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MEDIA GUIDE 2019/20
Participating Clubs 2019/20
Country
League
CHL Display Name
Short Name
Abbreviation
AUT
EBEL
KAC Klagenfurt
Klagenfurt
KAC
18
AUT
EBEL
Graz99ers
Graz
GRZ
21
AUT
EBEL
Vienna Capitals
Vienna
VIC
23
CZE
Extraliga
Oceláři Třinec
Třinec
TRI
26
CZE
Extraliga
Bílí Tygři Liberec
Liberec
LIB
29
CZE
Extraliga
HC Pilsen
Pilsen
PLZ
32
CZE
Extraliga
Mountfield HK
Mountfield
MHK
36
FIN
Liiga
HPK Hämeenlinna
Hämeenlinna
HPK
39
FIN
Liiga
Kärpät Oulu
Kärpät
KÄR
42
FIN
Liiga
Tappara Tampere
Tappara
TAP
45
FIN
Liiga
Lahti Pelicans
Lahti
PEL
48
GER
DEL
Adler Mannheim
Mannheim
MAN
51
GER
DEL
Red Bull Munich
Munich
RBM
54
GER
DEL
Augsburger Panther
Augsburg
AUG
57
SUI
NL
SC Bern
Bern
SCB
60
SUI
NL
EV Zug
Zug
EVZ
63
SUI
NL
Lausanne HC
Lausanne
LAU
66
SUI
NL
EHC Biel-Bienne
Biel
BIE
70
SUI
NL
HC Ambrì-Piotta
Ambrì
AMB
73
SWE
SHL
Frölunda Indians
Frölunda
FHC
76
SWE
SHL
Färjestad Karlstad
Färjestad
FBK
79
SWE
SHL
Luleå Hockey
Luleå
LHF
82
SWE
SHL
Djurgården Stockholm
Djurgården
DIF
85
SWE
SHL
Skellefteå AIK
Skellefteå
SKE
87
BLR
BLR Extraleague
Yunost Minsk
Minsk
MSK
90
DEN
Metal Ligaen
Rungsted Seier Capital
Rungsted
RUN
94
FRA
Ligue Magnus
Grenoble
Grenoble
GRE
97
NOR
GET Ligaen
Frisk Asker
Asker
FAS
99
POL
Polska Hokej Liga
GKS Tychy
Tychy
TYC
102
SVK
SVK Extraliga
HC05 Banská Bystrica
Bystrica
BAB
105
UK
EIHL
Cardiff Devils
Cardiff
CAR
108
UK
IIHF Continental Cup
Belfast Giants
Belfast
BEL
112
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Page
DEAR MEDIA REPRESENTATIVES, It is my great pleasure to welcome you to the 2019/20 Champions Hockey League season. As of the 29 August, 32 teams from 13 leagues will battle for the sixth time to win the European Trophy. Each of them has accomplished an outstanding achievement in their own domestic league which qualified them to line-up among the best of the best in our pan-European competition. 10 teams will step into the European spotlight for the very first time - how exciting! This is not only a proud moment for their players and coaches who can prove themselves against the best, but also for their clubs, their fans, their cities – and the CHL. In one go, we get the opportunity to reach out to 10 additional local markets and can work on building a strong CHL there. After five seasons of play, I can look back proudly and see tremendous development both on and off the ice. We have completed 725 games with 77 teams involved and crowned three different champions from two countries. Evidently, the Frölunda Indians as three-time winners have been big part of our story. But the sporting competition has become closer and almost any team can win.
Every single clash is a challenge – and a highlight for the audience. In order to get there, we have not only refined the sporting format, but also reworked our brand, put a lot of efforts into PR, digital initiatives and fan engagement. We always try to set new standards, enhance fan experience and, of course, to deliver only top-notch hockey. It is my vision that the Champions Hockey League becomes a “must have” in the landscape of European club ice hockey, and we’re working hard to get there. We might not be at 100% yet, but last season especially proved that we are on the right track. Remember the wonderful Final in Gothenburg in front of a 12,044-strong sold-out crowd – this was the perfect advertisement for our competition! Having this in mind, I look forward to a thrilling 2019/20 season. It takes 125 games until we know who will be crowned next European champions in February – may the best team win! Thank you for your interest in the Champions Hockey League. Peter Zahner, President
Editorials
DEAR MEDIA REPRESENTATIVES, Welcome to the new edition of the Champions Hockey League Media Guide.
more seasons – our very first champions, Luleå Hockey, among others.
We have collated useful information about the CHL and the participating clubs in this centralised document in order to facilitate the work of various stakeholders who report about our league, the teams and their players.
In total, 13 out of the 32 participating teams qualified by winning a championship (CHL winners Frölunda Indians even won the double). The other 19 earned their spots with other outstanding performances in their domestic leagues or in the IIHF Continental Cup. A worthy field of competitors for the Champions Hockey League!
Extensive coverage worldwide is crucial for the growth of our product and the recognition of European club ice hockey. For this reason, we strive to establish a good collaboration with press and broadcasters and support them proactively in their daily work with the CHL. The Media Guide not only provides basic information, such as contact details and accreditation advice for each participating club; it also comes with ready-to use statements of each head coach, as well as far-ranging inspiring facts about players and teams. For the 2019/20 season it is worth noting that there are 10 new teams making their debut in the Champions Hockey League. Furthermore, some six teams are returning after an absence of one or
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I would like to close my welcome by referring to some other helpful tools for everyone reporting about the CHL: our website provides a wide range of statistics assets, such as a sophisticated gamecentre, advanced statistics, all-time statistics and a Milestone Tracker. Furthermore, our Media Reports platform offers access to PDF versions of line-ups and gamesheets for all CHL games. If you would like to sign-up for this service, please contact us at [email protected]. For now, I wish you an exciting 2019/20 season and stay at your disposal if you would like any further information about the Champions Hockey League. Monika Reinhard, Communication Director
CHL Board President Peter Zahner (SUI), CEO of ZSC Lions Zurich
Web & Social Media Website: www.championshockeyleague.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/ championshockeyleague Twitter: www.twitter.com/championshockey Instagram www.instagram.com/championshockey YouTube: www.youtube.com/ championshockeyleague App: Champions Hockey League (available for iOS & Android) Hashtags: #championsgobeyond, #CHLDraw, #CHLFinal, #CHLFanChallenge Game related hashtags: e.g. #FHCvsRBM
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Club Representatives Rupert Zamorsky (AUT), Head of Marketing for Red Bull Salzburg Petr Syrovátko Jr. (CZE), Vice-President of Bílí Tygři Liberec Gernot Tripcke (GER), GM of Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL) Timo Everi (FIN), Chairman of IFK Helsinki Håkan Loob (SWE), Co-President of the Alliance of European Ice Hockey Clubs League Representatives Christian Feichtinger (AUT), CEO of the Erste Bank Eishockey Liga (EBEL) Jörgen Lindgren (SWE), President of Hockey Europe IIHF Representative Franz Reindl (GER), President of the German Ice Hockey Association and IIHF Council Member
CHL Office
CHL Media List
Gubelstrasse 24 6300 Zug Switzerland Phone +41 44 562 27 77 E-Mail: [email protected]
Sign up here if you would like to subscribe to our Media Releases.
CEO: Martin Baumann Senior Sport Advisor: Bo Lennartsson Sport Director: Alexander Jäger Communication & Digital Media Director: Monika Reinhard Communication & Digital Media Coordinator: Jannine Kamm Marketing & Operations Manager: Philipp Schuler Event & Marketing Coordinator: Andreas Kötter
Media Contact Name: Monika Reinhard E-Mail: monika.reinhard@ championshockeyleague.com Direct line: +41 44 562 27 71
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Accreditation to CHL Games Authorized media can request accreditation to Champions Hockey League games. This is subject to availability and subject to local accreditation regulations. Media personnel (other than official broadcasters) should apply to the home club for accreditation to a CHL game. More information about the procedures at the various clubs can be found on the respective club’s page in this Media Guide. Exception: An alternative accreditation system may be implemented for the CHL Final.
ABOUT THE CHAMPIONS HOCKEY LEAGUE
Access to CHL Media Reports The CHL offers media personnel access to the “CHL Media Reports” platform, where PDF versions of line-ups and game sheets for all CHL games can be acce-ssed in one place. Access to the password-protected platform must be received via e-mail to [email protected].
Download official Logos Official Champions Hockey League logos can be downloaded here: www.championshockeyleague.com/en/ media Please note that the Champions Hockey League logo is protected by international laws and conventions on trademarks, copyrights and intellec-
CHL Company Info The Champions Hockey League AG (CHL) is a company established in 2013 in Switzerland that holds all rights of the Champions Hockey League and organises the competition. CHL is an AG (Aktiengesellschaft = Ltd.) registered in Zug under Swiss Law. As such, the CHL is owned by shareholders and governed by a board which is elected by the CHL General Meeting, the league’s legislative body. The shareholding structure of the company is as follows: 26 Founding Clubs: 63% 6 Founding Leagues: 25% IIHF: 12%
tual property. Any uses or reproductions of such elements (including partial uses or adaptations thereof) are strictly reserved to CHL and its licensed partners and affiliates. Any use other than for editorial coverage of CHL games must be approved by the CHL.
Official logos of participating clubs can be downloaded here: www.championshockeyleague.com/en/ media Please note that the club logos might be protected by international laws and conventions on trademarks, copyrights and intellectual property. Any uses or reproductions of such elements (including partial uses or adaptations thereof) are strictly reserved to the clubs and their licensed partners and affiliates. Any use other than for editorial coverage of CHL games must be approved by the clubs.
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CHL Founding Members The Champions Hockey League was founded by 26 Founding Clubs, 6 Founding Leagues and the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). These are the 26 Founding Clubs representing the 6 Founding Leagues: • Austria (EBEL): Red Bull Salzburg, Vienna Capitals • Czech Republic (Extraliga): Bílí Tygři Liberec, HC Pardubice, Sparta Prague, Vítkovice Ridera Ostrava • Finland (Liiga): IFK Helsinki, JYP Jyväskylä, KalPa Kuopio, Kärpät Oulu, Tappara Tampere, TPS Turku • Germany (DEL): Adler Mannheim, Eisbären Berlin, ERC Ingolstadt, Krefeld Pinguine • Switzerland (NL): SC Bern, Fribourg- Gottéron, ZSC Lions Zurich, EV Zug
• Sweden (SHL): Djurgården Stockholm, Frölunda Indians, Färjestad Karlstad, HV71 Jönköping, Linköpings HC, Luleå Hockey
• Essence: WHERE EUROPE CROWNS ITS CHAMPIONS. • Proposition: CHAMPIONS GO BEYOND
CHL History in a Nutshell • Launched in 2014/15 • 5 successfully completed seasons • 725 games played • 87 clubs involved • 13 leagues & 17 countries involved • 3 different champions from 2 countries to date Read more about the CHL History on www.championshockeyleague.com/en/ chl-history
The CHL Brand • Vision: TO BE EUROPE’S GREATEST HOCKEY COMPETITION. • The Mission: GIVE FANS THE MOST EXCITING HOCKEY EXPERIENCE, AND TO GIVE ITS STARS THE GREATEST PLATFORM ON WHICH TO PERFORM.
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• Brand Values: EUROPEAN, BRAVE, HUMAN, UNITED, UNCONVENTIONAL
6-Year Contract & Increase of Prize Money The CHL has extended its partnership with Infront, its exclusive media and marketing partner, for a six-year period until 2022/23. The agreement includes media rights sales, marketing of the event and commercial packages, overall venue management, digital services and management of the TV production. The partnership not only allows the CHL to develop its product on a stable base, it also brings a significant increase of prize money: from a total of €1,5m in 2017/18 to €3,5m in 2022/23. Furthermore, the CHL Board has decided for the second consecutive year to add an additional travel compensation to the prize money. This time, an additional amount of €300,000 is split to the next two seasons (2019/20 and 2020/21) and will be paid to the respective participants. The money is financed from accrued income from the business year 2018/19.
2014 /15
2015 /16
2016 /17
2017/18
2018 /19
3,500,000
3,000,000
2,500,000
2,000,000
1,500,000
1,000,000
500,000
PRIZE MONEY
1,500,000 127,000 1,500,000 142,000 1,500,000 143,000 1,540,000 300,000 + 200,000
1,940,000
365,000 2,340,000
+ 400,000
2019/20
425,000 + 100,000
2020 /21
3,060,000
555,000 3,200,000
2021/22
630,000 3,460,000
2022 /23
705,000
Total
Champions
Travel compensation
Currency = Euros Prize money is subject of approval by the CHL Board every season.
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BROADCASTING Country
Broadcaster
Until
AUT
ORF
2022/23
BLR
BTRC
2019/20
BRA
ESPN
2022/23
CAN
TSN
2022/23
AMC (Sport 1/2)
2022/23
DEN
TV2
2022/23
EST
ERR
2022/23
FIN
MTV3
2022/23
FRA DOM-TOM
L'Equipe
2020/21
GER
Sport1
2022/23
ISR
Charlton (Sport 1)
2022/23
LVA
Best4Sport
2022/23
LTU
LRT
2022/23
NOR
Viasat
2022/23
POL
Polsat
2021/22
Arena sport TV
2022/23
SVN
Sport TV
2022/23
SWE
SVT and MTG (Viasat)
2022/23
SUI
SRG SSR and Teleclub
2022/23
TWN
ELTA
2021/22
TUR
Sportstv
2022/23
Premier Sports
2022/23
UKR
XSport
2019/20
USA and its territories
NHL Network
2022/23
CZE SVK HUN
SRB BIH HRV MKD MNE RKS
UK IRL
As per 1 August 2019 – find latest version of broadcasting list online
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HALL O Champions 2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
LULEÅ HOCKEY (SWE)
FRÖLUNDA INDIANS (SWE)
FRÖLUNDA INDIANS (SWE)
JYP JYVÄSKYLÄ (FIN)
FRÖLUNDA INDIANS (SWE)
MVPs 2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
MATHIS OLIMB
RYAN LASCH
JOEL LUNDQVIST
ŠIMON HRUBEC
TREVOR PARKES
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F FAME LGT Top Scorer 2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
MATHIS OLIMB
RYAN LASCH
CASEY WELLMAN
FREDRIK PETTERSSON
RYAN LASCH
26 PTS
16 PTS
14 PTS
16 PTS
22 PTS
All-time Records topscorer RYAN LASCH (Frölunda Indians, SC Bern, TPS Turku)
60 GAMES FRÖLUNDA INDIANS
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69 POINTS
MICHAL TEPLÝ (Bílí Tygři Liberec), 16 years, 4 months, 14 days
youngest scorer
attendance record
oldest scorer
FRÖLUNDA INDIANS & HC PILSEN
14,567
136 POINTS
SAMI AITTOKALLIO (Kärpät Oulu)
SC BERN V SPARTA PRAGUE (7 December 2016)
PETTERI NUMMELIN (TPS Turku), 42 years, 11 months, 9 days
longest winning streak
6
shutouts
fastest goal
5
RHETT RAKHSHANI (Malmö Redhawks)
11
seconds after face-off
FRÖLUNDA INDIANS
JOEL LUNDQVIST (Frölunda Indians)
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GAMES COACHED
ROGER RÖNNBERG (Frölunda Indians)
53 PLAYED GAMES
Sport in Brief The Competition Format • 32 teams from 13 leagues • Teams can only qualify on sporting merits • A maximum of 5 teams per country • The CHL Champions are automatically qualified for the next CHL season. However, this will not grant one extra place for the league of the CHL winners.
Champions of all participating leagues
The current format is based on clear and measurable qualification criteria and was successfully launched from the 2017/18 season. Teams have to be the champion, or in the top places of their domestic league to earn a place in the CHL. This format makes not only the Champions Hockey League, but also national leagues, more appealing. The “race to qualify” climaxes at the end of regular seasons and in the playoffs, delivering extra exci-tement to the fans, media and European club ice hockey.
FRÖLUNDA INDIANS SWEDEN
SC BERN
Participating Leagues The 2019/20 season will run with the following participating leagues: • Founding Leagues: Austria (EBEL), Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Sweden and Switzerland. • Challenger Leagues: Belarus, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Norway, Poland, Slovakia and the IIHF Continental Cup. The awarding of wild cards to the champions of challenger leagues is subject to formal approval by the CHL board every season.
