Champions Hockey League Quarter-Finals begin in just a few days as eight clubs remain to contend for the European Trophy.
Curses have been broken and new heights have been reached as teams from Finland, France, Germany, Sweden, and the Czech Republic will all be suiting up for more Playoff action. With so many plotlines still in the mix, here are the five things to look forward to in this leg of the competition.
Newcomers? Really?
Rögle Ängelholm and Leksands IF have a few things in common. For starters, they’re both from Sweden. Both were founded in the same decade, Rögle in 1932 and Leksand in 1938, they each have a club comprised of several different nationalities, and they each have a winning record so far this season in the Swedish Hockey League.
But the comparison doesn’t stop there.
These two CHL debutantes have made quite a splash in their inaugural campaigns, and after eight games, have looked like CHL veterans, as they've proven to be legitimate contenders for the European Trophy. While Rögle sports a slightly better record, both clubs have had to contend with tough opponents during their run to the Quarter-Finals and both have answered the call when necessary.
Swedish Supremacy
Continuing the theme of Swedish hockey, the Quarter-Finals will showcase three Swedish squads – the two aforementioned and one everyone’s familiar with, Frölunda Gothenburg.
With so many SHL clubs taking part in the Quarter-Finals, there was a pretty decent chance (37.5% to be exact) that two would line up against each other. In fact, that’s the case as Leksand will go up against familiar foe Frölunda as the battle of the SHL clubs comes full force.
Both clubs have shown poise and promise, but it’s Frölunda that are entering as favourites not only for their history in the CHL, but also their recent play. With only one blemish, a loss to ZSC Lions Zurich, to their name, the reigning CHL Champions are all-too-ready to bring the European Trophy back to southern Sweden. Leksand, however, have shown their own resiliency and won’t go away quietly. Expect an intense Playoff atmosphere filled with all the trappings – fast-paced, tight score, and physical battles.
“Play La Marsellaise, Play It”
It’s true, the Rouen Dragons are no strangers to CHL hockey. The club first competed during 2016/17, then again in 2018/19, but it wouldn’t be until this season that the team from the capital of Normandy really began experiencing joie de vivre as they advanced past the Round of 16 and will be skating in their first-ever Quarter-Finals.
Getting here was no easy task for the French. After dropping their first two contests (both 2-1 defeats), Rouen would go on to claim three out of their next four, narrowly qualifying for the Round of 16.
Having made it to the Playoff stage, things wouldn’t get any easier. But a spectacular showing from their Slovenian netminder Matija Pintarič against Red Bull Salzburg, gave the French the confidence (and insurance) they needed to make history in their organisation by moving on to the next leg of the pan-European competition.
Haven’t We Met Before?
Red Bull Munich will meet Lukko Rauma in their Quarter-Finals matchup, but it isn’t the first time these two clubs have faced each other in the CHL Playoffs.
Back in the 2015/16 campaign, the two sides squared off in the Round of 32 with Lukko defeating Munich in both contests and securing an 8-3 score on aggregate. That season, the Finns made it all the way to the Semi-Finals before being undone by their fellow Finnish squad Kärpät Oulu.
Could this year be the same? Or will Munich exact their revenge as they chase their first CHL Title? So far, the Germans have played some of their best hockey, having reached the Quarter-Finals for a second consecutive time. But fate is fickle and all it takes is one lucky (or unlucky) bounce in either club’s favour to turn the tide of these all-important games.
In the Making
The last time Sparta Prague made it to the Quarter-Finals Star Wars: Rogue One premiered in theatres, Cristiano Ronaldo claimed the Ballon d’Or for the fourth time, and Bob Dylan was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature but did not attend the ceremony in Stockholm. This all happened in December of 2016.
Now, five years later, the Czechs are back in the Quarter-Finals and hoping to have the same success they saw that season as they made it all the way to the Final. Before they can make that their reality, however, Sparta will have to lace up against a squad that is trying to make a run of their own and some CHL history in the meanwhile.
Through their youth, speed, and skill Rögle have been a commanding force on CHL ice. Their 7-1 record is not only indicative of the high standards they hold themselves to but also the capabilities each and every player possesses up and down the roster. If Sparta hope to succeed where others failed in bringing down the team from Ängelholm, they’ll have to score early and defend, defend, defend.