Nitra wins Slovak title from 8 seed

Nitra wins Slovak title from 8 seed

Spring is here, meaning it's time for European hockey leagues to begin crowning their champions. Check back each time another team wins it all.

24 April: Nitra sweeps Slovak finals

After finishing eighth place in the Tipos Extraliga regular season, HK Nitra defeated the league's top three teams in succession to claim its second title, and first since 2016. In the quarterfinals it was first-place HK Poprad in six games, in the semifinals it was second-place Dukla Michalovce also in six games, and then it was a sweep of third-seeded HK Spišská Nová Ves in the finals. The last game was decided in overtime, 2-1, with Miloš Bubela scoring the winning goal at 61:59.

“I don't see myself as a hero, it was the performance of the whole team,” said Bubela. “We were all together in all the games, the series; that’s why we made it here. The games were close, we struggled a lot today, but we did it. The celebrations will probably last forever. It’s unbelievable.”

Nitra, coached by ex-Czechoslovak national team defenceman Antonín Stavjaňa, was led in scoring by Nitra-native Samuel Buček and on defence by 43-year-old captain Branislav Mezei, with Czech Libor Kašík and Finn Sami Aittokallio splitting the goaltending duties fairly evenly.


19 April: Red Bull Salzburg three-peats in Austria and ICEHL

Red Bull Salzburg has won its third straight as champion of Austria and the ICEHL after winning game seven on the road 6-2 over KAC Klagenfurt. It is Salzburg’s 13th national title and 11th league title since the club’s founding in 1990. It is the first time since the interstate league's founding that a team has won the title three years in a row.

“It was such a close series,” said captain and playoff MVP Thomas Raffl. “The full distance in the semi-final and now in the final. That saps your strength and then you play against a team like Klagenfurt. Respect to the KAC, who were the best team in the basic round and gave us an incredible final series at eye level. There are so many emotions now, as we played with an incredible team performance after the last defeat in Salzburg today and deserved to win with a mental show of strength. It just feels incredible!”

15 April: Rouen repeats in France

Les Dragons de Rouen have repeated as champions of the French Synerglace Ligue Magnus - and won their 18th title overall - following Monday night's 3-2 overtime victory over the Bordeaux Boxers in Game 6 of the Magnus Cup finals. Christophe Boivin, who missed most of the season in a fight with cancer, scored the Cup-winning goal 6:55 into the extra period.

In the regular season, the team was led in scoring by Latvian Rolands Vigners and French national team veterans Anthony Rech and Loïc Lampérier, but in the playoffs it was Canadian Francis Perron who had 20 points in 15 games. For the seventh consecutive season, the team's starting netminder was Slovene Matija Pintarič, who played in 64 of the Dragons' 68 combined games in the regular season, playoffs, French Cup and Champions Hockey League.

Speaking of the CHL, the Dragons will return next season as the still-reigning French champions.


10 April: Brasov wins first Erste Liga title

For the first time in club history CSM Corona Brasov from Romania is the champion of the Erste Liga - a 10-team league that operates in Romania and Hungary. The club, which was founded in 2007, previously made the finals in 2013-14 and has been Romanian league champion five times.

After finishing second in the regular season, Brasov defeated E.H.C. Alliance member Gyergyói HK in the semifinals and then regular-season winner Ferencvárosi TC in the finals.

25 March: Steelers return to the top of British hockey

Two weeks still remain in the Elite Ice Hockey League regular season, but the Sheffield Steelers have already claimed the title. Sunday’s 7-3 win over the visiting Guildford Flames before more than 9,200 fans at Sheffield’s Utilita Arena gives the Steelers an insurmountable 12-point lead over the second-place Cardiff Devils with each team having four games to play.

To celebrate the win, the Steelers invited all season ticket holders to attend a team practice on Tuesday evening, followed by a social event.

“We will make the night fun for sure,” head coach Adam Fox said on the team’s website. “The boys have worked so hard in recent weeks so we will have a laugh, I think the fans will enjoy what we have planned.”

In the United Kingdom, winning the regular season title is considered the national championship. This is the 10th championship for the Steelers but their first since back-to-back wins in 2015 and 2016.

As a result of the title, the Steelers have qualified for the 2024/25 Champions Hockey League season. It will be the Steelers’ third appearance in the European club championship tournament.

Their work for this season isn’t finished, however. In addition to the remainder of the regular season, the play-offs are also coming up. Having already won the Challenge Cup and now the league, the Steelers have their sights on the rare “treble”.

Photo: Miroslava Meličková

Derek O'Brien
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