opening period. Markus Granlund scored two more goals in the final five minutes to take the top scorer crown.
Servette with their fifth win in a row
Servette are back in the play-offs for the first time since winning the league title three years ago – and in third place with aplomb. Kloten did not put up much resistance in their last game before the start of the vacations, winning 7-0. With the 3:0 in the 22nd minute – all three goals scored by the outstanding Finns – more than a preliminary decision had been made. Servette won their third game in a row and eleven out of a possible twelve points against the Zurich lowlanders this season. This also marked the end of the career of Kloten veteran and captain Steve Kellenberger.
A jubilant mood in Geneva: Servette finish the regular season in third place after a 7-0 win against Kloten
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Stransky misses out on top scorer crown
HC Davos concluded its outstanding regular season in style with a 5-2 win against EHC Biel. A small drop of bitterness: Captain Matej Stransky remained without a point and missed out on becoming the first HCD player since Lonny Bohonos 25 years ago to become the league’s top scorer. Markus Granlund is one point off the pace. The Czech is also set to return home at the end of the season, one year before his contract expires.
Fribourg completes the 100
Fribourg-Gottéron won the prestigious duel at Bern 4:3 at the end of the season to reach the 100-point mark. They picked up ten out of a possible twelve points against their arch-rivals, whom they had already knocked out of the play-offs last season. SCB are weakening ahead of the crucial play-in against Biel after just one win in their last six games.
Lakers in playoff form
The Rapperswil-Jona Lakers enter the battle for the play-offs with their shoulders broad. The 6:2 win over Ambri-Piotta was their sixth victory in the last seven games and their fourth in a row. Sandro Zangger scored the winning goal in the 52nd minute. The Lakers go into the play-in against Zug in better shape than their opponents from Zug.
Ajoie builds morale for the playout
Ajoie ended a run of seven defeats at the end of the qualifiers and thus gained some morale for the playout against Ambri-Piotta. In Lausanne, the bottom team won 3-2 on penalties after trailing twice (thanks to two goals from Austin Czarnik). Philip-Michael Devos and Julius Nättinen scored in the shootout.
SCL Tigers – ZSC Lions 0:2 (0:0, 0:2, 0:0)
5416 spectators. – SR Stolc (SVK)/Dipietro, Altmann/Duc. – Goals: 33rd Chris Baltisberger (Trutmann, Schwendeler) 0:1. 39th Balcers (Andrighetto, Grant) 0:2. – Penalties: 2 times 2 minutes against SCL Tigers, 4 times 2 minutes against ZSC Lions. – PostFinance top scorers: Petersson; Andrighetto.
SCL Tigers: Meyer; Phil Baltisberger, Riikola; Kinnunen, Mathys; Erni, Paschoud; Lehmann; Rohrbach, Björninen, Pesonen; Petersson, Felcman, Mäenalanen; Julian Schmutz, Flavio Schmutz, Allenspach; Petrini, Salzgeber, Lapinskis; Bachofner.
ZSC Lions: Hrubec; Kukan, Lehtonen; Ustinkov, Marti; Trutmann, Schwendeler; Oejdemark; Andrighetto, Grant, Balcers; Frödén, Lammikko, Hollenstein; Rohrer, Baechler, Gruber; Chris Baltisberger, Sigrist, Schreiber; Endo Meier.
Remarks: SCL Tigers without Noah Meier (injured) and Malone (supernumerary foreigner), ZSC Lions without Bader, Geering, Malgin, Riedi, Weber (all injured) and Sundström (supernumerary foreigner). SCL Tigers without goalkeeper from 57:23.
Genève-Servette – Kloten 7:0 (2:0, 3:0, 2:0)
6342 spectators. – SR Kaukokari (FIN)/Gerber, Urfer/Meusy. – Goals: 1. (0:56) Manninen (Saarijärvi, Puljujärvi) 1:0. 20. (19:59) Manninen (Granlund/powerplay goal) 2:0. 22. Saarijärvi (Granlund, Puljujärvi) 3:0. 35. Le Coultre 4:0. 39. Hischier (Praplan) 5:0. 55. Granlund (Puljujärvi, Saarijärvi) 6:0. 59. Granlund (Manninen) 7:0. – Penalties: 3 times 2 minutes against Genève-Servette, 5 times 2 minutes against Kloten. – PostFinance top scorers: Granlund; Meyer.
Genève-Servette: Charlin; Rutta, Berni; Saarijärvi, Chanton; Karrer, Le Coultre; Sutter, Schneller; Puljujärvi, Manninen, Granlund; Akeson, Jooris, Vesey; Ignatavicius, Praplan, Hischier; Miranda, Verboon, Rod.
