Genève-Servette got off to a flying start in their First Game of the Champions Hockey League Round of 16 match-up. The reigning European Champions delivered a crushing 5-0 blow to compatriots Lausanne HC, and now carry a five-goal lead into this all-deciding game on home ice at the Patinoire des Vernets.

A less-than-stellar run by Genève during the Regular Season saw the side scrape into the Round of 16 as the 14th-ranked team, but since then they've shifted into gear. After seven games they're currently ranked in the top three for goal generation, with 3.71 goals per game compared to Lausanne's 2.43.

Michael Špaček is a big part of that statistic, generating 12 points (7G, 5A) in seven games, including five powerplay goals. The CHL's Top Scorer is in excellent company, with the likes of Simon Le Coultre (2G, 5A), Finns Sakari Manninen (1G, 6A) and Sami Vatanen (7A), who are all averaging a point per game.

Between the pipes, the netminding is equally strong, but so far we've only seen glimpses as Genève opted to share netminding duties between four different goalies during the Regular Season. They did however make an excellent decision in assigning the First Game to 35-year-old Antti Raanta who was flawless. So far, the Finn, who is in his first season with the Swiss side, has clocked just 120 minutes but nonetheless ranks among the top three for goaltending with a save percentage of 93.36%. 

Comparatively, both teams have excellent goaltending. Lausanne’s Antoine Keller ranks just ahead of Raanta with 97.30%. Interestingly both netminders have faced a relatively low number of shots which shows the defensive focus employed by the coaches. 

During their last game, Lausanne outshot Genève 29-27, in addition to playing the body more, so where did things come apart? 

Special teams were a big separator. With a 91.30% success rate, Genève have the best penalty kill in the league. They backed that up with a 100% success rate on the penalty kill and a 20% conversion on their powerplay during their last game. Outside of that, the maroon jerseys sport one of the league's best face-off wins of 57.37%. They were again dominant here winning 26 compared to Lausanne's 19, and blocked over double the number of shots (18-7).

Upfront, Lausanne aren't boasting big numbers, ranking 35 among all skaters is Antti Suomela, the Top Scorer for his side with six points (4G, 2A). He's supported by teammates Ken Jäger (3G, 2A), and Michael Raffl (1G, 4A) who have amassed five points over seven and five games respectively. 

Where Lausanne have performed particularly well historically is limiting goals against, they currently average two goals per game in contrast to Genève's 2.71, and this is what makes the outcome of the previous game so unusual.

Statistics aside, Lausanne are in a monumentally challenging, but not impossible, position. During their Regular Season game, they were able to topple Finnish side Ilves Tampere 7-2. If a repeat performance of this magnitude is on the cards, it could make for a very interesting game.