HC Davos struck first and never looked back as they narrowly defeated rivals Skellefteå AIK in their opening bid of the 2022/23 Champions Hockey League.

The Swiss pushed the pace in the opening minutes of the game as strong positioning led to their early lead. A  pretty passing play down low gave defenceman Dominik Egli an open lane where he rifled the puck past a helpless Gustaf Lindvall as the Swiss went up 1-0.

The visitors surrendered their momentum three minutes later, however, when Skellefteå answered courtesy of their captain and top scorer Oscar Möller. A turnover at the Swiss blueline resulted in the veteran winger taking a quick feed from Jonathan Jonsson before skating down mainstreet and depositing it top shelf glove side to get his team level.

A breakdown in defence allowed the Swiss side to reclaim the lead at 22:01.

Matěj Stránský caught Skellefteå's defenders flat-footed, skated towards the blue paint and let go a quick release for his first of the tournament. Davos almost made it 3-1 moments later when a beautiful outlet pass generated a 2-on-0, but one too many passes ended that opportunity and the game stayed 2-1 with more than 15 minutes to go in the second.

Still trailing by one, Skellefteå kept up the pressure, and another turnover led to another goal near the midway mark of the contest for the home side. A smart feed from Simon Robertsson found Rickard Hugg in the slot as Hugg forced his way to the front of the net and wristed it stick side to knot things up at two apiece heading into the final stanza.

Davos opened the third period with two golden opportunities, but it would be their third scoring chance that would give them their third lead of the game. Extensive zone time allowed Enzo Corvi to receive the puck and send a cross-ice pass to Klas Dahlbeck who one-timered it past the Swedish netminder.

With seconds remaining, Skellefteå won the faceoff draw in the offensive zone, but Davos' defenders did well sealing every gap as the Swiss would hang on to claim another victory over the Swedes.