The 2019/20 Field of Competitors consists of: • The Champions Hockey League winners • 13 national champions • 4 regular season winners • 6 regular season runners-up • 4 regular season third-placed teams • 3 regular season fourth placed teams • 2 regular season third-placed teams • 1 IIHF Continental Cup representative
HPK HÄMEENLINNA
SWITZERLAND
FINLAND
YUNOST MINSK
FRISK ASKER
OCELÁŘI TŘINEC CZECH REPUBLIC
ADLER MANNHEIM GERMANY
CHL winners & SHL champions
KAC KLAGENFURT AUSTRIA
BELARUS
NORWAY
HC05 BANSKÁ BYSTRICA SLOVAKIA
TM
RUNGSTED SEIER CAPITAL
GKS TYCHY Poland
DENMARK
BELFAST GIANTS UNITED KINGDOM IIHF Continental Cup Representative & EIHL champions
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GRENOBLE FRANCE
FINLAND
NORWAY
SWEDEN DENMARK BELARUS
UNITED KINGDOM
GERMANY
POLAND
CZECH REPUBLIC SLOVAKIA FRANCE
AUSTRIA SWITZERLAND
The Qualification System As previously pointed out, teams must earn their place in the CHL on the ice. Teams must reach one of the following criteria in order to become a CHL contestant: 1. CHL champions 2. National league champions 3. Regular season winners 4. Regular season runners-up 5. Regular season third-placed team 6. Regular season fourth-placed team 7. Regular season fifth-placed team
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The qualification criteria have been slightly adapted for the 2019/20 season and priority has been shifted slightly towards regular season achievements. The exceptions to this rule include the United Kingdom, as the EIHL, in line with their tradition, determines their national champion following the regular season (not in the playoffs) and Austria (EBEL) who applies the following criteria due to a different playing format: 1. National league champions 2. Regular season winners 3. Pick-round winners 4. Pick-round runners-up
Allocation of places per national league The number of places per national league is allocated with the help of the CHL League Ranking. This tool calculates the performance of teams in every CHL season and the better the teams perform, the more spots a league can achieve. However, the six founding leagues remain
Pos
League
ranked 1-6, while all challenger leagues follow in accordance. For 2019/20, the previous four CHL seasons are taken into consideration (weighted 100, 75, 50 and 25 percent – in which the newest season counts the most). The CHL league ranking after the 2018/19 season looked as follows:
Type
2018/19 PTS 100%
2017/18 PTS 75%
2016/17 PTS 50%
2015/16 PTS 25%
Total Points
1
SWE
F
100 (100)
100 (75)
95 (48)
100 (25)
248
2
SUI
F
95 (95)
80 (60)
100 (50)
80 (20)
225
3
FIN
F
85 (85)
90 (68)
90 (45)
95 (24)
222
4
CZE
F
75 (75)
95 (71)
85 (43)
85 (21)
210
5
GER
F
80 (80)
85 (64)
75 (38)
75 (19)
201
6
AUT
F
90 (90)
75 (56)
65 (33)
65 (16)
195
7
BLR
60 (60)
70 (53)
80 (40)
65 (16)
169
8
NOR
70 (70)
55 (41)
50 (25)
90 (23)
159
9
SVK
55 (55)
60 (45)
70 (35)
70 (18)
153
10
FRA
70 (70)
50 (38)
45 (23)
65 (16)
147
11
DEN
50 (50)
50 (38)
60 (30)
65 (16)
134
12
UK
40 (40)
65 (49)
60 (30)
45 (11)
130
13
POL
50 (50)
50 (38)
40 (20)
According to this, Sweden and Switzerland achieved the maximum amount of 5 teams each. The Swiss overtook Finland, which is now repre-sented by only 4 teams, the same as the Czech Republic, while Germany and Austria (EBEL) as the other Founding Leagues compete with 3 teams each. The granted spot to the 2019 CHL champions, Frölunda Indians, £is included in the 5 spots for Sweden.
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-
108
The CHL League Ranking can be found on www.championshockeyleague.com and is updated on a regular basis.
2019/20 CHL calendar • Group Stage: 29 August – 16 October 2019 - Game Day 1: 29/30 August - Game Day 2: 31/1 September - Game Day 3: 5/6 September - Game Day 4: 7/8 September - Game Day 5: 8/9 October - Game Day 6: 15/16 October • Round of 16: 12/13 November + 19/20 November 2019 • Quarter-Finals: 3/4 December 2019 + 10 December 2019 • Semi-Finals: 7/8 January 2020 + 14/15 January 2020 • Final: 4 February 2020
32 TEAMS/96 GAMES 8 Groups of 4 Teams each
August
September
October
16 TEAMS / 16 GAMES home and away
November
15
8 TEAMS /8 GAMES home and away
December
FINAL
QUARTER-FINALS
ROUND OF 16
PLAYOFF DRAW
GROUP STAGE
With the exception of the Final, all match-ups in the Playoffs will be twogame, home-and-away aggregate scoring series.
SEMI-FINALS
Playing Format Between August and February, a total of 125 games will be played over the course of 13 game days. Four teams in each of the eight groups will battle in the Group Stage to reach the CHL Playoffs. The top two teams in each group will advance to the Round of 16.
4 TEAMS /4 GAMES home and away
January
2 TEAMS /1 GAME
February
CHL Disciplinary System The CHL Disciplinary System is based on three instances. The core of the CHL Disciplinary System is the “Sport Disciplinary Board”. It is an independent body appointed by the CHL to control the sport disciplinary process and the player safety in the Champions Hockey League. What is reviewed? • All match penalties • All major penalties • All game misconducts • All abuse of official penalties • All serious situations, regardless of if a penalty has been called Additionally, the CHL Sport Disciplinary Board may review any other incident referred to it by the Game Supervisor and clubs, or any incident which the Sport Disciplinary Board views as requiring supplementary jurisdiction. How does the procedure works? 1. Disciplinary procedure is opened by the Chairman or a Member of the Sport Disciplinary Board, a Game Supervisor, the CHL Sport Director, the CHL Senior Sport Advisor or a Club. 2. The Chairman determines that a supplementary jurisdiction case exists.
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3. The Chairman notifies the members of the Sport Disciplinary Board, and provides all relevant evidence/reports (incl. video footage & written comments) by 13:00 the day after the game 4. The Chairman makes a final decision based on received feedback from Sport Disciplinary Board members and notifies the participating club no less than four hours before their next CHL game. 5. Preferably, the final decision shall be communicated towards the accused club/player within 24 hours of the incident occurring. Who is in charge? The Chairman of the Sport Disciplinary Board is Lyle Seitz, who is appointed by the CHL Board. He, in cooperation with the CHL Sport Director Alex Jäger and the CHL Senior Sport Advisor Bo Lennartsson, is in charge of receiving requests and reviewing incidents, aided by a panel of 6 people who are highly experienced and well versed with ice hockey, its rules and procedures. All six CHL founding leagues are represented in the Sport Disciplinary Board. The members are not bound by any restrictions and not accountable to anyone for their decisions. Further, the members are known by the CHL Board and the 32 participating clubs, but not named in public.
General Disciplinary System
3 Tier
COURT OF ARBITRATION FOR SPORTS (CAS)
2 Tier
JUSTICE BOARD
RD
ND
1Tier ST
SPORT DISCIPLINARY BOARD
Reputational Matters
COURT OF ARBITRATION FOR SPORTS (CAS)
CHL OFFICE DISCIPLINARY BOARD (CODB)
JUSTICE BOARD
FINE CATALOGUE
Where are the games reviewed? On Game Days, the CHL operates with its own Situation Room based in Ebensee (Austria) and in cooperation with the EBEL. Live Streams from all CHL Games are delivered to this place, where every game is reviewed by Lyle Seitz and his team of former players and Game Officials. Any notable event on the ice, with or without a call, is tracked and, if needed, prepared for further review from the Sport Disciplinary Board.
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Can clubs appeal? Yes, clubs can appeal a suspension or a decision by the Sport Disciplinary Board, if the suspension exceeds three games or a €15,000 fine. In such cases, an appeal to the CHL Justice Board is mandatory prior to an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). The appeal shall be submitted in writing within 24 hours after receipt of the Sport Disciplinary Board’s decision. For more information about the CHL Sport Disciplinary Board read here.
Web & Social Media Website: www.kac.at Facebook: www.facebook.com/eckac Twitter: www.twitter.com/ec_kac Instagram: www.instagram.com/rotjacken YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/ UCA1u8T0sdXEpfi6kDQ80mFw
KAC KLAGENFURT
Club Staff FOUNDED: 1909
President/Chairman: Dietmar Krenn CEO: Oliver Pilloni General Manager: Oliver Pilloni Head Coach: Petri Matikainen
Glory Times National titles: 31 – 1934, 1935, 1952, 1955, 1960, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1991, 2000, 2001, 2004 , 2009, 2013, 2019
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Group Stage (3rd in Group H) 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Group Stage (3rd in Group H) 2014/15: Did not qualify
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as: National Champions
Arena Info Name: Stadthalle Klagenfurt Address: Messeplatz 1, 9020 Klagenfurt, Austria Capacity: 4,945 Year opened: 1959
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Media Contact Hannes Biedermann E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +43 676 8899 04 00
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Media representatives apply for game day accreditations via e-mail to [email protected] up to 24 hours before face-off time. After a short review period, media representatives receive their game day accreditation via e-mail as well (print out or scan from mobile screen at all arena entries). Details on accreditations and media infrastructure at the arena can be found in the media section on kac.at.
Three Stars on the Team
Statements
Lars Haugen: Norwegian national team goalie Lars Haugen joined KAC in 2018 and proved himself as one of the best goaltenders in the EBEL, setting a new all-time league record for goal against average (GAA). In his first season with KAC, Lars Haugen recorded 39 wins and 9 shutouts in 54 games.
Head Coach Petri Matikainen’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “Everybody in the KAC organization is very happy and excited that we qualified for the Champions Hockey League again. We will try to do our best in every game we play in the competition. Facing three high quality international opponents in the group stage will be a big challenge for us, but we believe that we have the potential to achieve good results. If we are on top of our game that early into the season, we will stand a chance of advancing to the knock-out stages of the competition.”
Thomas Koch: Klagenfurt native Thomas Koch played his 1000th game in the Austrian top league in February 2019 and is regarded as a true KAC legend. The center forward has played 1326 pro and international games (recording 1087 points) and has nine Austrian championship titles to his name. Nick Petersen: Canadian winger Nick Petersen joined KAC in 2018 and recorded points in 48 of his 66 games in his first season with the club. He led the team in goals (29), assists (49) and points combined (78) and contributed immensely to KAC’s 31st national championship title last season.
New Players for 2019/20 Manuel Ganahl, F, Lukko Rauma (Liiga) Lukas Haudum, F, IK Pantern (Allsvenskan)
Legendary Players in the Club Josef Puschnig Dieter Kalt sen. Rudolf König Herbert Pöck Thomas Cijan Mario Schaden Kirk Furey Jamie Lundmark
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Head Coach Petri Matikainen’s comments about the other teams in the group: Tappara Tampere: “Tappara are one of the absolute top teams in Liiga – having made the finals in six of the last seven seasons. They are a modern Finnish hockey team and club; it’s going to be a big challenge facing them in the CHL.” EHC Biel-Bienne: “Biel have a Finnish Head Coach who has moulded the team to play high-skilled, offensive hockey in recent years. Their achievements and progress in the last couple of seasons have been impressive. We expect to face a very talented team.” Frisk Asker: “Lars Haugen performed fantastically at our club last season, so we know what Norwegian hockey is capable of. Frisk Asker are the current champions of a hockey nation that has developed throughout the last ten, fifteen years.”
Club Trivia KAC (short for Klagenfurter Athletiksport-Club) were founded in 1909. The current club name, its colors (red and white) and its logo were introduced in 1920. KAC became the first Austrian champion not based in the city of Vienna when they won the championship in 1934 – overall the club have won the national championship for a record 31 times. By winning the EBEL championship in 2019, KAC qualified for the 2019/20 season of the Champions Hockey League, which will mark the club’s 23rd participation in a European club competition. KAC’s biggest achievement on the international stage has been playing in the finals of the European Cup in 1969 against Soviet powerhouse CSKA Moskva. Because of their bright history, the “Rotjacken” (red jackets) have a big fanbase with supporters in all parts of Austria. Furthermore, KAC take great pride in their successful junior program – in 2019 the club won the Austrian championship in every junior age group that it participated in.
Players’ Trivia Defender Martin Schumnig, born and raised in Klagenfurt, hasn’t played for any other club than KAC throughout his pro career. The 30-year-old right-shot heads into his 14th season with the Rotjacken’s first team, he has featured in all 10 Champions Hockey League games KAC has played so far. Furthermore, Martin Schumnig has represented
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the Austrian national team in 113 international games and has been on his country’s world championship roster in eight of the last nine seasons.
Beyond Hockey After winning the championship in his first year with the club, power forward Siim Liivik is heading into his second season with KAC. Born in Estonia, but raised in Finland, Liivik has played 513 games in Liiga overall. Besides hockey he is also famous for his music – he topped the Finnish charts with his song “Häissä” in 2011. Furthermore, Siim Liivik, nicknamed “MärkäSimo”, owns his own beer brand “Märkä” in Finland. Despite having scored only 4 goals in 68 league games with KAC, he is one of the most popular players on the roster among “Rotjacken” fans because of his energetic and physical playing style.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Eishockey Faceoff = Faceoff Offside = Abseits Puck = Puck/Scheibe Hockey stick = Hockeyschläger Goal = Tor Penalty = Strafe Referee = Schiedsrichter
Web & Social Media Website: www.99ers.at Facebook: www.facebook.com/graz99ers Twitter: www.twitter.com/graz99ers Instagram: www.instagram.com/graz99ersofficial YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/graz99ers
GRAZ99ERS
Club Staff President/Chairman: Jochen Pildner-Steinburg CEO: Bernd Vollmann General Manager: Bernd Vollmann Sport Director: Doug Mason Head Coach: Doug Mason
FOUNDED: 1999
Glory Times National titles: None
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Media Contact Benjamin Grundauer E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +43 676 4613 440
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Local journalists & journalists from abroad: www.99ers.at/media
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as Regular Season Winners
Three Stars on the Team
Arena Info Name: Merkur Eisstadion Address: Zoisweg 15, 8041 Graz, Austria Capacity: 4,126 Year opened: 1963
Oliver Setzinger: Oliver Setzinger is the captain of the Graz99ers. The number 91 has played almost 400 games in the EBEL and is regarded as one of the best players in the league. Dwight King: Dwight King starts his second season in Graz this year. The 30-yearold forward has already won the Stanley Cup twice and would like to add the EBEL title with Graz.
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Joakim Hillding: Joakim Hillding is new to the 99ers. The forward played really well at Oskarshamn last season and became a key player in their advancement into the playoffs.
better and better each year. Cardiff will not be an easy opponent, so we have to be careful.”
Club Trivia Mascot = Pucky – He ‘s a big hit.
New Players for 2019/20 Joakim Hillding, F, IK Oskarshamn (Allsvenskan) Sebastian Collberg, F, Timrå IK (Allsvenskan) Cristopher Nihlstorp, G, Malmö Redhawks (SHL) Philipp Lindner, D, HC Innsbruck (EBEL) Trevor Hamilton, D, Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL)
Players’ Trivia National team players: Erik Kirchschläger, Philipp Lindner, Lukas Kainz (all AUT), Ken Ograjensek (Slovenia), Cristopher Nihlstorp: Best save percentage last year in the CHL Dwight King: 2 Stanley Cups
Legendary Players in the Club Thomas Vanek
Colton Yellow-Horn is always the last player to step on the ice
Statements
Beyond Hockey
Head Coach Doug Mason’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We will feature in the Champions Hockey League for the first time this year. Our goal is to survive the first round and gain as much experience as possible.”
Oliver Setzinger and Daniel Oberkofler: help our junior teams
Head Coach Doug Mason’s comments about the other teams in the group: Frölunda Indians: “Frölunda will be a very difficult opponent, but also an opponent we look forward to playing with. We will compete with the best and we look forward to that.” Mountfield HK: “The Czech league is unknown to me. For example, we know Sparta Prague from last time we participated and we were quite impressed with them then, so we expect that Mountfield will be another exciting opponent.” Cardiff Devils: “The British league gets
Ice Hockey = Eishockey Faceoff = Faceoff Offside = Abseits Puck = Puck Hockey stick = Hockeyschläger Goal = Tor Penalty = Strafe Referee = Schiedsrichter
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All our players love to play golf
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language
Web & Social Media Website: www.vienna-capitals.at Facebook: www.facebook.com/viennacapitals Twitter: www.twitter.com/viennacapitals Instagram: www.instagram.com/viennacapitals2001 YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/ ViennaCapitals2001 Snapchat: VICapsSnaps
VIENNA CAPITALS FOUNDED: 2001
Club Staff
Glory Times National titles: 2 – 2005, 2017
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Group Stage (3rd in Group A) 2017/18: Group Stage (4th in Group C) 2016/17: Group Stage (3rd in Group N) 2015/16: Round of 32 2014/15: Round of 16
President/Chairman: Hans Schmid General Manager: Franz Kalla Head Coach: Dave Cameron Assistant Coach: Dylan Beston Team-Manager/Goalie Coach: Varian Kirst
Media Contact Thomas Zach E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +43 664 62 12 148
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as
Accreditation for CHL Home Games
Pick Round Winners
International journalists who are interested in reporting on home games of the Vienna Capitals can apply via e-mail to [email protected]. The application will be checked by the press department and approved/denied at least 24 hours before face-off. National journalists must apply through https://app.pressroom.global/ @viennacapitals
Arena Info Name: Erste Bank Arena Address: Attemsgasse 1, 1220 Vienna, Austria Capacity: 7,000 Year opened: 2011
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Three Stars on the Team Rafael Rotter: He is the player with probably the most fans in Vienna. He was voted as 2017/2018 MVP in the Erste Bank Eishockey League and is a local hero of the Vienna Capitals. Sondre Olden: A fast and skilled forward from Norway who played at the Olympics in 2018 for his home country. Sondre is a real sniper and famous for overtime game winning goals. Ryan Zapolski: A real big man in the net for the Caps. Ryan played five games for the US-team at the last Winter Olympics in 2018 and joined Vienna this summer from Jokerit Helsinki (KHL).
