There is only one game left of the Group Stage in the 2021/22 Champions Hockey League season, and Playoff places are still up for grabs across most groups. Here’s how things look as teams look to secure passage into the Round of 16 in the final games this week.
Group A
Three teams are still in with a shot, with no secured qualifiers yet.
Sparta Prague lead the way right now, and a win against Pinguins Bremerhaven will be enough to secure top spot for them, however, they know that Bremerhaven will be looking to avenge a 5-2 loss on Game Day 5 to go top themselves.
If Sparta were to lose, they would need to hope TPS Turku beat the Växjö Lakers to still qualify.
For Växjö they just need to take care of their own business, a win in regulation might not secure their spot, but it’ll go some way towards trying to put them through to the next round.
If Växjö do win in regulation, Sparta need to beat Bremerhaven in regulation, meaning they would secure top spot in Group A, or take the game to OT. They need the extra point because they have an inferior head-to-head against Växjö.
Bremerhaven also have an inferior head-to-head against Växjö, so they need at least two points to go through or a three-point win in regulation.
There is a possibility that both Sparta and Bremerhaven go through, despite Växjö picking up three points – if Bremerhaven beat Sparta in OT.
Both teams would be tied on 11 points, Sparta would remain top of their group thanks to their better head-to-head and Bremerhaven would stay second, meaning both would be through to the Playoffs.
Group B
In a similar situation to Group A, three teams are still in with a shot with nobody securing their spot just yet.
Frölunda Gothenburg only require a single point in their game against IFK Helsinki to secure their spot in the Round of 16 to keep their title defence alive, and a regulation win would secure first place.
Helsinki can qualify with a regulation win, however, they would need ZSC Lions Zurich to lose against BK Mladá Boleslav to move them into a qualification spot, with top spot of the group a very unlikely but not impossible result.
Zurich took a narrow win on Game Day 5 against Mladá Boleslav, so will hope for the same or a more comfortable win this week to secure their route to the next round, and put pressure on Frölunda as they both eye up top spot.
Group C
In Group C, Adler Mannheim and Lukko Rauma both secured their place in the Round of 16 already, but with both sides on 11-points each, they’ll be looking at first place in the group, while Lausanne HC and the Cardiff Devils will both look to finish the Group Stage strong and avoid finishing bottom of the group.
Group D
Only Rögle Ängelholm have already qualified from Group D, but top spot isn’t confirmed for them yet.
EV Zug and Red Bull Munich face off in a rematch of a tight contest last week that saw the result go in Zug’s favour, so a win in regulation or overtime will secure their place in the next round, while Munich need a regulation win to go straight through, but an overtime win will see the tie-breaker come into play to decide who goes through with Rögle.
Both sides have a chance of taking top spot with regulation wins, providing the SønderjyskE Vojens are able to defeat Rögle.
Group E
With one game remaining, Tappara Tampere are already into the Round of 16, but much like Group D, top spot isn’t guaranteed yet. They’ll need a much better performance against Skellefteå AIK to secure that, with a win in regulation or overtime being enough to secure that honour for the Finnish side.
Skellefteå secured a 6-1 win over Tappara on game day five, and a similar result would secure their place, and top spot, while a regulation win would also be enough to see them advance.
For HC Lugano, their seven points mean that they need a win of any kind and Tappara to beat Skellefteå in either regulation or OT, the latter would mean Lugano need a three-point win to level on points. They have a better head-to-head against them, so if they tie on points, Lugano will be the team advancing.
Group F
Both Fribourg-Gottéron and Leksands IF are both already through, and Leksand will need a big result in regulation to catch Fribourg and also take top spot due to the tie-breaker scenarios, while Oceláři Třinec and Slovan Bratislava will both face off to battle for third.
Group G
Who will join KAC Klagenfurt in the next round from this group, well that will be decided this week with two teams still in the hunt.
The advantage right now goes to the Rouen Dragons of France who jumped up to second with a win on Game Day 5 and a win in either regulation or overtime will be enough for them to proceed, but if Rungsted Seier Capital defeat them in regulation on Game Day 6, they will move into second and thanks to their better head-to-head against HC Donbass Donetsk, they won't have to be looking over their shoulder.
The same applies for Rouen - if they tie on points with Donbass, the French side will go through.
Sadly, that means that for Donbass, their Wednesday rematch with Klagenfurt will be their final game of the 2021/22 season, as the Ukrainians are now mathematically confirmed to be out of contention for the Playoffs
Group H
Finally, in Group H it’s just a race for top spot left - both Red Bull Salzburg and HC Bolzano are already through, but both are on 12-points each, while in the second half of the group, JKH GKS Jastrzębie will hope to remain ahead of Frisk Asker to secure third place.