Perhaps surprisingly, Red Bull Salzburg enter this game with a three-point lead over the Växjö Lakers in the race to advance to the next round. The Lakers were shut out of six possible points against SC Bern, while the Red Bulls took six of six from the Cardiff Devils. In their previous head-to-head meeting in Växjö on Gameday 2,  the Lakers prevailed 5-2. If they win in regulation time again in Salzburg, they’ll be tied for second place in the group - any other result will keep Salzburg ahead, but they are mindful of the fact that their last two games are against Bern while the Lakers face Cardiff, meaning a win would be ideal.

Salzburg have been led offensively in this tournament by the duo of John Hughes and Christopher Vandevelde, who have four points each. For Växjö, Austin Ortega, Roman Horák and Brendan Shinnimin all have four points. On the strength of his hat-trick against Salzburg last time, Ortega will wear the LGT Top Scorer’s jersey.