New Players for 2019/20 C.J. Stretch, F, HC Orli Znojmo (EBEL) Ty Loney, F, Graz99ers (EBEL) Kyle Baun, F, Belfast Giants (EIHL) Henrik Neubauer, F, Dornbirn Bulldogs (EBEL) Mark Flood, D, Ilves (Liiga) Brendon Kichton, D, SaiPa Lappeenranta (Liiga) Ryan Zapolski, G, Jokerit Helsinki (KHL)
Legendary Players in the Club Phil Lakos Bob Wren Benoit Gratton
Statements Head Coach Dave Cameron’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “Last year I experienced the Champions Hockey League for the first time in my
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coaching career. It is a great competition and a great chance for my team to measure up with the best clubs of Europe. Playing against teams from Germany, Sweden and Poland gives us a unique opportunity to see different styles of play and to compete on a very high level. It will be very challenging again this season.” Head Coach Dave Cameron’s comments about the other teams in the group: Adler Mannheim: “For teams from Austria it’s always special to compete against German teams. Adler Mannheim became champions last season in the DEL, so we will have to put on our A game to stand a chance.” Djurgården Stockholm: “The record champions of Sweden – I think there is nothing more needed to say about them than that. They are a very skilled and fast team with a lot of high-quality players. You can learn a lot as a team in games against opponents like Djurgården Stockholm. GKS Tychy: “They are the team we have to beat in order to advance to the next round. I expect two difficult battles because Tychy play a very physical game.”
Club Trivia The Vienna Capitals have the second-largest fan interest in Austria’s capital. Only Austria’s football record champions SK Rapid Wien attract more fans. Last season 175,216 fans attended the home games of the Capitals in the Erste Bank Arena. Capitano is the name of the mascot of the Vienna Capitals. The cheetah is famous for his explosive show acts before faceoffs and is extremely popular amongst the youngest Caps fans.
Players’ Trivia Phil Lakos – record appearance maker for the Vienna Capitals (785 league games)
Beyond Hockey Taylor Vause is one of the fittest and fastest players of the Vienna Capitals despite suffering from type 1 diabetes from the age of 17. Taylor runs a diabetes initiative called “Taylors Type 1” in order to raise awareness for diabetes and prove that playing hockey on the highest level is possible even with this disease. You can find more information here: www.facebook.com/taylorstype1s
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Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Eishockey Faceoff = Spielbeginn Offside = Abseits Puck = Puck Hockey stick = Eishockey-Schläger Goal = Tor Penalty = Strafe Referee = Schiedsrichter
Web & Social Media Website: www.hcocelari.cz Facebook: www.facebook.com/hcocelaricz Twitter: www.twitter.com/hcocelaricz Instagram: www.instagram.com/hcocelaricz YouTube: www.youtube.com/hcocelariCZ
OCELÁŘI TŘINEC
Club Staff President/Chairman: Ján Moder CEO: Marek Chmiel Sport Director: Jan Peterek Head Coach: Václav Varaďa
FOUNDED: 1929
Glory Times National titles: 2 – 2011, 2019
Media Contact
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Group Stage (4th in Group E) 2017/18: Semi-Finals 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Round of 32 2014/15: Group Stage (3rd in Group E)
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as National Champions
Arena Info Name: WERK ARENA Address: Frýdecká 850, Staré Město, 73961 Třinec, Czech Republic Capacity: 5,400 Year opened: 2014
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Radim Sajbot E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +420 596 109 140
Accreditation for CHL Home Games When applying for accreditation, journalists must send an e-mail with their name, the name of their media organization and a requirement whether the accreditation is for a journalist or a photographer to [email protected] at least one day before the game.
Three Stars on the Team Patrik Bartošák: He won the AHL with the Manchester Monarchs in the 2014/15 season and is a winner of the Calder Cup. He returned to Europe the following season and spent the next three and a half years playing for Vítkovice. He has become one of the best goalkeepers in the Czech Extraliga and was nominated to
represent the Czech Republic at the the World Championship in Bratislava last year. Patrik Bartošák signed for Oceláři Třinec in May 2019. Lukáš Krajíček: Defenceman Lukáš Krajíček left to go overseas at the age of 16. In the NHL he played for Florida, Vancouver, Tampa and Philadelphia. He played in the Stanley Cup final of the 2009/10 season whilst playing for Philadelphia. In 2010 Krajíček moved back to Europe and helped Třinec win their first championship title. He then moved to KHL participant Dinamo Minsk from Belarus where he spent nearly 6 years. He returned to his homeland and re-signed with Třinec and has been captain of the club for the past two seasons. He has successfully led the team to silver and gold medals but missed the last playoffs due to injury. Martin Růžička: Forward Martin Růžička signed for Třinec in 2009 and has since become one of the most productive players in the club’s history. Throughout his seven seasons with Třinec, Růžička has played 404 games and recorded 435 points (210 + 225). Růžička was an important member of both the winning teams of 2011 and of 2019. In 2010 he won a gold medal at the World Championship and also appeared at the Olympic Games in 2018.
New Players for 2019/20 Patrik Bartošák, G, Vítkovice Ridera Ostrava (TELH) Tomáš Kundrátek, D, HC Davos (NL)
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Legendary Players in the Club Jan Peterek Václav Varaďa Marek Zadina Jozef Daňo Lubomír Sekeráš Martin Havlát Radek Bonk
Statements Sport Director Jan Peterek’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We expect a tough group, but we believe that we will be able to make it to the next stage of the competition.” Sport Director Jan Peterek’s comments about the other teams in the group: Lausanne HC: “Lausanne are a strong team. The Swiss league is of very high quality – that was evident at the World Championship last year, where seventeen players from the Swiss league played in Switzerland’s national team.” Lahti Pelicans: “Lahti will be a very tough opponent. All five previous seasons of the Champions Hockey League were dominated by Scandinavian teams, so we are expecting some difficult matches.” Yunost Minsk: “The biggest unknown of our group. We are looking forward to travelling to the capital city of Belarus, which is very nice and hosted the 2014 World Championship. They have two beautiful arenas and we will play in one of them. It will be a great experience for both us and for our fans. Belarusian hockey has its quality, those games will be very hard.”
Club Trivia Mascot: Dráček Werkáček
Players’ Trivia G – Patrik Bartošák – AHL Calder Cup Champion D – Martin Gernát – played for Lausanne HC during the 2017/18 season D - Lukáš Krajíček – Stanley Cup final of 2010 F – Martin Růžička – gold medal from World Championship, three gold medals from Czech Extraliga, two whilst with Oceláři Třinec and one with Sparta F – Jiří Polanský – has already played 19 seasons for Třinec, club’s record goal scorer
Beyond Hockey F – Jiří Polanský – hobby – fishing
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = hokej Faceoff = vhazování Offside = ofsajd Puck = puk Hockey stick = hokejka Goal = gól Penalty = trest Referee = rozhodčí
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Web & Social Media
BÍLÍ TYGŘI LIBEREC
Website: www.hcbilitygri.cz Facebook: www.facebook.com/hcbilitygri Twitter: www.twitter.com/bilitygrilbc Instagram: www.instagram.com/bilitygrilbc YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/redakcebilitygri
Club Staff President/Chairman: Petr Syrovátko Vice-Presidents: Petr Syrovátko Jr., Lukáš Přinda General Manager: Ctibor Jech Sport Director: Filip Pešán Head Coach: Patrik Augusta
FOUNDED: 1956
Glory Time National titles: 1 – 2016
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Semi-Finals 2016/17: Round of 16 2015/16: Round of 16 2014/15: Group Stage (2nd in Group A)
Media Contact Martin Kadlec E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +420 731 547 909
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Contact Press Manager Martin Kadlec via e-mail: [email protected]
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL season as Regular Season Champions
Three Stars on the Team Ladislav Šmíd: NHL veteran who spent most of his professional career in Canada. He played seven seasons for the Edmonton Oilers and another three for the Calgary Flames. He is an experienced defenceman who skates well, is reliable in the defensive zone and has a great ability to create attacks. Liberec is his youth team – he started his career here.
Arena Info Name: Home Credit Arena Address: Jeronymova 570/22, 46007 Liberec, Czech Republic Capacity: 7,500 Year opened: 2005
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Michal Birner: Two-way forward who has spent most of his career abroad. He’s a globetrotter who has played in the AHL, Finnish SM-Liiga and Swiss NLA. Birner is a regular player in the national team and has participated in the Olympic Games, the World Cup and two World Championships. He can be used in all on-ice situations and is very productive. During the last playoffs he notched 13 points in 17 games. Justin Peters: Canadian goalie who spent seven years in the National Hockey League. He was well-known as a reliable backup for the Carolina Hurricanes and gathered 83 appearances in the NHL and 299 appearances in the AHL before making a move to Europe. Peters also participated in the 2014 World Championship in Minsk and in the 2018 Olympic Games in South Korea where he won a bronze medal.
New Players for 2019/20 Michal Bulíř, C, Metallurg Magnitogorsk (KHL) Justin Peters, G, Piráti Chomutov (TELH) Rostislav Marosz, C, HC Pardubice (TELH) Ronald Knot, D, Piráti Chomutov (TELH) Roman Graborenko, D, HC Verva Litvínov (TELH) Adam Musil, C, San Antonio Rampage (AHL) Daniel Bukač, D, Niagara Ice Dogs (OHL)
Legendary Players in the Club Petr Nedvěd Milan Hnilička Ladislav Šmíd Jaroslav Modrý Jiří Fischer Václav Nedorost
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Radim Vrbata Jan Ludvig Ján Lašák Branko Radivojevič
Statements Sports director Filip Pesan’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We want to advance to the playoffs and play the best hockey we can – just like in the previous years. That’s our main goal and then we’ll see. We would like to start well; that will be really important.” Head Coach Patrik Augusta’s comments about the other teams in the group: Luleå Hockey: “First winner of the CHL and one of the top teams in the Europe. It’ll be a huge thing for us to play against such a great team and a very good test before the start of the Czech Extraliga, since Swedish hockey is based on individual skill and precise skating.” Augsburger Panther: “A traditional participant in the DEL. German hockey has a great fan base and thanks to our German fan community we expect huge interest in this game. Augsburg will be a tough opponent with an aggressive and straightforward style of play.” Belfast Giants: “British league competitor. They are a little bit unknown opponent for us. We suspect they will play a similar style to Great Britain in the World Championship in Slovakia last year. They will also be very physical – they will put the pressure in front of the net and forecheck well.”
Club Trivia For a long time, the Liberec club was called a traditional Czech sport club name – Stadion (since 1961). In 2000, at a time when the club experienced its steepest rise in form, the name was changed to “Bílí Tygři/ White Tigers Liberec”. This name is closely connected to another pride of the town – the ZOO. The oldest ZOO in the Czech Republic and Central Europe is known for its exceptional white tigers, a rare form of the Indian tiger. The club was given a name that evokes a beast and at the same time is closely related to its hometown. Ritual – Never step on the logo in the locker room Mascot – We had a mascot in previous years, but kids were afraid of him, so in 2015 we changed his style. Now he has a more comic-like look and is called “Tygr” – “Tiger”.
Players’ Trivia Ladislav Šmíd – 583 games in the NHL, 2x World Championship, 1x Olympic Games Justin Peters – 83 games in the NHL, 1x World Championship, 1x Olympic Games Michal Birner – won Liiga (TPS Turku – 2009/10) and Extraliga (Liberec – 2015/16), 2x World Championship, 1x Olympic Games and 1x World Cup Libor Hudáček (Slovakia – won Tipsport liga (Slovan Bratislava – 2011/12), 6x World Championship (2012 – silver medal)
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Tomas Filippi – won the KHL (Metallurg Magnitogorsk – 2015/16), 1x World Championship Roman Graborenko (Belarus) – 4x World Championship Lukáš Derner – 732 games for Bílí Tygři Liberec (club record)
Beyond Hockey Michal Bulíř and Jaroslav Vlach – they’re very good in football Marek Schwarz – he loves cars, repairing, fishing and racing Justin Peters – he has two Newfoundland dogs
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Lední hokej Faceoff = Vhazování Offside = Postavení mimo hru Puck = Puk Hockey stick = Hokejka Goal = Gól Penalty = Vyloučení Referee = Rozhodčí
Web & Social Media Website: www.hcskoda.cz Facebook: www.facebook.com/hcplzen1929 Twitter: www.twitter.com/HC_Plzen Instagram: www.instagram.com/hcplzen YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/hcskoda
HC PILSEN
Club Staff President/Chairman: Martin Straka General Manager: Martin Straka CSO: Rudolf Matějka Sport Director: Tomáš Vlasák Head Coach: Ladislav Čihák
FOUNDED: 1929
Glory Times National titles: 1 – 2013
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Semi-Final 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Round of 32 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Media Contact Lucie Mužíková E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +420 728 573 958
Accreditation for CHL Home Games
Regular Season Third-Placed
Online accreditation via official website – section club press accreditation for CHL Alternative: Contacting [email protected] (not preferable)
Arena Info
Three Stars on the Team
Name: Home Monitoring Arena Address: Štefánikovo nám. 1, 30133 Pilsen, Czech Republic Capacity: 7 536 Year opened: 1969
Milan Gulaš: Milan Gulaš is currently one of the biggest stars of the Czech Extraliga. He first came to Pilsen for the 2012/13 season and caught the attention of many KHL clubs by scoring 55 points in just 44 games of the regular season, before eventually transferring to Magnitogorsk. Pilsen went on to win their first ever title that year. Gulaš only played 33
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as
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games in the KHL before moving to Karlstad, where he became one of Färjestad’s fan favourites. In four years with the Swedish powerhouse, he recorded 157 points. For the 2017/18 season he decided to resign with Pilsen and immediately became one of the club’s leaders, scoring a stunning 61 points in the regular season and earning himself a spot on the Czech national team. He missed the Olympics due to an injury but went on to became MVP of the Czech Extraliga as voted by the players. He also recieved the same honour last season, when he was the league’s top goal scorer with 30 goals in the regular season. Last year he fulfilled his dream of playing for the Czech national team in the World Championship. Tomáš Mertl: Tomáš Mertl is a native of České Budějovice. He played in the Czech top tier with České Budějovice and then with Hradec Králové, to whom he was transferred to along with the club’s Extraliga license. After a successful 2014/15 season, in which he also played for the national team, he set off for the KHL, where he played for Medveščak Zagreb and Salavat Yulaev Ufa. He came to Pilsen just before the 2017/18 season and created a successful tandem with Milan Gulaš, who also called up to the national team for the Winter Olympics. He scored 30 goals in the regular season and was the regular season top goal scorer. After a successful season with Pilsen, Mertl spent a year with KHL club the Kunlun Red Stars in China. Here he recorded 14 points in 52 games, before returning to Pilsen at the start of this season.
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Peter Čerešňák: Peter Čerešňák was a crucial member of the Pilsen’s 2018/2019 team, that made it all the way to the semifinals of both the CHL and the Czech Extraliga. The Slovak national team player, who was born in Trenčín, recorded 21 points over 39 games in the regular season and added 8 assists in 14 playoff games in the domestic competition. Čerešňák grew up in Trenčín, where he also made his professional debut before leaving for the Peterborough Pirates of the OHL. After returning home for one season, he transferred to Czech club HC Vítkovice, where he spent two full years before coming to Pilsen in the summer of 2016. His solid performances in the top Czech flight earned him a place on Slovakia’s national team for the Winter Olympic Games in Korea in 2018. With four points (2+2) from four games, he was the team’s top scorer. After playing in the CHL with Vítkovice Ostrava (12 games), Čerešňak added another 16 games with HC Pilsen last season, for a combined total of 28 games in the European competition. This is the most of any player in the current HC Pilsen team.
