Read below for information about the eighth-final series between the Vienna Capitals and Kärpät Oulu. Kärpät won 6–3 on aggregate to advance to the quarter-finals.
KAR 3–1 VIC
Game 1
4. 11., 18:30 EET
VIC 2–3 KAR
Game 2
11. 11., 19:00 CET
Game 2
Karpat carried a two-goal advantage into the second leg in Vienna and, after a scoreless first period, increased their lead to three in the second as three goals were scored in a span of 4:26, and the Capitals were unable to reduce that in the third period. Ivan Huml scored the eventual game-winning goal in the 48th minute, but by then Karpat had the series well in hand.
Victorious coach Lauri Marjamaki said afterward, "It wasn't an easy game starting with the two-goal lead. But this is a big victory for us and all four lines did a great job."
"It was an unbelievable fast game against, not only a good team, but a great team. I am very proud of how hard my team battled," Vienna coach Tom Pokel said afterward, in praise of both teams. About the game, he said that his team "got a bit overexcited after the 1–1 goal and got away from the game plan in the second period. In the end we acomplished a lot in this CHL season and I'm certainly not happy about the result but proud of my team, and I wish Oulu good luck and all the best for the upcoming games."
READ the live blog here | WATCH the highlights here
Game 1
Karpat got a huge first period on home ice, out-shooting Vienna 17–7 and scoring twice, increased the lead to 3–0 early in the second and eventually won 3–1 to take a two-goal lead into Vienna next week. Cramo Top Scorer Joonas Donskoi added two points to his total, including the game-winning goal on the power play, while Vienna captain Jonathan Ferland made his team's situation a little better in the second leg by scoring in the third period.
"We did not play our best game but we are actually very happy with the result," said Vienna coach Tom Pokel. "We did not have the jump we were hoping for. The first two periods Karpat was the better team. We played a good third period, which gives us more chance for victory."
"We prepared for the game well and started well," said Karpat coach Lauri Marjamaki. "We took couple of stupid penalties, which we cannot afford in games like these. The third period was bummer for us. We had a chance to make it 4–0 but we could not do it. After that Capitals came and scored."
READ the live blog here | WATCH the highlights here
Kärpät go into Vienna possibly without captain
Preview
On paper, you wouldn’t have thought that a team form Austria would be ranked higher in this tie, but that’s the way it panned out over the group stage. Neither side played a team from each other’s country in the group stage, although Vienna will take heart from fellow EBEL sides HC Bolzano and Red Bull Salzburg having already beaten TPS Turku and JYP Jyvaskyla, respectively. Vienna will hope that Kärpät’s indifferent start to the season continues, while for the Finnish club the key will be finding a way past goalie Matt Zaba, who is in top form. The distance between these two cities, some 1950 km, is pretty staggering!
Closer look: Vienna Capitals
(4-1-1-0, 15 points, 26:9, 1st in Group B)
Few people would have expected Vienna to come out on top of a group that includes Färjestad Karlstad and ZSC Lions Zurich, let alone eliminate both of those teams in the process without losing a game in regulation time. Vienna won four of its six group stage games in 60 minutes, beat Färjestad in a shootout in Karlstad, and only lost in overtime to ZSC in Zurich. In the EBEL, the Caps have been as impressive as in the CHL, surging to the top of the pile.

Peter
MacArthur
3+3, +2
CRAMO Top Scorer: Peter MacArthur, the 29-year-old American try-out player, scored three goals and three assists in the six CHL group stage games but hasn't been scoring as much in the EBEL. He played in the AHL and ECHL for five seasons before moving to Germany to join the Augsburg Panthers, where he scored 48 points in 87 games. He is described as a playmaker with good passing and faceoff skills and good character.

Florian
Iberer
0+3, +2
Top Defenceman: Florian Iberer has been the team's big producer from the back end in the EBEL with 10 points in his first 11 games, and has three assists in six CHL games. Interestingly, Jamie Fraser scored three goals in the group stage but is still looking for his first EBEL goal.

Matt
Zaba
93.27 %
Top Goaltender: Leading the EBEL in save percentage and having put up 93.27% in the CHL group stage, there’s no doubt that Vienna will rely heavily on Matt Zaba to come up big for them in the next round. Only five teams let in fewer goals than the Capitals in the group stage.
Click here for team statistics.
Closer look: Kärpät Oulu
(3-2-0-1, 13 points, 17:12, 1st in Group A)
Kärpät Oulu, in the end, won Group A by a comfortable four-point cushion – beating Bílí Tygři Liberec in the deciding final game. They failed to get the job done in regulation time twice at home though, needing a shootout to beat Kölner Haie and overtime to overcome Košice. The road loss in Cologne also didn’t help their passage to round two. In the Liiga, Kärpät is not far off the lead, but also not far above a big glut of teams in the middle, so a streak either way could really change their standing.

Joonas
Donskoi
3+3, +6
CRAMO Top Scorer: Joonas Donskoi recorded six points in the group stage to take the top scorer’s jersey, on the strength of three goals and three assists.

Adam
Masuhr
2+3, +4
Top Defenceman: Adam Masuhr was deadly from the back end for Kärpät during the group stage, scoring twice and adding three helpers as a big contributor to the team's offence. He's also a physical presence on the blueline.

Iiro
Tarkki
90.00 %
Top Goaltender: Iiro Tarkki only played one CHL game, but he's been their go-to guy so far in Liiga play, so he's expected to get the nod against Vienna. They’ll need him to be hot to advance further.
Click here for team statistics.
Related Links
29.10.2014 – Video: Former NHLer Andreas Nodle sparks Vienna
06.09.2014 – Interview: Kärpät's Masuhr sorry for unnecessary drama vs Köln
05.09.2014 – Interview: Goalies Zaba & Soberg evaluate Thursday's Valerenga–Vienna game
24.08.2014 – Interview: Kärpät goalie Karhunen has good memories of Slovakia and "really enjoyed this game"
17.08.2014 – Interview: "I know I will get an opportunity" says Puljujärvi
01.08.2014 – Video: Oulu Champion Town
01.08.2014 – Video: Kärpät's foundations for success
21.06.2014 – Interview: "CHL very important to Kärpät" says CEO Juha Junno