Kloten: Fadani (46. Waeber); Delémont, Lindroth; Profico, Wolf; Hausheer, Steiner; Kellenberger; Meyer, Gignac, Morley; Aberg, Henry, Ramel; Simic, Leino, Simon Meier; Weibel, Schäppi, Derungs; Rafael Meier.
Remarks: Genève-Servette without Bozon, Brassard, Pouliot and Richard (all injured), Kloten without Diem, Klok (both injured) and Puhakka (sick).
Davos – Biel 5:2 (2:0, 2:0, 1:2)
4656 spectators. – SR Wiegand/Hungerbühler, Obwegeser/Bichsel. – Goals: 10th (9:19) Tambellini (Ryfors, Jung) 1:0. 11th (10:59) Egli (Guebey) 2:0. 27th Tambellini (Zadina/powerplay goal) 3:0. 38th Frick (Calle Andersson) 4:0. 44. Ryfors (Frick) 5:0. 50. Sever (Sallinen, Haas) 5:1. 57. Müller (Sablatnig) 5:2. – Penalties: 1 x 2 minutes against Davos, 2 x 2 minutes against Biel. – PostFinance top scorers: Zadina; Lias Andersson.
Davos: Taponen; Frick, Claesson; Guebey, Barandun; Calle Andersson, Jung; Minder; Lemieux, Waidacher, Zadina; Aebli, Nussbaumer, Gredig; Frehner, Ryfors, Tambellini; Knak, Egli, Parrée.
Biel: Janett; Hultström, Zryd; Dionicio, Blessing; Christen, Stampfli; Aeschbach; Huuhtanen, Lias Andersson, Braillard; Sallinen, Haas, Sever; Sylvegard, Neuenschwander, Bärtschi; Sablatnig, Müller, Kneubuehler; Villard.
Remarks: Davos without Corvi, Gross, Hollenstein (all injured), Asplund, Dahlbeck and Stransky (all overtime), Biel without Grossmann (injured), Burren, Cajka (both sick), Rajala and Säteri (both overtime).
Lugano – Zug 4:1 (2:0, 0:0, 2:1)
5941 spectators. – SR Lemelin (USA)/Piechaczek (GER), Cattaneo/Bürgy. – Goals: 17. Emanuelsson (Kupari) 1:0. 19. Alatalo 2:0. 47. Carrick 3:0. 51. Sanford (Aebischer, Fazzini) 4:0. 59. Lindemann (Truog, Riva) 4:1. – Penalties: 4 times 2 minutes each. – PostFinance top scorers: Fazzini; Kubalik.
Lugano: Schlegel; Alatalo, Jesper Peltonen; Carrick, Brian Zanetti; Aebischer, Meile; Togni; Simion, Thürkauf, Sekac; Fazzini, Sanford, Canonica; Kupari, Valk, Emanuelsson; Marco Zanetti, Morini, Bertaggia; Tanner.
Zug: Wolf; Bengtsson, Stadler; Diaz, Sklenicka; Schlumpf, Riva; Guerra; Kubalik, Tatar, Herzog; Künzle, Senteler, Vozenilek; Eggenberger, Lilja, Hofmann; Truog, Leuenberger, Lindemann.
Remarks: Lugano without Dahlström, Müller, Aleksi Peltonen (all injured) and Perlini (sick), Zug without Balestra, Martschini, Wingerli (all injured) and Kovar (supernumerary foreigner).
Bern – Fribourg-Gottéron 3:4 (0:2, 2:0, 1:2)
16’471 spectators. – SR Borga/Stricker, Steenstra (CAN)/Humair. – Goals: 3rd Sprunger (Bertschy, Rathgeb/power play goal) 0:1. 18th Rau (Borgström/power play goal) 0:2. 30th (29:25) Untersander (Sgarbossa) 1:2. 31st (30:57) Bemström 2:2. 46th Biasca (Bertschy) 2:3. 51. Nathan Marchon (Kapla, Borgström) 2:4. 53. Ejdsell (Marc Marchon, Häman Aktell/powerplay goal) 3:4. – Penalties: 4 times 2 minutes against Bern, 3 times 2 minutes against Fribourg-Gottéron. – PostFinance top scorers: Ejdsell; Schmid.
Bern: Zurkirchen; Loeffel, Kreis; Untersander, Rhyn; Kindschi, Häman Aktell; Füllemann; Merelä, Aaltonen, Alge; Ejdsell, Sgarbossa, Lehmann; Bemström, Müller, Marc Marchon; Schild, Levin Moser, Bont.