New Players for 2019/20 Jaroslav Pavelka, G, Mountfield HK (TELH) Bohumil Jank, D, Piráti Chomutov (TELH) Vojtěch Budík, D, HC Pardubice (TELH) Luboš Rob, F, VKV Vsetín (Chance Liga) Roman Vlach, F, HC Energie Karlovy Vary (TELH) Filip Přikryl, F, Saint John Sea Dogs (QMJHL) Radek Mužík, F, Luleå Hockey (SHL)
Legendary Players in the Club Bohuslav Ebermann Jaroslav Špaček Martin Straka Milan Kajkl Jiří Kučera Vladimír Bednář Josef Táflík Zdeněk Haber
Statements Head Coach Ladislav Čihák’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We are really happy that we were able to qualify for the CHL for a second year in a row. It is an amazing experience for us, and we are really looking forward to it. We would like to advance further this year, that’s for sure. Last year we were eliminated in the Semi-Finals, which was an enormous success for us, but we always want to improve and perform better each year. We see the CHL as being equally important to us as the Czech league.” Head Coach Ladislav Čihák’s comments about the other teams in the group: HPK Hämeenlinna: “We faced a strong Finnish opponent last year and both games we played were extremely difficult – despite the final score not reflecting that. HPK will be a favorite in our group as they won the highly skilled Finnish league. Finnish teams are always great at skating and in defense, so we have a tough challenge in front of us.” EV Zug: “EV Zug are an equally strong opponent as HPK. The Swiss league is a very good league full of physically prepared guys, who are strong on the puck as well as without it, and Zug are definitely
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one of the top teams in the league today. We are really looking forward to the game. It will be kind of special for us as our former player Jan Kovar will be facing us for the very first time.” Rungsted Seier Capital: “Rungsted are a kind of question mark for us as we have never played them before. But being Danish Champions is enough for us to know that that both games will be very tough and that we can’t underestimate them.”
Club Trivia Nickname: The Indians Club colours: Blue and white Rituals: Before each home game there is a small fire show as the players enter the ice. Mascot: an Indian
Players’ Trivia Peter Čerešňák: The New York Rangers 6th round draft pick (172nd overall) in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft; player of the Slovak national team at the 2018 Winter Olympic Games Milan Gulaš: 2005/06: Czech U20 Most Game Winning Goals (6) 2007/08: Czech Bronze Medal 2010/11: Czech Extraliga Most Shorthanded Goals (3) 2012/13: Czech Extraliga Best Plus/ Minus (+27) 2013/14: SHL All-Star Game (Färjestad); SHL SM-silver Medal 2017/18: Czech Extraliga Most Assists (38) + Czech Extraliga Most Points (61) + Czech Extraliga Player of the Year 2018/20: Czech Extraliga Most Goals (30) + Czech Extraliga Most Points (62) + Czech Extraliga Player of the Year
Tomáš Mertl: 2003-2004 U18 WJC Bronze Medal 2007-2008 Czech Bronze Medal 2014-2015 Czech Extraliga Most Game Winning Goals (8); Czech Extraliga Most Power Play Goals (11) 2017-2018 Czech Extraliga Most Goals (30); Czech Extraliga Most Power Play Goals (15)
Beyond Hockey Dominik Frodl – inline hockey – World Roller Games Barcelona – 2nd place
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = lední hokej Faceoff = vhazování / buly Offside = ofsajd Puck = puk Hockey stick = hokejová hůl / hokejka Goal = gól Penalty = trest Referee = rozhodčí
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Web & Social Media Website: www.mountfieldhk.cz Facebook: www.facebook.com/mountfieldhk Twitter: www.twitter.com/mountfieldhk Instagram: www.instagram.com/mountfieldhk YouTube: www.youtube.com/mountfieldhk
MOUNTFIELD HK
Club Staff President/Chairman: Miroslav Schön General Manager: Aleš Kmoníček Sport Director: Jaroslav Bednář Head Coach: Tomáš Martinec
FOUNDED: 1926/2013
Glory Times National titles: None
Media Contact
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Group Stage (4th in Group F) 2017/18: Group Stage (4th Group F) 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Petr Picka, Jan Vavřina E-Mail: [email protected], [email protected] Phone number: +420 737 431 848, +420 774 270 108
Accreditation for CHL Home Games
Regular Season Fourth-Placed
Please send an e-mail with the necessary information (name, media name, e-mail and phone) to [email protected]
Arena Info
Three Stars on the Team
Name: ČPP Aréna Address: Komenského 1214, 50003, Hradec Králové, Czech Republic Capacity: 6,890 Year opened: 1957
Marek Mazanec: As a new acquisition, Marek Mazanec will hope to prove himself as a vital addition to Mountfield HK’s roster. This right-handed goalie stood out in his early years of playing hockey, when he won both youth and junior league titles with Pilsen. In 2013 he led his team to a glorious victory in the Czech Extraliga and as a result ended up signing a rookie con-
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as
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tract with the Nashville Predators. He played 31 games in total in the NHL and after five long seasons in the AHL, he decided to return home where he is eager to prove his strength and agility once more at Mountfield HK. Radek Smoleňák: Much like his teammate Tomáš Vincour, Radek Smoleňák stands out in size when compared to his opponents. But unlike Vincour, he uses this advantage mainly right in front of the net. He can be a real nightmare for rival goaltenders, as his precise deflection right in front of them can be lethal. He also proved to be a strong leader and a team player when he wore the captain’s “C” on his national team jersey back in 2015. Smoleňák is regarded as an ice hockey globetrotter – he has played in the NHL, as well as in Finland, Sweden, Russia and Switzerland. He uses his experience to his advantage and led the Mountfield HK scoreboard in points (34) last year, despite only playing in 38 of 52 matches. Tomáš Vincour: This powerful forward strikes fear into his opponents eyes on very first glance measuring 190 cm and weighing in at 103 kg. But make no mistake, despite his size he’s also a very skilful player! With 21 goals he was Mountfield HK’s top-scorer last season and is especially deadly in power-play situations. His wrist-shot is both strong and extremely precise. Throughout his career Vincour has tasted both the NHL and the KHL and lifted the Czech Extraliga trophy in 2018.
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New Players for 2019/20 Marek Mazanec, G, Utica Comets (AHL) Štěpán Lukeš, G, Piráti Chomutov, (TELH) Radim Šalda, D, Rimouski Océanic (QMJHL) Rudolf Červený, F, Brynäs IF (SHL) Aleš Jergl, F, HC Olomouc (TELH) Adam Kubík, F, Rytíři Kladno (Chance Liga) Jordann Perret, F, HC Pardubice (TELH)
Legendary Players in the Club Jaroslav Kudrna Jan Hrdina Martin Hosták Jaroslav Bednář
Statements Head Coach Tomáš Martinec’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We are really pleased to have fought our way to the CHL for a third time in a row. Once again, there are six tough matches awaiting us, but this year we hope to add a few more to that. We would like to make good use of the experience we have already gained in the CHL and proceed to the playoffs. CHL matches provide a great test for all our players, including the younger ones. We want our whole team to experience international matches on the highest level and play some attractive hockey whilst comparing favourably with the best teams in Europe. “ Head Coach Tomáš Martinec’s comments about the other teams in the group: Frölunda Indians: “We are really looking forward to the matches against the Frölunda Indians – every year they prove their status as the best European team both in the Swedish league and in the CHL. They have seized the SHL title twice
in the last four years, not to mention their impressive dominance in the CHL. To win this competition three times in four years against the best European teams is a remarkable achievement. It will be a celebration of ice hockey as well as a great challenge for us. I hope our fans will enjoy the matches as much as we will.” Graz99ers: “We consider the match against Graz as a kind of derby and an attractive duel for fans of both teams. Graz demonstrated their strength and quality when they won the regular EBEL season last year and also made it to the playoff semi-finals. Their line-up consists mostly of foreign players from Sweden, Canada, etc., which gives them their much-needed quality, speed and skill.” Cardiff Devils: “We will face an opponent from the British Isles for the second time, so we already know what to expect and how to prepare for them. Cardiff’s roster is full of American and Canadian players, which means they will play hard. The two matches will be tough and physically demanding. Furthermore, Cardiff are a six-time national champion and their team has qualified for the CHL for the third time – just as we have. We know our fans will enjoy the interesting and enjoyable trip to Wales.”
Petr Koukal – 5x at the World Hockey Championship (2010 – gold medal, 2012 – bronze medal), 1x at the Olympic Games, 3x Czech Extraliga champion, former captain of Pardubice (Mountfield HK’s biggest rival) Jordann Perret – 4x at tje World Hockey Championship Radek Smoleňák – over 100 games in the KHL, AHL, OHL, Liiga and ELH Tomáš Vincour – 95 games in the NHL, 2x Czech Extraliga champion (2017 and 2018)
Beyond Hockey Filip Pavlík – is a collector of historic motorcycles and classic cars Oskars Cibulskis – he loves Hradec Králové and Prague and has been learning Czech with his wife Radek Smoleňák – runs an online store for children with his wife (https://www.maybebaby.cz/)
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language
Club Trivia Name of mascot: Mounty Name of club: Mountfield HK (it’s a combination of the company Mountfield and of HK = Hradec Králové). The company Mountfield and the city Hradec Králové are joint club owners.
Players’ Trivia Oskars Cibulskis – 7x at the World Hockey Championship
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Ice Hockey = lední hokej Faceoff = buly, vhazování Offside = postavení mimo hru, ofsajd Puck = puk, kotouč Hockey stick = hokejka, hokejová hůl Goal = gól, branka Penalty = trest, vyloučení Referee = rozhodčí, sudí, arbitr
Web & Social Media
HPK HÄMEENLINNA
Website: www.hpk.fi Facebook: www.facebook.com/ hameenlinnanpallokerho Twitter: www.twitter.com/Pallokerho Instagram: www.instagram.com/pallokerho YouTube: www.youtube.com/HPKHameenlinna
Club Staff FOUNDED: 1929
President/Chairman: Matti Vihervuori CEO: Antti Toivanen Sport Manager: Mika Toivola Team Manager: Antti Miettinen Head Coach: Antti Pennanen
Glory Times National titles: 2 – 2006, 2019
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Media Contact Kati Savolainen E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +358 44 096 4474
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Accreditations by e-mail [email protected]
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as National Champions
Three Stars on the Team Cody Kunyk: 28-year-old Canadian center Cody Kunyk played for SaiPa in the previous two seasons of the Finnish Elite League and joins HPK for the upcoming season. Kunyk is a skilled goal scorer who plays versatile hockey at both ends of the ice.
Arena Info Name: Pohjantähti Areena Address: Poltinahontie 11, 13130 Hämeenlinna, Finland Capacity: 5,360 Year opened: 1979
Petteri Nikkilä: 26-year-old defenceman Nikkilä is from HPK’s own academy and has played for the club for six years.
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Last season Nikkilä recorded 38 assists – a club record and the second all-time highest for the Finnish Elite League. He had the most assists in the League in the 2018/2019 season and became the first defenceman to do so in Finnish Elite League history. Markus Nenonen: 26-year-old right winger Nenonen is one of HPK’s top scorers. He is known for his ability to perform extremely fast snap shots. Last year was his first at the club. Nenonen scored the championship winning goal in overtime of game 7 against Kärpät to secure the national title.
New Players for 2019/20 Cody Kunyk, F, SaiPa Lappeenranta (Liiga) Joona Voutilainen, G, JYP Jyväskylä (Liiga) Elmeri Eronen, D, TPS Turku (Liiga) Tommi Tikka, F, Vaasan Sport (Liiga)
Legendary Players in the Club Eero Salisma Jyrki Louhi Marko Palo Juha Hietanen Hannu Savolainen Marko Tuulola Niko Kapanen Antti Miettinen Riku Hahl
Head Coach Antti Pennanen’s comments about the other teams in the group: EV Zug: “Zug are a very good team that play some fast hockey.” HC Pilsen: “Pilsen are disciplined and aggressive – also a very defensive team.” Rungsted Seier Capital: “Denmark has produced a lot of good players that have made it to the NHL in recent years, so we look forward to playing against Rungsted.”
Club Trivia The full name of the hockey club is Hämeenlinnan Pallokerho (which translates to Hämeenlinna Ballclub) and was founded in 1929. The founding meeting took place on the 10th of December in a local coffee shop. For the first 17 years the club only competed in bandy. In 1946 the first ice hockey games were played. Throughout their history HPK have competed in many other sports – in addition to bandy and ice hockey also football, Finnish baseball, field hockey and boxing. All of these sports play a part in the history of HPK. In 1983 HPK played their first championship level games in Finland but were relegated back down to the first division the following year. HPK have played continuously in the Finnish Elite League since 1988. HPK’s logo was designed by Tapio Järvinen in the mid 1930’s.
Statements Head Coach Antti Pennanen’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We want to succeed in the Champions Hockey League. All in all, the CHL is a big challenge for us. Our first goal is of course to qualify for the Round of 16.”
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Players’ Trivia Defenceman Arto Laatikainen reached 900 regular season starts at the end of last season and is only the seventh player to reach that milestone in Liiga history. Laatikainen has the second highest amount of played games among active players in the league today. He has featured in 131 playoff games in Liiga, of which eight have been game 7’s. He is a three-time Finnish champion (2012, 2015 and 2019) and also a Swedish champion (2009). Laatikainen has the all-time most points for a defenceman in the Liiga Playoffs (12+55). Valtteri Puustinen’s 2018/2019 season was as good as it gets. Puustinen started his season in the HPK U20 team but earned his place in the first team by October. He amassed 47 regular season games (with 10+3 points) and 16 playoffs games (2+3). He won the U20 world championship and Finnish championship and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2019 NHL Draft.
Beyond Hockey HPK forward Jere Innala always draws a smiley face on his stick for good vibes. HPK forward Philippe Cornet’s orange game jersey went missing one day after the championship win from the Amarillo restaurant located in the city centre of Hämeenlinna. Cornet lent the jersey to a fan who thought Cornet had donated it to him. HPK offered a reward in the form of a championship snapback and a stick which Cornet played with in Oulu and got the jersey back. Arto Laatikainen’s nickname is “Lada”, which is also the name of a legendary Russian car brand. Lada ei hyydy – “A Lada does not lose power”, is a
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famous Finnish saying that also applies to 39 years old Laatikainen.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = jääkiekko Faceoff = aloitus Offside = paitsio Puck = kiekko Hockey stick = jääkiekkomaila Goal = maali Penalty = jäähy Referee = tuomari
Web & Social Media Website: www.oulunkarpat.fi Facebook: www.facebook.com/OulunKarpat Twitter: www.twitter.com/OulunKarpatFi Instagram: www.instagram.com/karpatofficial YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCuKMhEZEPcagB8AWONi6l8Q
KÄRPÄT OULU
Club Staff FOUNDED: 1946
Glory Times National titles: 8 – 1981, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2014, 2015, 2018
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2019/20: Quarter-Finals 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Round of 32 2015/16: Runners-up 2014/15: Semi-Finals
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as
President/Chairman: Heikki Kontsas CEO: Tommi Virkkunen General Manager: Harri Aho Sport Director: Ari Hilli Head Coach: Mikko Manner
Media Contact Iikka Pirttikoski, Ilkka Mikkola, Riikka Airio E-Mail: [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Phone number: +358 45 349 9508 +358 40 5200 610 +358 44 0264 545
Accreditation for CHL Home Games
Regular Season Winners
Accreditations by e-mail to [email protected]
Arena Info Name: Oulun Energia Areena Address: Teuvo Pakkalankatu 11, 90130 Oulu, Finland Capacity: 6,600 Year opened: 1975
Three Stars on the Team Jussi Jokinen: A veteran of almost a thousand regular season NHL games made his return to his former club Kärpät during the 2018/19 season. Racking up 21 points in 14 regular season games in Liiga proves that
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the experienced forward is still a force to be reckoned with in European hockey. Janne Pesonen: Much like Jussi Jokinen, 37-year-old Janne Pesonen returned to his former club. Pesonen spent the 2018/19 season with the Växjö Lakers in the SHL and recorded 30 points (17+13) in the regular season. The fourtime Finnish champions has also won championships in the SHL, KHL and the World Championship with the Finnish National Team. Ludwig Byström: 24-year-old defenceman Ludwig Byström has spent the last four seasons in the AHL. While Byström hasn’t been able to break through into the NHL, he has taken big leaps in his overall game in the past years, whilst still producing points. Last season Byström recorded 30 points (4+26) in 71 games with the Springfield Thunderbirds.
New Players for 2019/20 Janne Pesonen, F, Växjö Lakers (SHL) Ludwig Byström, D, Springfield Thunderbirds (AHL) Juho Lammikko, F, Florida Panthers (NHL) Patrik Rybàr, G, Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL) Jakub Krejcik, D, Lukko Rauma (Liiga)
Legendary Players in the Club Veikko Torkkeli Markku Kiimalainen Kai Suikkanen Kari Jalonen Reijo Ruotsalainen
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Janne Niinimaa Petr Tenkrat Niklas Bäckström Ilkka Mikkola Jari Viuhkola Mikko Lehtonen Sebastian Aho Pekka Rinne
Statements Head Coach Mikko Manner’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “It is a big honour to have a chance to play against the best teams of Europe. Of course, we want to play well and battle hard every night. This year our group is very interesting, so we must be prepared as soon as the first game starts. We want to live in the moment and get better and better with each match. Our dream is to advance from the Group Stage.” Head Coach Mikko Manner’s comments about the other teams in the group: SC Bern: “One of the biggest clubs in Europe, Bern are a club we have dreamt of meeting for many years now. Their head coach Kari Jalonen is one of the most successful coaches of Finnish ice hockey history and is also from Oulu – he even coached Kärpät for several years. That is one of the reasons why meeting Bern will be so exciting. They are also the favourites of the group, so it will be great to challenge them. We hope that both cities get a lot of fans to cheer their teams on.” Skellefteå AIK: “Finland against Sweden, north against north… Skellefteå are a traditional top club, that have been very successful in the Swedish league over the past 20 years. They have also developed a lot of NHL-level players, so there are a lot of similarities with our club. You can easily say that they are our “brothers”. But both
clubs want to be the “big brother”. We will have to let the hockey decide who will call themselves the “big brother” this year.” Grenoble: “Last year we played against Rouen and they were really good. Grenoble beat them in Game 7 in the French league championship, so we know that they are going to be even better. Ice hockey is developing fast across Europe, so we really respect the Grenoble team. We know that we need to be ready when we meet them in the first game at the end of August.”
