The first legs of the Eighth-final fixtures take place tonight across Europe.
HC Litvinov vs. Frolunda Gothenburg
Zimni stadion Ivana Hlinky, 17:00
Litvinov open today's CHL eighth-final round as one of three Czech teams to make it through to the last 16. Neither side has played a team from each other's country in the opening rounds; however, that doesn't mean they are going into tonight's game blind. "We know they're at the top of their league and that they play really well. Maybe these games will help us in the end. We have to approach them with respect so we won’t bring shame upon Czech hockey," admitted Litvinov coach Ondrej Weissman.
Florida head coach Roger Ronnberg, meanwhile, said of Litvinov, "We will play a championship-winning team with a bunch of experienced and skilled players. They're also defensively strong."
Tappara Tampera vs. Lulea Hockey
Hakametsa Stadium, 17:30
Defending champions Lulea are no stranger to Finnish opposition in the CHL, having played Lukko Rauma enough times over the past two seasons, while Tappara faced Djurgarden in the group stage of this year's competition, winning one and losing the home game in overtime. Both sides also have players that know a lot about the other team.
Tappara forward Stephen Dixon played for Lulea in the group stage of the CHL last year before moving to Tappara in November. "I was glad to see Lulea win the CHL last year after being in the team during the group stage and my new team was out of the competition by then. But this year it’s different. We will put everything we’ve got on the ice to eliminate them from the competition already at this point,” he said.
Toni Rajala from Lulea grew up around Tampera, so knows a thing or two about them too. "My home team is Ilves – who share the arena with Tappara – so it will be really special to return home and play in front of friends and family again. "It is going to be a really tough game as Tappara have a really good team. But I hope we will be able to play really well and return back to Luleå with a win," he commented.
TPS Turku vs. Storhamar Hamar
HK Areena, 17:30
The fairytale story of this year's Champions Hockey League sees minnows Storhamar in Turku facing one of the famous names from the Liiga. Domestically TPS sit 5th, while in Norway, Hamar find themselves one place lower. Both sides go into this game with similar form in their own league – just two wins from their last five games respectively.
Espoo Blues vs. HV71 Jonkoping
Espoo Metro Areena, 17:30
The CHL could be a welcome distraction for Espoo, who currently find themselves 15th and last in their own league, although they have the same number of points as the two teams above them. HV71 are only doing a little better in the SHL, sitting 11th, so for both teams this series is a chance to get some positive momentum going by making the CHL quarter-finals. HV71 are doing slightly better in recent games, with three wins in their last five compared to Espoo's two.
Bili Tygri Liberec vs. HC Davos
Home Credit Arena, 18:00
Both Liberec and Davos would have been considering underdogs in their Round of 32 ties against Scandinavian opposition, but now both have made it through to the eighth-finals, they won't want to let the opportunity of progressing further slip away. It's 1st vs. 4th in their respective leagues, but both sides go into the game on a good run of domestic wins.
"We are excited and we want to advance further in the competition," said forward Dominik Lakatos, while Liberec teammate Michal Repík added, "We have to prepare ourselves properly and get a good result."
On the other side of the ice, HC Davos's Jan Brejcak will line up against a couple of his Slovak compatriots and friends Branko Radivojevic and Martin Bakos, with whom he played at Slovan Bratislava. "Liberec are a very strong team, they skate very well and have a strong power play," said Brejcak about tonight's opposition.
Sparta Prague vs. Karpat Oulu
O2 Arena, 18:30
Sparta and Karpat meet in Prague with both teams sitting 4th in their own leagues. Karpat's reputation as having the stingiest defence in the competition sees them enter this game having only let in one goal against in the CHL, and goaltending stats of an outrageous 99.25 percent!
One man who knows both sides well is Michal Bros. Although he retired last month, he spent 11 seasons with Sparta and three up in Oulu. "I’m really curious about the result. Sparta played well against Zurich and I wish them success again. It will be an interesting game, the kind that might not be seen in Prague too often," said Bros. "Karpat won the last two seasons of the Finnish league and have good results in this year’s CHL as well. It will be a great game."
Eisbaren Berlin vs. Skelleftea AIK
Wellblechpalast Berlin Arena, 19:00
It's 2nd meets 2nd in this DEL vs. SHL matchup in the German capital tonight, but while Skelleftea have won their last five games, Die Eisbaren have only won three of theirs. The home side are asking fans to come dressed in red as they aim to put on a show in their different surroundings.
"It's a new game that has nothing to do with Sunday," said head coach Uwe Krupp, whose club was shutout 4–0 in Krefeld in their last domestic outing. "We want to use the 'Welli' to have a good home advantage, and put on a performance."
Djurgarden Stockholm vs. Lukko Rauma
Ericsson Globe, 20:00
7th in the SHL hosts 2nd from the Liiga tonight as Djurgarden host Lukko. Both teams have two wins from their last four domestic games, and both have faced opposition from the respective leagues in earlier rounds.
"It will be fun to play against a Finnish team again," says Djurgarden's Matt Anderson. "We've seen videos of Lukko Rauma and they seem to be a good team, but we will do everything we can to win."