Fribourg-Gottéron: Berra; Rathgeb, Kapla; Johnson, Streule; Jecker, Arola; Seiler; Rau, Schmid, Rattie; Bertschy, Borgström, Biasca; Sprunger, De la Rose, Nathan Marchon; Nicolet, Walser, Dorthe; Reber.
Remarks: Bern without Baumgartner, Graf, Lindholm, Simon Moser, Ritzmann, Vermin (all injured), Scherwey (sick), Iakovenko and Reideborn (both surplus foreigners), Fribourg-Gottéron without Glauser, Sörensen, Wallmark (all injured) and Nemeth (surplus foreigner). Bern without a goalkeeper from 57:43.
Rapperswil-Jona Lakers – Ambri-Piotta 6:2 (2:1, 0:0, 4:1)
4562 spectators. – SR Tscherrig/Ruprecht, Schlegel/Bachelut. – Goals: 7. Henauer (Albrecht, Hofer) 1:0. 12. Formenton (De Luca, Heed) 1:1. 14. Strömwall (Lammer, Moy/powerplay goal) 2:1. 42. Bachmann (Borradori) 2:2. 52. Zangger 3:2. 56. Moy 4:2 (into the empty net). 58th (57:16) Fritz (underpaid goal!) 5:2 (into the empty net). 58th (57:24) Hofer (shorthanded goal!) 6:2 (into the empty net). – Penalties: 5 times 2 minutes against Rapperswil-Jona Lakers, 4 times 2 minutes against Ambri-Piotta. – PostFinance top scorers: Moy; Virtanen.
Rapperswil-Jona Lakers: Punnenovs; Honka, Maier; Capaul, Larsson; Henauer, Jelovac; Kellenberger, Dufner; Strömwall, Rask, Wetter; Zangger, Moy, Lammer; Hornecker, Fritz, Jensen; Hofer, Albrecht, Graf.
Ambri-Piotta: Senn; Dario Wüthrich, Virtanen; Heed, Bachmann; Zgraggen, Pezzullo; Isacco Dotti, Zaccheo Dotti; De Luca, Manix Landry, Formenton; Bürgler, Tierney, Borradori; Muggli, Heim, Pestoni; Grassi, Lukas Landry, Terraneo.
Remarks: Rapperswil-Jona Lakers without Dünner, Quinn, Taibel (all injured), Maillet and Pilut (both surplus foreigners), Ambri-Piotta without Kostner, Zwerger (both injured), Müller (suspended) and Joly (sick). Ambri-Piotta without a goalkeeper from 55:17 to 55:55 and 56:59 to 57:28.
Lausanne – Ajoie 2:3 (0:0, 2:2, 0:0, 0:0) n.P.
9600 spectators. – SR Hebeisen/Weber, Gnemmi/Huguet. – Goals: 23rd Czarnik (Brännström, Fuchs/power play goal) 1:0. 33rd Mottet (Berthoud, Sopa/power play goal) 1:1. 35th Czarnik (Caggiula, Brännström/underpaid goal!) 2:1. 40th (39:48) Wick (Bellemare) 2:2. – Penalty shootout: Fuchs 1:0, Sopa -; Oksanen -, Devos 1:1; Czarnik -, Nättinen 1:2; Caggiula -, Berthoud -; Brännström -. – Penalties: 1 times 2 plus 5 minutes (Sansonnens) plus playing time (Sansonnens) against Lausanne, 3 times 2 minutes against Ajoie. – PostFinance top scorers: Czarnik; Nättinen.
Lausanne: Hughes; Baragano, Brännström; Heldner, Sansonnens; Niku, Marti; Vouardoux, Fiedler; Fuchs, Czarnik, Oksanen; Riat, Kahun, Caggiula; Hügli, Jäger, Zehnder; Holdener, Bougro, Prassl.
Ajoie: Ciaccio; Reunanen, Christe; Pouilly, Fey; Berthoud, Nussbaumer; Wick, Bellemare, Nättinen; Sopa, Devos, Mottet; Robin, Romanenghi, Pedretti; Cavalleri, Schläpfer, Schmutz; Cormier.
Remarks: Lausanne without Rochette (injured) and Suomela (supernumerary foreigner), Ajoie without Bozon, Conz, Fischer, Friman, Garessus, Gauthier, Hazen, Honka, Patenaude, Pilet, Thiry and Turkulainen (all injured).