Club Trivia Kärpät took its name from the ice hockey rulebook sent to them by a hockey team from Pori – Porin Kärpät. Kärpät fans are very proud that they are from the north, so every time the Finnish national anthem is sung at Kärpät`s games, the crowd yell the word “Pohjoinen” in the song – Pohjoinen means “north”.
Players’ Trivia Kärpät’s captain, Lasse Kukkonen, was a long-time captain of the Finnish national team and has won both the U18 and Men`s World Championships. Janne Pesonen is a four-time Liiga champion and has also won the SHL and KHL championships.
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Beyond Hockey There is a hockey camp for junior players held every summer in Oulu in Lasse Kukkonen`s name.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Jääkiekko Faceoff = Aloitus Offside = Paitsio Puck = Kiekko Hockey stick = Jääkiekkomaila Goal = Maali Penalty = Rangaistus / Jäähy Referee = Tuomari
Web & Social Media
TAPPARA TAMPERE
Website: www.tappara.fi Facebook: www.facebook.com/TapparaOfficial Twitter: www.twitter.com/TapparaOfficial Instagram: www.instagram.com/tapparafansofficial YouTube: www.youtube.com/TapparaOfficial
Club Staff President/Chairman: Heikki Penttilä General Manager: Mikko Leinonen Sport Director: Jussi Tapola Head Coach: Jukka Rautakorpi
FOUNDED: 1955 (PREDECESSOR TBK 1932)
Glory Times National titles: 17 – 1953*,1954*, 1955*, 1959, 1961, 1964, 1975, 1977, 1979, 1982, 1986, 1987, 1988, 2003, 2016, 2017 (* as TBK)
Media Contact
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances
Accreditation for CHL Home Games
2018/19: Round of 16 2017/18: Round of 16 2016/17: Round of 32 2015/16: Round of 16 2014/15: Round of 16
Send an e-mail to [email protected].
Tero Aalto E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +358 46 878 3406
Three Stars on the Team Kristian Kuusela: Team captain and 4th best point scorer in Liiga last season (19 goals, 35 assists, 54 points). Liiga’s alltime playoff point scoring leader and also #1 in goals. #8 in the all-time scoring list in regular season games. First time in Finnish World Championship team last spring as a 36-year-old. World Champion.
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as Regular Season Runners-Up
Arena Info Name: Hakametsä Stadium Address: Keltinkatu 2, 33530 Tampere, Finland Capacity: 7,300 Year opened: 1965
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Niko Ojamäki: Tappara’s best goal scorer last season: 24 goals in Liiga, 4 in the CHL. One of the new World Champions from last spring. Charles Bertrand: New player in the team. Scored 32 goals in Liiga in the 2016/17 season winning the scoring title. Played in the World Championships for France.
New Players for 2019/20 Charles Bertrand, RW, HC FribourgGottéron (NL) Tyler Morley, C, SaiPa Lappeenranta (Liiga) Olavi Vauhkonen, RW, Sport (Liiga) Alexander Ytterell, D, HV71 Jönköping (SHL) Patrik Virta, C, Örebro (SHL) Michael Garteig, Newfoundland Growlers (ECHL)
Legendary Players in the Club Pekka Marjamäki Kalevi Numminen Timo Jutila Timo Susi Janne Ojanen Erkki Lehtonen Antti Leppänen Teppo Numminen Martti Jarkko Patrik Laine Aleksander Barkov
Statements Head Coach Jukka Rautakorpi’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “Our first goal is to advance from the group stage. After that in the playoffs we must focus on beating one team at a time.” Head Coach Jukka Rautakorpi’s comments about the other teams in the group: KAC Klagenfurt: “Being the champions of EBEL says a lot about their standard. Added value for us is their familiar Finnish head coach.” EHC Biel-Bienne: “A team that has taken big steps forward in recent years. Offensively a very strong team. Another Finnish Head Coach: Antti Törmänen, who has succeeded in getting the team to commit in their common values.” Frisk Asker: “Last year in the CHL we played against Storhamar from Norway, winning one game and losing another. Those games showed us that the level of Norwegian hockey is good. And now we’ll meet the team that beat Storhamar in the finals so this will be a challenge.”
Club Trivia Tappara appeared on the hockey map in 1955 when TBK’s (Tammerfors Bollklubb) ice-hockey section separated from the Swedish-speaking mother club and chose a new name in Finnish language to draw a wider selection of young talent in Tampere. The separation was friendly and Tappara continued TBK’s hockey tradition in a straight line, their merits added together. In recent decades, younger generations unfamiliar to this history and basically acting mostly out of envy, have tried to undermine this tradition, stating that TBK’s and Tappara’s championships and other merits should be counted sepa-
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rately. However, the official stance is still as it has been since the separation year of 1955 – that Tappara are a continuum of TBK hockey and they are counted as one. The Tappara logo was designed by artist Kimmo Kaivanto who was later named as Artist of the Year in Finland and received an honorary title of Professor. Team mascot Tapsu will be celebrating his 10th birthday this season. Tahdon Portaat (the Stairs of Will) is a traditional training session held in the long stairs of Pyynikinharju ridge a few times every summer. Tappara played in the Liiga Finals for six years in-a-row (2013 – 2018) – this is a national record.
Players’ Trivia Kristian Kuusela is leading the Finnish Liiga’s playoff all-time statistics in both goals and total points. He took the #1 spot in points last spring in the semi-finals. Three former Tappara captains have played for KAC Klagenfurt: Pertti Koivulahti, Seppo Ahokainen, and Harri Laurila. Klagenfurt head coach Petri Matikainen started his Liiga career playing for Tappara for two seasons in 1987 – 89 – winning the championship in his first season. EHC Biel-Bienne’s defenceman Anssi Salmela started his career in Tappara juniors and also played for the Liiga team for a few seasons.
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Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Jääkiekko Faceoff = Aloitus Offside = Paitsio Puck = Kiekko Hockey stick = Maila Goal = Maali Penalty = Jäähy Referee = Tuomari
Web & Social Media Website: www.pelicans.fi Facebook: www.facebook.com/LahdenPelicans Twitter: www.twitter.com/PelicansFi Instagram: www.instagram.com/lahdenpelicans YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/TVPel
LAHTI PELICANS
Club Staff President/Chairman: Pentti Matikainen CEO: Tomi-Pekka Kolu Sport Director: Janne Laukkanen Head Coach: Ville Nieminen
FOUNDED: 1996
Glory Times National titles: none
Media Contact
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Jesse Pyykkö E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +358 50 370 6988
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Accreditation for CHL Home games through e-mail. Accreditations need to be sent by e-mail before 14.00 one day prior to the game.
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL season as Regular Season Third-Placed
Accreditation may be requested with an e-mail message to [email protected]
Arena Info
Following information is required on the message:
Name: Isku Areena Address: Svinhufvudinkatu 29, 15110 Lahti, Finland Capacity: 5,371 Year opened: 1973
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–– Name, Phone number, e-mail –– Represented media –– Game in question –– Job (Reporter, photographer, radio, TV etc.)
Three Stars on the Team
Legendary Players in the Club
Jesse Ylönen: Young up-and-coming, second generation forward. 2nd round pick for the Montreal Canadiens in 2018. His father Juha is a 1995 world champion and played in the NHL from 1996-2002, which also means Jesse was born in the USA. He is a talented forward with exceptional skating abilities and a good wrist shot. He won the U20 World Championship last year – scoring in the final.
Pasi Nurminen Jan Latvala Marko Jantunen Leo Komarov Antti Niemi
Juhamatti Aaltonen: Aaltonen is one the best-known players in the whole Finnish Hockey League. 4-time Finnish Champion and a 2011 World Champion. He has scored 246 points in 371 games in the Finnish Hockey League and 132 points in 201 games in the KHL, averaging 0.66 points per game in both. Aaltonen is known for his magical puck handling skills and his ability to score goals. Hannes Björninen: One of the youngest captains in Liiga history, Hannes carried the captain’s “C” throughout the season at only 22-years of age. He got the chance to play for the Finnish national team last year after recording his best ever personal points record (34p). He’s every coach’s dream player, with his fluent work ethic and hardworking attitude. He is regarded as one of the best defensive centers in the league.
New Players for 2019/20 Matteo Pietroniro, D, Chicago Steel (USHL) Topi Jaakola, D, TPS Turku ( Liiga) Atte Tolvanen, G, Syracuse Crunch (AHL) Frank Gymer, F, KalPa Kuopio (Liiga) Otto Nieminen, F, TPS Turku (Liiga) Jonatan Tanus, F, SaiPa Lappeenranta (Liiga) Janos Hári, Fehervar AV19 (EBEL)
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Statements Head Coach Ville Nieminen’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “The CHL is an extremely big and important challenge for us. This is the first time we are playing international games in Lahti, which is huge for the city. Our team is young and hungry, so the players are dedicated to proving themselves on an international level.” Head Coach Ville Nieminen’s comments about the other teams in the group: Oceláři Třinec: “Champions of the Czech Hockey league. Extremely difficult opponents, who we face in our first game. They are definitely the favourite of Group D. We’ve also heard that they have crazy loud fans, so we are looking forward to seeing the atmosphere in Třinec.” Lausanne HC: “A traditional Swiss club, that had an awesome season last year. Their Finnish coaching staff and players will surely add tension to the match. Their whole roster is filled with quality players so to beat them we must put on our A game.” Yunost Minsk: “An exotic opponent. We are looking forward to meeting them, they are used to winning in their national league so that winning culture is in their blood. In Belarus hockey is usually tough and physical so we need to be at least as tough as them when facing them.”
Club Trivia
Beyond Hockey
We have a mascot which is a Pelican named Pekko
Taavi Vartiainen and Antti Tyrväinen are into tattoos. Taavi is most likely the only team athlete in the world who has his teammate’s (Tyrväinen) name with a little heart tattooed on his shoulder. The tattoo was also made by Antti Tyrväinen during a team promotional video (He had no prior experience of tattooing).
Special tradition in Lahti / At Isku Areena is “The Meat Mug” (Lihamuki) which is a traditional street food from Lahti. It consists of only meat with garlic and hot sauce with some jalapenos. It is served in a mug. The Pelicans are working towards achieving carbon neutrality. We are working together with the city of Lahti to become the first carbon neutral hockey team in the world. Famous Pelicans fans: Valtteri Bottas, Jari Litmanen, Janne Ahonen, Mikko Ilonen JuniorPelicans is the biggest junior organization in Lahti
Players’ Trivia Juhamatti Aaltonen: four-time Finnish Champion, 1time World Champion, played in WC 5 times. Aaltonen had the best +/− statistics during last CHL season (Played in Skellefteå). Topi Jaakola: 4time Finnish Champion, 1time World Champion, played in WC 7 times. Jesse Ylönen: U20 World Champion (2019) The club’s active roster has 22 players that have played in the national team (U16, U17, U20 or mens) at some point. Only 4 players haven’t played in the national team of their country.
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Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Jääkiekko Faceoff = Aloitus Offside = Paitsio Puck = Kiekko Hockey stick = Maila Goal = Maali Penalty = Jäähy Referee = Tuomari
Web & Social Media
ADLER MANNHEIM
Website: www.adler-mannheim.de Facebook: www. facebook.com/dieadlermannheim Twitter: www.twitter.com/adlermannheim Instagram: www.instagram.com/ adlermannheim_official YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/ DieAdlerMannheimTV
FOUNDED: 1938
Club Staff
Glory Times
President/Chairman: Daniel Hopp CEO: Matthias Binder General Manager: Jan-Axel Alavaara Team Manager: Youri Ziffzer Head Coach: Pavel Gross
National titles: 8 – 1980, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2007, 2015, 2019 German Pokal cup: 2 – 2003, 2007
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Round of 16 2016/17: Group Stage (3rd in Group C) 2015/16: Round of 32 2014/15: Group Stage (4th in Group G)
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as:
Media Contact Name: Adrian Parejo E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +49 621 18 190 337 Mobile number: +49 174 375 18 14
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Send an e-mail to: [email protected]
National Champions
Three Stars on the Team
Arena Info Name: SAP Arena Address: An der Arena 1, 68163 Mannheim, Germany Capacity: 13,600 Year opened: 2005
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Dennis Endras: The 33-year-old is one of Germany’s top goalies. After spending five of his first six professional seasons with DEL club Augsburg Panther, he had a short stint playing for the AHL’s Houston Aeros and Finnish club IFK Helsinki in 2011/12. In 2010 he led the German national team to their biggest success in
decades, when they reached the World Championship semi-finals in Germany. That year he was also voted Best Goalkeeper of the tournament. In 2014/15 he had 8 shutouts while leading the team to the championship. After winning the silver medal with the German national team in 2018, he was named MVP of the 2019 finals, when Mannheim won their 8th league title. Marcel Goc: He has participated in three Olympic Games and nine World Championships, leading the German national team as captain in 2012, 2016 and at the Winter Olympic Games in 2018, when the German national team won a silver medal – their biggest success in decades. After leaving Mannheim for the NHL in 2003, Marcel Goc returned home in 2015 with 699 NHL games for San Jose, Nashville, Florida, Pittsburgh and St. Louis. He has battled with injuries since signing for Adler but won his first ever title with the club in 2019. Marcel is regarded as one of the best German ice hockey players ever. Ben Smith: Ben Smith has won three championships in three different leagues in the past seven years. After winning the Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2013, he led the Toronto Marlies to the Calder Cup in 2018 as captain. He completed his “championship triple” with Adler Mannheim, when he played a big part in Mannheim’s 8th league title. The smart forward joined the German club in the summer of 2018 – his first club outside of North America. He is a good skater and takes care of his responsibilities in all three zones. Ben is a very valuable player, who acts as a leading example with his excellent work ethic.
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New Players for 2019/20 Johan Gustafsson, G, Frölunda Indians (SHL) Björn Krupp, D, Wolfsburg (DEL) Chad Billins, D, Linköping HC (SHL) Jan-Mikael Järvinen, F, Tappara Tampere (Liiga) Borna Rendulic, F, Podolsk (KHL) Tim Stützle, F, Jungadler Mannheim (DNL)
Legendary Players in the Club Werner Lorenz Harold Kreis Kurt Sepp Bruno Guttowski Marcus Kuhl René Corbet Stéphane Richer Jochen Hecht Ronny Arendt
Statements Head Coach Pavel Gross’ comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We have a very tough group with three very strong opponents. All four teams are going to fight extremely hard. We are going to prepare ourselves for every single game with the same mentality as for a domestic game – we want to advance as far possible. “ Head Coach Pavel Gross’ comments about the other teams in the group: Djurgården Stockholm: “Definitely the strongest team in our group. They have a very talented, skilled and fast team. Playing a Swedish team is always a tough challenge for us, so we have to bring our best.”
Vienna Capitals: “The Capitals are one of Austria’s top teams, that’s for sure. They have an experienced group of guys that have played together for many years.” GKS Tychy: “Tychy are a very skilled team that skate a lot. They are going to come at us hard, especially at home. They are for sure a tough team to play against and it’s going to be a big challenge for us.”
Club Trivia Our mascot is a hamster named Udo, just like our stadium announcer. Why a hamster? Because the area where the SAP Arena was built in 2003, is an area where a special hamster species lived. Due to the construction the hamsters had to relocate, so to honour them the club chose a hamster as its mascot. Hockey in the city of Mannheim was first established in 1938, when Mannheimer ERC (MERC) first took the ice. MERC won their first German championship in 1980. In 1994, ice hockey in Mannheim experienced some changes when Adler Mannheim was founded from MERC and joined Germany’s newly founded professional league, the DEL, the same year. Adler quickly became a success, both on and off the ice. Adler Mannheim have collected eight championships, three more finals appearances, and won Germany’s “Pokal-Cup” twice. Since 2005, the club has played all its home games in the SAP Arena, which has a seating capacity of 13,600. Adler, along with their loyal fans, have earned the nickname “Hockey Town” for the city of Mannheim. Adler proudly support the most successful junior academy in the DEL: Adler’s junior teams have collected 16 championships in the DNL, Germany’s highest youth league.
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Adler Mannheim founded a non-profit and charitable organisation called “Adler helfen Menschen e.V.” in 2007, to help distressed, dishonoured and people in need. Together with the club this non-profit organizes many different charity events throughout the season. For example, the game of the flashing hearts right before Christmas. With these events and the help of donors the organisation has collected close to one million euros for non-profit purposes.
Players’ Trivia Borna Rendulić became a part of Croatian sports history, when he became the first Croatian ice hockey player to begin his career in Croatia and go on to sign with an NHL club. Johan Gustafsson has won the CHL trophy with the Frölunda Indians twice. Headcoach Pavel Gross is the first person to win the national league title both as a player and as a coach with the same club – Adler Mannheim. Adler Mannheim have six silver medal winners from 2018 in their roster – Dennis Endras, Sinan Akdag, Matthias Plachta, Marcel Goc, Marcus Kink and David Wolf
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Eishockey Faceoff = Bully Offside = Abseits Puck = Puck Hockey stick = Schläger Goal = Tor Penalty = Strafe Referee = Schiedsrichter
Web & Social Media
RED BULL MUNICH
Website: www.redbullmuenchen.de Facebook: www.facebook.com/ EHCRedBullMuenchen Twitter: www.twitter.com/redbullmuenchen Instagram: www.instagram.com/redbullmuenchen YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/ EHCRedBullMuenchen
FOUNDED: 1998
Club Staff
Glory Times
President/Chairman: René Dimter CEO: René Dimter General Manager: René Dimter Sport Director: Christian Winkler Head Coach: Don Jackson
National titles: 3 – 2016, 2017, 2018 Other: DEB Cup Winner 2009
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Runners-Up 2017/18: Round of 16 2016/17: Round of 32 2015/16: Round of 32 2014/15: Did not qualify
Media Contact Emanuel Hugl E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +49 89 306691027
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Online: www.redbullmuenchen.de/ akkreditierung
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as Regular Season Runners-Up
Three Stars on the Team Danny aus den Birken: Voted as best Goalie of the Olympic tournament, Danny was the backbone of Germanys Silver-Medal Heroes. The calm goaltender celebrated his fourth national title in 2018 – his third with the Red Bulls.
Arena Info Name: Olympia-Eisstadion Address: Spiridon-Louis-Ring 3, 80809 Munich, Germany Capacity: 6,142 Year opened: 1967
Yannic Seidenberg: He turned into a defender after playing most of his career as a forward. In 2018 he was voted Defender
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of the Year in the DEL and Playoff-MVP a year before in 2017. He has won three national titles with the Red Bulls and was also part of Germanys Silver-Medal-Team at the Olympics.
Derek Roy, F, Linköping HC (SHL) Philip Gogulla, F, Düsseldorfer EG (DEL) Christopher Bourque, F, Bridgeport Sound Tigers (AHL) John-Jason Peterka, F, Red Bull Akademie (Czech U19) Blake Parlett, D, Kunlun Red Star (KHL) Luca Zitterbart, D, EV Landshut (DEL2)
Head Coach Don Jackson’s comments about the other teams in the group: Färjestad Karlstad: “Färjestad have an impressive history within the Swedish league. They experienced a strong regular season but a difficult ending in the semifinals last season. We expect them to be a very tough opponent.” HC Ambrì-Piotta: “To open the season against a skilled Swiss team that will play in the CHL for the first time is certainly a big challenge. We are certain to start tough and competitive right from the start.” HC05 Banská Bystrica: “They have dominated the Slovakian league in recent years and know what it takes to win big games. They have what it takes to make it to the playoffs, so we will have to be ready for a tough battle against them.”
Legendary Players in the Club
Club Trivia
Michael Wolf Keith Aucoin Joey Vollmer
The Red Bulls played in Lederhosen-Jerseys for the Oktoberfest for several years now. Justin Bieber practiced with the Red Bulls in September 2016. The Red Bulls played a hockey game on top of Germanys’ highest mountain, Zugspitze (2.962m above sea level).
Mads Christensen: Danish Dynamite on ice: the forward brings a lot of emotion and physical presence to the game and is never shy of hitting in the hurtful spots. He has won the Danish championship five times and the German title six times.
New Players for 2019/20
Statements Head Coach Don Jackson’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We are pleased to have earned another opportunity to compete in the Champions Hockey League. We feel that the experience of playing in the finals and the opportunity to play the CHL champions Frölunda last season has given us the best possible chance to accomplish our goal of taking that next step and winning the competition.”
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Players’ Trivia Daryl Boyle, Yannic Seidenberg, Danny aus den Birken, Frank Mauer, Yasin Ehliz and Patrick Hager were part of the Olympic Silver-Medal-Team of 2018.
Beyond Hockey Konrad Abeltshauser enjoys knitting on long bus rides.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Eishockey Faceoff = Bully Offside = Abseits Puck = Puck Hockey stick = Schläger Goal = Tor Penalty = Strafe Referee = Schiedsrichter
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Web & Social Media Website: www.aev-panther.de Facebook: www.facebook.com/aev.panther Twitter: www.twitter.com/aevpanther Instagram: www.instagram.com/aevpanther YouTube: www.youtube.com/aevpanther
AUGSBURGER PANTHER
Club Staff President/Chairman: Lothar Sigl CEO: Lothar Sigl General Manager: Lothar Sigl Sport Director: Duanne Moeser Head Coach: Tray Tuomie
FOUNDED: 1878
Glory Times
Media Contact
National titles: none
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Stefan Esch E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +49 821 503 05 0
Accreditation for CHL Home Games All journalists are supposed to accredit themselves 48 hours prior to the game via e-mail to [email protected].
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as
www.aev-panther.de/tickets/presse.html (German only)
Regular Season Third-Placed
Three Stars on the Team
Arena Info Name: Curt-Frenzel-Stadion Address: Senkelbachstrasse 2, 86153 Augsburg, Germany Capacity: 6,139 Year opened: 1963 (renovated between 2010-2014)
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Drew LeBlanc: He won the Hobey Baker Award in 2013 as the top National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) men’s ice hockey player. LeBlanc signed a contract with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2013 and featured in two games for the Blackhawks during the 2012-13 NHL season. He was selected to represent the
United States at the 2013 IIHF World Championship. LeBlanc signed a contract with us in 2015 and became one of the league’s best centers scoring 193 points in 215 games in the DEL. Christoph Ullmann: Played in 886 DEL games for Augsburg, Mannheim and Köln. Won the championship with Mannheim in 2007 and 2015. Has represented Germany at 10 IIHF World Championships (2004, 06, 07, 08, 09, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15). Ullmann has been part of our organization since the 18-19 campaign and became a real leader in the team. Also, “Ulle” is with the experience of 24 CHL and 22 European Trophy games. Steffen Tölzer: Coming out of our own junior hockey program Steffen Tölzer has never played for any other team than Augsburg. He is the team’s captain since 2015. The 2019-20 season will be the 17th for Tölzer as an Augsburger Panther in the DEL. He is the only player left from our legendary team of 2009-10, that despite regarded as complete underdogs, managed to reach the DEL Finals.
New Players for 2019/20 Niklas Länger, D, Augsburger EV U20 (DNL) Dennis Miller, F, MHK Spartak Moskva (MHL) Alex Lambacher, F, Adler Mannheim (DEL) Jakob Mayenschein, F, EHC Red Bull Munich (DEL) Mitch Callahan, F, Bakersfield Condors (AHL)
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Legendary Players in the Club Duanne Moeser Paul Ambros Vladmir Dzurilla Jaroslav Pouzar Tom Kühnhackl Nico Sturm Udo Kießling Xaver Unsinn Heinz Ehlers
Statements Head Coach Tray Tuomie’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “Our players earned the right to play in the Champions Hockey League. We want to be a tough team to play against und want to try to win some hockey games. Being part of the CHL is a whole new and great experience for our players, our whole organization and for our fans.” Head Coach Tray Tuomie’s comments about the other teams in the group: Luleå Hockey: “One of Sweden’s best hockey teams over the last few years. They finished 2nd in the regular season in 18-19 and lost in the playoff semis against eventual champions Frölunda. We expect them to be a highly talented, skilled and hardworking opponent.” Bílí Tygři Liberec: “For sure a skilled team with lots of individual quality spread all over their roster. They’ve already proven that they are one of the best teams in the Czech Republic and so they’ll play a big role in our group too. “ Belfast Giants: “Just like us they’ve qualified for the Champions Hockey League for the first time in their history. They play a North American style of hockey and will fight hard for points in the round-robin.
Many fans from Augsburg will travel to Belfast so we hope to have an away game full of atmosphere in Northern Ireland.”
German Championship: Henry Haase (Berlin 2013), John Rogl (München 2016), Christoph Ullmann (Mannheim 2007 & 2015)
Club Trivia
Markus Keller – DEL2 Champion and Playoff MVP for Kassel in 2016
Founded in 1878 we are the oldest German ice hockey club Founded as Augsburger Eislaufverein we had a change of name to Augsburger Panther at the start of the 94-95 season, when all the DEL clubs decided to integrate animals into their club names Original-Six-Team of the DEL (besides Mannheim, Köln, Berlin, Nürnberg, Krefeld)
German National team experience: Christoph Ullmann, Simon Sezemsky, John Rogl, Marco Sternheimer, Daniel Schmölz, Jaroslav Hafenrichter, Thomas Holzmann Alex Lambacher – represented Italy at the IIHF World Championships in 2017, 2018 and 2019
Beyond Hockey
Mascot: Panther “Datschi” since February 2016
Sport Director Duanne Moeser has his own charity organisation (7x Sieben)
Played the longest playoff-series in DEL history with 504:46 minutes in the 2019 semis vs. München
Drew LeBlanc studied math
Fan: Rudolf Wildegger: Has his own Panther-Museum in his apartment
Henry Haase: his girlfriend Sarah Hecken participated at the 2010 Winter Olympics in figure skating
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language
Players’ Trivia Out of our own junior hockey program: Moritz Borst, Markus Keller, Steffen Tölzer, Niklas Länger, Marco Sternheimer Drew LeBlanc – won the Hobey Baker Award in 2013
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Ice Hockey = Eishockey Faceoff = Bully Offside = Abseits Puck = Puck Hockey stick = Eishockeyschläger Goal = Tor Penalty = Strafe Referee = Schiedsrichter
Web & Social Media Website: www.scb.ch Facebook: www.facebook.com/SCBern Twitter: www.twitter.com/scbern_news Instagram: www.instagram.com/sc_bern_official YouTube: www.youtube.com/SCBernChannel
SC BERN
Club Staff President/Chairman: Beat Brechbühl CEO: Marc Lüthi General Manager: Alex Chatelain Team Manager: Sandra Rolli Head Coach: Kari Jalonen
FOUNDED: 1931
Glory Times National titles: 16 – 1959, 1965, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1979, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1997, 2004, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2019 Swiss Ice Hockey Cup: 2 – 1965, 2015
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances
Media Contact Christian Dick E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +41 79 607 25 50
2018/19: Round of 16 2017/18: Quarter-Finals 2016/17: Quarter-Finals 2015/16: Group Stage (3rd in Group A) 2014/15: Group Stage (4th in Group E)
Accreditation for CHL Home Games
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as
Three Stars on the Team
National Champions
Arena Info Name: PostFinance-Arena Address: Mingerstrasse 12B, 3014 Bern, Switzerland Capacity: 17,031 Year opened: 1967 (2007-2009 renovated)
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Accreditation via e-mail to [email protected] two days before game day at latest.
Calle Andersson: The Swedish defender with a Swiss license has improved continuously over the last two seasons as an offensive defender. In 2018/19 he played his best ever season with Bern – scoring more points than ever before. Besides that, he also showed very good powerplay qualities and has become one of the best defenders in the Swiss National League.
Simon Moser: Because of Simon Moser’s great personality and his self-sacrificing style of play he is the ideal captain. He is a player who never gives up and with his power and assertiveness is indispensable for the team both on and off the ice. Mark Arcobello: The American forward has shown that he is one of the best players outside of the NHL in the past three years that he has spent at SC Bern. On one hand he has both extraordinary creativity and on the other he has outstanding graduation qualities. If Mark Arcobello is on the ice, you can always expect to see a promising play.
New Players for 2019/20 Niklas Schlegel, G, ZSC Lions (NL) Miika Koivisto, D, Dynamo Moskva (KHL) Inti Pestoni, F, HC Davos (NL) Vincent Praplan, F, Springfield Thunderbirds (AHL)
Legendary Players in the Club Marco Bührer Roland Dellsperger Alan Haworth Patrick Howald Renzo Holzer David Jobin René Kiener Sven Leuenberger Gaetano Orlando Martin Plüss Martin Rauch Marc Reichert Reijo Ruotsalainen Ivo Rüthemann Peter Stammbach Renato Tosio
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Statements Head Coach Kari Jalonen’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We want to go through to the playoff rounds and at the same time develop our game plan.” Head Coach Kari Jalonen’s comments about the other teams in the group: Kärpät Oulu: “Kärpät is my youth team and I grew up in Oulu. Kärpät are one of the best organizations in Europe.” Skellefteå AIK: “Skellefteå have been a top team in Sweden for many years now. I played there for one year and I have good memories of the club and of the town.” Grenoble: “Last year Rouen surprised everybody. I hope we will see another good French team this year.”
Club Trivia SCB have had an average league match attendance of over 16,000 spectators for the past twelve years and are the club with the highest attendance in Europe over the past 18 years. Almost 10,000 seats of the 17,031-spectator capacity PostFinance-Arena are for standing. The “Berner Marsch”, the old traditional, unofficial ‘Bernese’ hymn is played before each home league game. At the same time the fans in the standing section stands hold up a flag 40 x 20 meters large as the players enter the rink.
Players’ Trivia Head coach Kari Jalonen played for Kärpät Oulu, his youth team, and also for Skellefteå throughout his career as a player. Defender Beat Gerber, aged 37, is not only the oldest player on the team, but is also the club’s record holder in number of seasons played for SCB (16). With 6 Swiss Championship titles he is also the club’s record holder in number of titles.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Eishockey Faceoff = Bully Offside = Abseits Puck = Puck/Scheibe Hockey stick = Stock Goal = Tor Penalty = Strafe Referee = Schiedsrichter
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Web & Social Media Website: www.evz.ch Facebook: www.facebook.com/officialevz Twitter: www.twitter.com/official_EVZ Instagram: www.instagram.com/official_EVZ/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/ UCAia28ikXDn5Rwd2eJMQTHg
EV ZUG
Club Staff FOUNDED: 1967
President/Chairman: Hans-Peter Strebel CEO: Patrick Lengwiler General Manager: Reto Kläy Sport Director: Reto Kläy Head Coach: Dan Tangnes
Glory Times National titles: 1 – 1998 Swiss Ice Hockey Cup: 1 – 2019
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2019/20: Round of 16 2017/18: Round of 16 2016/17: Round of 32 2015/16: Group Stage (3rd in Group B) 2014/15: Group Stage (2nd in Group H)
Media Contact Marisa Hürlimann E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +41 41 725 31 07
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Requests for accreditation for EV Zug home games are to be submitted either via the accreditation form or using the online form on our website. All information, the accreditation and online form can be found on www.evz.ch/en/about-us/ media.
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as Regular Season Runners-Up
Arena Info Name: BOSSARD Arena Address: General-Guisan-Strasse 4, 6303 Zug, Switzerland Capacity: 7,200 Year opened: 2010
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Please note that the deadline for such applications is at 12:00 on the day prior to the match and for weekend games at 12:00 on the Friday before. Late applications for accreditation or requests by telephone cannot be accepted.
Three Stars on the Team Leonardo Genoni: The 182 cm tall and 87 kg heavy goalie made his debut with the ZSC Lions in the National League in 2003. In 2007 he switched to HC Davos, with whom he won the championship three times in nine years and the Spengler Cup twice. In 2016 he signed a three-year contract with SC Bern, with whom he won his fifth personal title in 2019 after beating EVZ 4:1 in the play-off final. He moved to Zug at the start of this season and signed a five-year contract with the club. He has played 87 international matches for the Swiss national team and won a silver medal at the 2018 World Championship in Denmark. Grégory Hofmann: In 2007 Grégory Hofmann moved from his youth club La Chaux-de-Fonds to the junior team of Ambri-Piotta. Here he made his debut in the Swiss NLA in the 2009/2010 season. From 2012 to 2015 he played for HC Davos, with whom he won the championship title in 2015. Since 2015, the 182 cm tall and 90 kg heavy power winger has been raging for HC Lugano. Here he has become one of the most feared Swiss strikers. By the end of last season, he played 491 games in the Swiss top tier and scored 283 points. He has played 57 international matches with the national team and won a silver medal in Copenhagen in 2018. In 2011 he was drafted by the NHL organization of the Carolina Hurricanes as No. 103 in the 4th round.
Jan Kovář: Kovář won the Czech championship in 2013 with HC Plzen and then transferred to Russian top club Metallurg Magnitogorsk, with whom he won the Gagarin Cup in 2014 and 2016. Last season he tried his luck in the organization of the New York Islanders and the Providence Bruins before returning to his home club HC Plzen for the rest of the season. He signed a one-year contract with Zug at the start of this season.
New Players for 2019/20 Leonardo Genoni, G, SC Bern (NL) Grégory Hofmann, F, HC Lugano (NL) Jérôme Bachofner, F, ZSC Lions (NL) Jan Kovar, F, HC Pilsen (TELH) Erik Thorell, F, IFK Helsinki (Liiga)
Legendary Players in the Club Philipp Neuenschwander Patrick Fischer André Künzi
Statements Head Coach Dan Tangnes’ comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We want to win everything we compete in, so the CHL is no exception. With that said, we have a lot of respect for the competition, but it’s time for a Swiss team to win and why not EV Zug.” Head Coach Dan Tangnes’ comments about the other teams in the group: HPK Hämeenlinna / HC Pilsen: “With the new format all the groups are tough. Our group is no exception. Finish champions HPK and Czech Pilsen are two very good teams and it will be fun for Santeri Alatalo (HPK) and Jan Kovář (PLZ) to play against their former teams.”
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Rungsted Seier Capital: “Rungsted had a great year winning the Danish championship and EVZ has a great relationship with the Danes. It’s a tough group, but we look forward to the challenge.”
Club Trivia EVZ means Eissportverein Zug. EVZ is the only Club in Switzerland with “Eissportverein” in its name, which makes it unique for the fans.
Players’ Trivia HC Pilsen is Jan Kovář’s former club. HPK is Santeri Alatalo’s former club. Raphael Diaz – Captain of the Swiss National Team (WC Silver Medalist 2018) Fabian Schnyder – 868 National League games for EV Zug (club record)
Beyond Hockey Raphael Diaz – has his own Golf and Hockey Trophy to support young hockey players in Switzerland Dominik Schlumpf – he’s a painter
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Eishockey Faceoff = Bully Offside = Offside Puck = Puck Hockey stick = Eishockeystock Goal = Tor Penalty = Strafe Referee = Schiedsrichter
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Web & Social Media Website: www.lausannehc.ch Facebook: www.facebook.com/LausanneHC Twitter: www.twitter.com/lausannehc Instagram: www.instagram.com/lausannehc_officiel YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/LHCCHANNEL Flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/lausannehc
LAUSANNE HC FOUNDED: 1922
Club Staff
Glory Times
President/Chairman: Patrick de Preux CEO: Sacha Weibel General Manager: John Gobbi Sport Director: Jan Alston Head Coach: Ville Peltonen
National titles: none
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances
Media Contact
2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Thierry Meyer, Head of Communications Michael Pattaroni, Media relations
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as
Phone number: +41 21 623 31 04 +41 21 623 31 18
E-Mail: [email protected] [email protected]
Regular Season Third-Placed
Arena Info
Accreditation for CHL Home Games
Name: Vaudoise aréna Address: Chemin du Viaduc 14, 1008 Prilly, Switzerland Capacity: 9,600 Year opened: 2019
Requests for accreditation for Lausanne HC home games are to be submitted using the online form on our website. All information, the accreditation and online form can be found on www.lausannehc.ch/media-center-english.
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Please note that the deadline for such applications is at 12:00 on the day prior to the match and for weekend games at 12:00 on the Friday before. Late applications for accreditation or requests by telephone cannot be accepted.
Three Stars on the Team Christoph Bertschy: Christoph Bertschy, a forward who can play in the centre or on the wing, arrived in Lausanne at the beginning of the 2018-19 season. A fast and dynamic player, with a shooting mentality, he can be lined up in all game situations. He played for three seasons in North America. He has also been selected for the Swiss National Team on numerous occasions and took part of the last World Championships in Bratislava. Lukas Frick: 24-year-old Lukas Frick is a complete defenceman. WC runner-up with the Swiss National Team in 2018 (and a regular member of the Swiss roster), he had a very good 2018-19 season, recording 20 points in 62 games. His contract with the Lausanne Hockey Club runs until 2021. Dustin Jeffrey: Canadian Dustin Jeffrey is the playmaker of Lausanne Hockey Club. Useful in all game situations, he has played for the club for the past three seasons. Top Scorer in Lausanne over the last three seasons and National League top scorer in 2017-18, he has recorded a total of 167 points in 159 games combined in the league.
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New Players for 2019/20 Tobias Stephan, G, EV Zug (NL) Cody Almond, F, Genève-Servette (NL) Josh Jooris, F, Toronto Marlies (AHL) Victor Oejdemark, D, EV Zug Academy (Swiss League) Fabian Heldner, D, HC Davos (NL) Teemu Pulkkinen, F, Dinamo Minsk (KHL)
Legendary Players in the Club Gérard Dubi Claude Friederich Jean-Guy Gratton Beat Kindler Claude Verret
Statements Head Coach Ville Peltonen’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “This competition will allow us, both players and coaches, to gain experience by competing against the best teams on the continent. This is the first time Lausanne HC will participate in the Champions Hockey League and we want to play well and try to finish as one of the top two teams in the group to advance to the playoffs. The opportunity to play such vital games before the start of the regular season of the Swiss National League is also something positive. I also believe that the trips will also help develop team cohesion at a key moment in the season.” Head Coach Ville Peltonen’s comments about the other teams in the group: Oceláři Třinec: “They have a very strong team and are the defending champions of the Czech Republic. They competed in the Spengler Cup last winter. They have several very good players. The coach has shaped the team, which plays very aggres-
sively. We will play both games against this team after our National League season has already started. Both teams will be ready, which should lead to some great games of hockey.” Lahti Pelicans: “They had a very good season in Finland. Lots of good qualities, especially their work ethic. The team is made up of good young players, supervised by a few veterans with experience from the KHL. They played very well and are looking forward to another strong season.” Yunost Minsk: “We will start the competition against this team. It is difficult to judge their level compared to last year. But the fact that Yunost returns to the CHL speaks volumes of the club and the team. I know that hockey is a big sport in Belarus and the fans are passionately behind their team.”
Club Trivia Until 1983 the home rink was a 1937 structure with no roof until 1978 and a capacity of 8000 The “virage ouest” (west turn), in reference to the position of the home fans stands in the old Malley rink (1983–2017), is famous for its loud and constant support from the home fans.
During the 1978–79 season, the head coach of Arosa, then Switzerland’s top team, called Lausanne “pigs”. On the next LHC-Arosa game, the home fans put pigs’ feet – fresh from the butcher – on the Arosa bench One of the very inventive “Section Ouest” (home kop) favourite songs is based on “You are not alone” by Michael Jackson. Another one states that the fans like their team “better than cocaine, my girlfriend, or the happy hour”. During the 2004–2005 NHL lock-out, Canadian superstar Martin St-Louis played with LHC. He left before the end of the season due to his wife expecting a baby. And LHC was relegated… Swiss tennis star Stan Wawrinka has been a board member of the club for 5 years, since 2015. Swiss tennis champion Timea Baczinczky is a big fan and regularly attends home games. Both were born in Lausanne.
Players’ Trivia Lukas Frick – WC Silver Medalist 2018 with the Swiss National Team Joël Genazzi – WC Silver Medalist 2018 with the Swiss National Team Joël Vermin – WC Silver Medalist 2018 with the Swiss National Team Ronalds Kenins – 3-time Swiss Champion with ZSC Lions Robin Grossmann – 2-time Swiss Champion with HC Davos
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Beyond Hockey Tyler Moy – he’s a drawer. He was a student at Harvard University. Joël Genazzi – he’s involved in the association Zoé4Life.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Hockey sur glace Faceoff = Mise en jeu Offside = Hors-jeu Puck = Rondelle Hockey stick = Canne de hockey Goal = But Penalty = Pénalité Referee = Arbitre
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Web & Social Media Website: www.ehcb.ch Facebook: www.facebook.com/ehcb.ch Twitter: www.twitter.com/ehcbiel Instagram: www.instagram.com/official_ehcb.ch YouTube: www.youtube.com/EHCBOfficial Snapchat: ehcb_official
EHC BIEL-BIENNE FOUNDED: 1939
Club Staff
Glory Times
President/Chairman: Patrick Stalder CEO: Daniel Villard General Manager: Martin Steinegger Sport Director: Martin Steinegger Head Coach: Antti Törmänen
National titles: 3 – 1978, 1981, 1983
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances
Media Contact
2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Amanda Winter E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +41 32 328 37 35
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as
Requests for accreditation for EHC Biel-Bienne home games are to be sent by e-mail to Laura Sperisen / Media Coordinator: [email protected]
Accreditation for CHL Home Games
Regular Season Fourth-Placed
Arena Info Name: TISSOT Arena Address: Boulevard des Sports 18, 2504 Biel, Switzerland Capacity: 6,521 Year opened: 2015
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Three Stars on the Team Toni Rajala: Toni is currently playing his fourth season for EHC Biel-Bienne. Last May, he won the World Championship with Finland – his first participation at the tournament. Toni has played in the Champions Hockey League before – with Lulea
HF in the 2015/16 season. He lost in the quarterfinals to eventual champions Frölunda HC. Jonas Hiller: Our goaltender is also entering his fourth season for EHC Biel-Bienne. He has a lot of international ice hockey experience – he spent nine years in the NHL (playing for the Anaheim Ducks and the Calgary Flames), has represented Switzerland at four World Championships as well as two Olympic Games and as if that wasn’t enough, he also played in the European Champions Cup with HC Davos in. Mathieu Tschantré: Mathieu was born in Biel and developed his hockey skills in our very own youth academy. He is currently playing his 19th season for EHC Biel-Bienne. In 2008, he successfully led the team as captain through the playoffs and gained the club’s long-awaited promotion to the National League. He’s been our captain ever since. Because of his loyalty to the team, he is considered an iconic player. The next generation of Tschantrés are also ready to attack – his son is currently playing for our U9 youth team.
New Players for 2019/20 Luca Cunti, F, HC Lugano (NL) Anton Gustafsson, F, SCL Tigers (NL) Peter Schneider, F, Vienna Capitals (EBEL) Yannick Rathgeb, D, Bridgeport Sound Tigers (AHL) Stefan Ulmer, D, HC Lugano (NL)
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Legendary Players in the Club Patrick Kane Tyler Seguin Martin Steinegger Kevin Schläpfer Kevin Lötscher Normand Dupont Richmond Gosselin Olivier Anken Urs Lott Steve Latinovich Bob Lindberg
Statements Head Coach Antti Törmänen’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We want to test our level in international hockey and at the same time make it as far as possible in the tournament. We want to enjoy this party as long as it lasts.” Head Coach Antti Törmänen’s comments about the other teams in the group: KAC Klagenfurt: “They are an experienced team that play physical and rough hockey and are good in all the key areas. Their fanatic fans make them really strong at home. Therefore, it is no wonder they won Austria’s Championship last season.” Tappara Tampere: “Being in the finals in Finland for so many years in a row, except last season, shows us that they are a very strong side. They are a very tactical and well coached team and they are longing for international success.” Frisk Asker: “They are one of the top teams in Norway. They are always in good form and they are strong skaters. That makes them a very difficult opponent for any team.”
Club Trivia
Beyond Hockey
EHC is the German abbreviation for “Ice Hockey Club”. Biel/Bienne is the biggest bilingual (German/French) City in Switzerland, which is why the club’s name, as well as all our communication, is officially published in both languages.
Jonas Hiller owns a Kite Boarding Company
This is our first participation in the Champions Hockey League. However, we have competed internationally in the European Cup in 1978/79, 1981/82 and 1983/84 – these are all the seasons after which we won the Swiss Championship.
Players’ Trivia From 2003 to 2005 Marc-Antoine Pouliot was the captain of Sidney Crosby in the QMJHL at Rimouski Oceanic Tampere – one of our opponents in the group stage – is the hometown of Toni Rajala and Anssi Salmela Finland has won the Ice Hockey World Championship three times and each time one of our players or coaches were part of the team – Coach Antti Törmänen in 1995, defender Anssi Salmela in 2011 and forward Toni Rajala in 2019.
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Jason Fuchs supports the Green Hope Foundation Beat Forster organizes junior hockey camps
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language English = German French Ice Hockey = Eishockey Hockey sur glace Faceoff = Bully Bully Offside = Abseits Hors jeu Puck = Puck Puck Hockey stick = Stock Canne Goal = Tor But Penalty = Strafe Pénalité Referee = Schiedsrichter Arbitre
Web & Social Media
HC AMBRÌ-PIOTTA FOUNDED: 1937
Website: www.hcap.ch Facebook: www.facebook.com/ HockeyClubAmbriPiotta Twitter: www.twitter.com/HCAP1937 Instagram: www.instagram.com/hcap_official YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/HCAP37 App: HCAP
Club Staff President/Chairman: Filippo Lombardi CEO: Nicola Mona General Manager: Paolo Duca Sport Director: Paolo Duca Head Coach: Luca Cereda
Glory Times IIHF Continental Cup titles: 2 – 1999, 2000 European Trophy titles: 1 – 1999 (IIHF Super Cup) National titles: none Other: Swiss Cup 1962
Media Contact
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Matteo Parisi E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +41 76 693 39 11
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Journalists can apply for accreditation via email at [email protected] or by filling in the form on our website www.hcap.ch ticket accrediti stampa
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as Regular Season Fifth-Placed
Three Stars on the Team
Arena Info
The Goalies: Our 2 goalies form a very solid and dynamic duo. They work extremely hard together under the guidance of our goalie coach. Together they push each over to perform better.
Name: La Valascia Address: Via Valascia 1, 6775 Ambrì, Switzerland Capacity: 6,500 Year opened: 1953
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The defencemen: Our defencemen group is a mix of young players with lots of upside potential and a few experienced players. We are really looking forward to seeing how they establish themselves in the team. The forwards: We have a dynamic, young group of forwards that are hardworking and tenacious. They stride to make the next step and hope to do so with their CHL experience.
New Players for 2019/20 Tobias Fohrler, D, EV Zug (NL) Giacomo Dal Pian, F, Langenthal, (Swiss League) Julian Payr, D, HC Davos (NL) Viktor Östlund, G, SCL Tigers (NL) Dominik Hrachovina, G, Barys Astana (KHL) Max Gerlach, F, Saskatoon Blades (WHL) Curtis Gass, D, Concordia University (USports) Karim Del Ponte, D, Maryland Black Bears (NAHL) Robert Sabolič, F, Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod (KHL)
Legendary Players in the Club Dale McCourt Peter Jaks Nicola Celio Erik Westrum
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Statements Head Coach Luca Cereda’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We want to do our best. We know we will face very strong opponents who will have more experience than us, so we will try to do our best, make their life difficult and try to play our best hockey. We want to represent Swiss Ice Hockey and the Leventina Valley, our region, as proudly as we can.” Head Coach Luca Cereda’s comments about the other teams in the group: Färjestad Karlstad: “One of the best teams in Europe. They have a great tradition of success and in developing great players. We are proud to be able to measure ourselves with them.” Red Bull Munich: “Last year’s finalists are a very strong team, that are very well coached and very difficult to play against. They also have players with lots of experience.” HC05 Banská Bystrica: “The Slovakian champions are a strong team that already have lots of CHL experience and have already beaten Swiss teams in the past.”
Club Trivia Ambrì (the name Ambrì comes from the Italian “ombra”, which means shadow – this is because the village is covered in darkness for many months of the year because the Sun goes down very early) and Piotta are villages with a combined population of 660 inhabitants. Despite that, the average home game attendance in the club’s iconic home, the Valascia, is 5500. That is because HCAP has fans from all over Switzerland and even from across the border – there are about 20 fan clubs scattered across the country and even a few in Italy. The club was founded in 1937 and played in the Valascia under the open
sky all the way up to 1979. From 1985 the club has played in the top tier of Swiss ice hockey. After each win fans sing the La Montanara – the region’s traditional valley song. Here is an example: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=6QIBn4SFF_w Last year our Czech player Jiri Novotny introduced the Geyser Sound after each win. This is how our players and fans celebrate each victory together: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=jPaaM1Xlq_s
Players’ Trivia Our defenceman Michael Ngoy has played over 900 games in the Swiss Top Division. Our forward Matt D’Agostini has played over 300 games in the NHL. Our forward Jiri Novotny has played nearly 200 games in the NHL. Our defenceman Michael Fora won a silver medal with the Swiss National Team in 2018. Our captain Elias Bianchi is about to play his 11th season with HCAP. Our Head Coach Luca Cereda and our Sport Director Paolo Duca played together for HCAP in 1999/2000. Our Head Coach Luca Cereda was drafted as the 24th pick in the first round by the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1999.
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Beyond Hockey Defenceman Michael Fora first dresses his left side and then his right side before each game. Defenceman Michael Ngoy can play the guitar and can sing. Defenceman Igor Jelovac has a dog.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Hockey su ghiaccio Faceoff = ingaggio Offside = fuorigioco Puck = disco Hockey stick = bastone Goal = goal/gol or rete Penalty = penalità Referee = arbitro
Web & Social Media
FRÖLUNDA INDIANS
Website: www.frolundaindians.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/frolundahc Twitter: www.twitter.com/frolunda_hc Instagram: www.instagram.com/frolunda_hc YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/ UC6DO-PzFa6qBujO-h6_uR0Q
Club Staff FOUNDED: 1944
Glory Times CHL titles: 3 – 2016, 2017, 2019 National titles: 5 – 1965, 2003, 2005, 2016, 2019
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Champions 2017/18: Round of 16 2016/17: Champions 2015/16: Champions 2014/15: Runners-up
President/Chairman: Mats Grauers CEO: Christian Lechtaler General Manager: Christian Lechtaler Sport Director: Fredrik Sjöström Head Coach: Roger Rönnberg
Media Contact Peter Pettersson Kymmer E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +46 705 89 40 32
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Send an e-mail to [email protected]
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL season as: CHL Champions
Three Stars on the Team
Arena Info Name: Frölundaborg Address: Mikael Ljungbergs väg 11, 401 25, Göteborg, Sweden Capacity: 6,044 Year opened: 1969
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Joel Lundqvist: The team captain and one of the most prominent players in the club’s history. He went through Frölunda’s youth development program (Academy) and debuted in the first team as an 18-year-old in 2000. He is a four-time Swedish champion (2003, 2005, 2016, 2019), three-time CHL champion (2016, 2017, 2019) and threetime world champion (2006, 2013, 2017).
He also played three seasons in the NHL for the Dallas Stars (2006-2009) and is the twin brother of world-class goalie Henrik Lundqvist who plays for the New York Rangers. Ryan Lasch: The 32-year-old American returned to Frölunda in 2017 after a season in Switzerland playing for Bern. He was one of the key players for Frölunda when the club won the double– the CHL and the Swedish championship in 2016 and 2019, and overall is a fan favourite. Last season he was awarded the Stefan Livh trophy for the MVP in the playoffs, as Frölunda lifted their fifth Swedish title. He has won five titles in Europe: the CHL and the Swedish championship twice and the Swiss championship once. Nicklas Lasu: A Frölunda player through and through, Nicklas returned to the club after two seasons and one Finnish title with Kärpät. He won the double with Frölunda in 2016 and will be a vital part of the trophy-hunting team of 2019/2020. A gritty two-way center with exceptional defensive skills and offensive traits that he gained from his time in Finland.
New Players for 2019/20 Julius Bergman, D, Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL) Nicklas Lasu, C, Kärpät Oulu (Liiga) Theodor Lennström, D, Färjestad Karlstad (SHL) Niklas Rubin, G, Luleå Hockey (SHL) Karl Stollery, D, Jokerit Helsinki (KHL) Johan Sundström, F, Kunlun Red Star (KHL)
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Legendary Players in the Club Lars-Erik Lundvall Ronald ”Sura-Pelle” Pettersson Jörgen Pettersson Anders Broström Stefan Larsson Patrik Carnbäck Tomi Kallio Ronnie Sundin Niklas Andersson Henrik Lundqvist Daniel Alfredsson Erik Karlsson Joel Lundqvist
Statements Head Coach Roger Rönnberg’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We are aiming for title number four. It is very inspiring entering a tournament that evolves year after year, and that is so prestigious to win.” Head Coach Roger Rönnberg’s comments about the other teams in the group: Graz99ers: “A solid team with close connections to Frölunda – Sebastian Collberg and Jens Gustavsson both have history in Frölunda and Gothenburg.” Mountfield HK: “Czech teams are tough to handle – we know that after five seasons in the CHL. And the league gets tougher and tougher for each year.” Cardiff Devils: “Our trip to Sheffield a couple of years ago is one of my strongest CHL memories. It will be fun to return to Great Britain and I really like the journey British hockey has started.”
Club Trivia The Frölunda Indians have attracted the most spectators in the Swedish hockey league (SHL) for several years running and Göteborg is well known for its hockey pride and passion. Last season Frölunda attracted an average of 10,071 spectators for home matches. The club has changed names twice: the original name was Västra Frölunda IF (1944), then Västra Frölunda Hockey Club (1984) and finally Frölunda Hockey Club 1994. The first team has been coached by respectable names over the years, such as Leif Boork, Lars Falk, Tommy Boustedt and Conny Evensson. The current coach Roger Rönnberg arrived in 2013 and is on a long-term contract that expires in 2022. In 2016 the Frölunda Indians won the double: the SHL and the CHL. In 2017 the Frölunda Indians won the CHL for the second time. In 2019 the Frölunda Indians won the double again: the SHL and the CHL.
Players’ Trivia Niklas Rubin’s journey back home is fascinating. He started his career a couple of miles south of Gothenburg – in Hanhals, Kungsbacka and has been a Frölunda supporter from childhood. From Hanhals he moved to Tingsryd and eventually returned to Frölunda via HV 71 and Luleå.
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When presented as Frölunda’s new goalie in May 2019 he described his feelings as: “A dream come true”. He is in a relationship with Swedish national football player Pauline Hammarlund.
Beyond Hockey Since Anders Grönlund joined the Frölunda Indians his studies at university, construction engineering, will be on hold. He will continue his studies once his hockey career comes to an end.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Ishockey Faceoff = Tekning Offside = Offside Puck = Puck Hockey stick = Klubba Goal = Mål Penalty = Straff Referee = Domare
Web & Social Media
FÄRJESTAD KARLSTAD
Website: www.farjestadbk.se Facebook: www.facebook.com/farjestadbk Twitter: www.twitter.com/farjestad_bk Instagram: www.instagram.com/farjestad_bk YouTube: www.youtube.com/studiofbk
Club Staff President/Chairman: Sture Emanuelsson CEO: Stefan Larsson General Manager: Peter Jakobsson Sport Director: Thomas Rhodin Head Coach: Johan Pennerborn
FOUNDED: 1932
Glory Times National titles: 9 – 1981, 1986, 1988, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2009, 2011 Other: Spengler Cup Champions 1994, 1995
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Round of 32 2015/16: Round of 32 2014/15: Group Stage (2nd in Group B)
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as:
Media Contact Stefan Eriksson E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +46 735 222 894
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Apply for accreditation by sending an e-mail to [email protected]. Please state your name and media company.
Three Stars on the Team
Regular Season Winners
Michael Lindqvist: A proven goal scorer who could’ve chosen to play in the NHL but opted to stay at Färjestad BK.
Arena Info Name: Löfbergs Arena Address: Norra Infarten, 65108 Karlstad, Sweden Capacity: 8,250 Year opened: 2001
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Linus Johansson: A leader within the group. Joined us last season and made the national team roster. A two-way center who will only get better this season.
Johan Ryno: A smart center who has produced a high amount of points in the SHL over the years.
New Players for 2019/20 Vojtech Mozik, D, HK Vitjaz Podolsk (KHL) Ville Leskinen, F, Kärpät Oulu (Liiga) Victor Ejdsell, F, Chicago Blackhawks/ Rockford Ice Hogs (NHL/AHL) Linus Arnesson, D, Örebro HK (SHL) Jonathon Blum, D, Dinamo Minsk (KHL)
Legendary Players in the Club Håkan Loob Tommy Samuelsson Thomas Rundqvist Rickard Wallin Ulf Sterner Mathias Johansson Jörgen Jönsson
Head Coach Johan Pennerborn’s comments about the other teams in the group: Red Bull Munich: “Last season’s Runners-Up will be as good now as they were last season. They will be a tough opponent for all of the teams in our group.” HC Ambrì-Piotta: “An exciting team with some interesting new additions. We know that they like to play a high-speed game with lots of energy.” HC05 Banská Bystrica: “The team we know the least about. We have information that the team is full of good players. That is one of the great things about the CHL – you sometimes play teams that you know very little about.”
Club Trivia The club name (Färjestad BK) originates from the name of the area in Karlstad where the club were founded in 1932. The “BK” stands for Bollklubb (Ball Club) as the club started as a bandy club.
Statements Head Coach Johan Pennerborn’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “Our first goal is to progress from the Group Stage. After that we want to keep on playing for as long as possible.”
Our mascot is a Ture Varg (a Wolf) – it is also the symbol of our county Värmland.
Players’ Trivia Our legendary player Håkan Loob is still the only Swede to score 50 goals during a season in the NHL. He played for the Calgary Flames and was part of the Stanley Cup winning team of 1989.
Beyond Hockey Our featured player Linus Johansson was diagnosed with diabetes a couple years back. He is now a great role model for young athletes with the same problem.
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“At least I can show young people that you don’t have to give up on your dreams just because you have diabetes. I am still finding out how to live and perform with diabetes, but it’s worked out well so far.” (Linus Johansson)
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Ishockey Faceoff = Tekning Offside = Offside Puck = Puck Hockey stick = Hockeyklubba Goal = Mål Penalty = Straff Referee = Domare
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Web & Social Media Website: www.luleahockey.se Facebook: www.facebook.com/LuleaHockey Twitter: www.twitter.com/LuleaHockey Instagram: www.instagram.com/luleahockey
LULEÅ HOCKEY
Club Staff President/Chairman: Anders Olofsson CEO: Stefan Enbom General Manager: Stefan Nilsson Team Manager: Roger Kyrö Head Coach: Thomas Berglund
FOUNDED: 1996
Glory Times
Media Contact
CHL titles: 1 – 2015 European Trophy titles: 1 – 2012 National titles: 1 – 1996
Robert Hedlund E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +46 73 501 25 15
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Group Stage (3rd in Group I) 2015/16: Quarter-Finals 2014/15: Champions
Accreditation for CHL Home Games E-mail to [email protected], preferably the day before the game.
Three Stars on the Team
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as
Erik Gustafsson: Team captain and SHL 2018/2019 Defensemen of the Year. Has experience from the NHL, the KHL and was team Sweden’s assistant captain at the 2018 Olympic Games.
Regular Season Runners-Up
Arena Info Name: Coop Norbotten Arena Address: Gammelstadsvägen 29, 973 34 Luleå, Sweden Capacity: 6,150 Year opened: 1970
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Joel Lassinantti: Going into his sixth straight SHL season playing for his childhood club. He was named SHL 2018/2019 Goaltender of the year and had the highest GAA and SVS% of the entire SHL. Was also named SHL Goalie of the year in the 2014/2015 season.
Niklas Olausson: A solid center who has been consistently scoring over the previous seven SHL seasons for Luleå Hockey club. He is the assistant captain of the team and has a tremendous view of the ice and a great passing game. He also has experience from the Swiss NL and the Finnish Liiga.
New Players for 2019/20 David Rautio, G, Brynäs IF (SHL) Juhani Tyrväinen, C, IFK Helsinki (Liiga) Arttu Ilomäki, C, Lukko Rauma (Liiga) Isac Brännström, F, HV71 Jönköping (SHL) Filip Hållander, F, Timrå (SHL)
Legendary Players in the Club Janne Sandström Stefan Nilsson Thomas Berglund
Statements Head Coach Thomas Berglund’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “Advancing to the Playoffs is our first goal when it comes to the Champions Hockey League. We are very happy to be playing in the tournament again and want to make the most of this opportunity.” Head Coach Thomas Berglund’s comments about the other teams in the group: Bílí Tygři Liberec: “We have played Liberec in the past and know that they have both a solid hockey culture and a great arena. It will be fun to see how our game compares to theirs when we meet again.”
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Augsburger Panther: “Augsburg will be a new experience for us since we haven’t played each other before. We play a high paced skating game and expect the same from the DEL team. I think that the games we will play will be very exciting to watch for the fans.” Belfast Giants: “Both us and our fans are excited to play a team from Northern Ireland for the first time. We have great memories of the last time we played a UK team in the Champions Hockey League and expect two tough games.”
Club Trivia State of the art sound and lighting in the arena which was installed last season. Widely regarded as having the best pregame show for decades. Leading club in women’s hockey over the last four seasons. Three national championships, reigning Champions Cup winners and a pioneer in women’s ice hockey when it comes to creating equal opportunities for player development. All with amazing support from the fans.
Players’ Trivia Luleå Hockey probably have the best goaltender tandem in the SHL and possibly even the CHL. Joel Lassinantti completed a full season with a 1.68 GAA and David Rautio with a 1.78 GAA. Both were league bests in their respective seasons. Rautio has had previous CHL experience with three SHL teams: Luleå Hockey, Linköping and Brynäs.
Beyond Hockey The most northern club in European professional ice hockey, situated just 85km south of the Arctic circle. Robin Kovács plays for the men’s team and his spouse Minatsu Murase plays for the women´s team.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = ishockey Faceoff = tekning Offside = offside Puck = puck Hockey stick = hockeyklubba Goal = mål Penalty = utvisning Referee = domare
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Web & Social Media Website: www.difhockey.se Facebook: www.facebook.com/djurgarden Twitter: www.twitter.com/difhockeyse Instagram: www.instagram.com/difhockeyse
Club Staff
DJURGÅRDEN STOCKHOLM
President/Chairman: Kaarel Lehiste CEO: Jenny Silfverstrand General Manager: Joakim Eriksson Sport Director: Joakim Eriksson Head Coach: Robert Ohlsson
FOUNDED: 1891
Media Contact
Glory Times European Trophy titles: 2 – 1991, 1992 National titles: 16 – 1926, 1950, 1954, 1955, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1983, 1989, 1990, 1991, 2000, 2001
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Group Stage (3rd in Group E) 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Round of 32 2015/16: Round of 16 2014/15: Group Stage (3rd in Group D)
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as
Magnus Fredlund E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +46 762 30 35 30
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Please send an e-mail to: [email protected]
Three Stars on the Team Patrik Berglund: Our most experienced player. Spent 11 years in the NHL. He is a brute force with the puck and very skillful around the net. Jacob Josefson: Our new team captain who returned to Djurgården last season. He led our team all the way to the finals of the SHL, were we lost in Game 6x.
Regular Season Fourth-Placed
Arena Info Name: Hovet Address: Johanneshov, 121 27 Stockholm, Sweden Capacity: 8,094 Year opened: 1955, renovated in 2002
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Marcus Högström: Djurgården’s most valuable right defenceman. He is very calm on the puck and has the necessary skills to bring the puck all the way to the net by himself.
New Players for 2019/20
Club Trivia
Tom Wandell, F, Örebro HC (SHL) Anton Hedman, F, Örebro HC (SHL) Michael Haga, F, Mora IF (SHL) Kalle Östman, F, Västerås IK (SHL)
We are the Swedish club with the most national titles.
Legendary Players in the Club
Players’ Trivia
Djurgården were founded in 1891.
Jacob Josefson is excellent at playing the piano.
Jens Öhling Challe Berglund Mats Sundin Fredrik Bremberg Håkan Södergren Jimmie Ölvestad Kristoffer Ottosson Thomas Eriksson Roland Stoltz
Manuel Ågren hasn’t seen Game of Thrones yet. Tom Nilsson knows all the quotes from the movie Forest Gump.
Beyond Hockey
Statements Head Coach Robert Ohlsson’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We want to be one of the best teams in Europe. We want to go as far as we possibly can in the tournament and look forward to seeing how our players perform against Europe’s top teams. We want to do better this year than we did last time.” Head Coach Robert Ohlsson’s comments about the other teams in the group: Adler Mannheim: “They play a lot like us. I expect our matches are going to be high paced and that both teams will score a lot of goals, though I hope we score more.” Vienna Capitals: “They didn’t get past the Group Stage last year, but neither did we. I expect that they will be out for revenge, because we certainly will be.” GKS Tychy: “They are one of the best teams in Poland. I heard that Tychy have amazing fans, so I’m looking forward to facing them in Poland.”
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Almost the entire squad are interested in the Premier League and play fantasy football during road trips.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Ishockey Faceoff = Tekning Offside = Offside Puck = Puck Hockey stick = Hockeyklubba Goal = Mål Penalty = Straff Referee = Domare
Web & Social Media Website: www.skellefteaaik.se Facebook: www.facebook.com/skellefteaaikhockey Twitter: www.twitter.com/skelleftea_aik Instagram: www.instagram.com/skellefteaaik
SKELLEFTEÅ AIK
Club Staff
FOUNDED: 1921 (CLUB), 1943 (HOCKEY TEAM)
President/Chairman: Kenneth Fahlgren CEO: Per-Andreas Israelsson General Manager: Erik Forssell Sport Director: Niclas Lundqvist Head Coach: Tommy Samuelsson
Glory Times
Media Contact
National titles: 3 – 1978, 2013, 2014
Samuel Söderlund E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +4672-525 76 50
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2019/20: Quarter-Finals 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Round of 32 2015/16: Semi-Finals 2014/15: Quarter-Finals
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Contact our media contact, Samuel Söderlund, for accreditation.
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as
Three Stars on the Team
Regular Season Fifth-Placed
Arena Info
Oscar Möller: One of the best two-way players in Europe. Both a great team player and a world class player with an eye for a goal.
Name: Skellefteå Kraft Arena Address: Mossgatan 27, 931 85 Skellefteå, Sweden Capacity: 5,801 Year opened: 1967
Joakim Lindström: One of the top point producing players in Sweden year after year. Always delivers. You can count on him.
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Philip Broberg: One of the top defensive prospects in the world, picked 8th overall in the 2019 NHL Draft by the Edmonton Oilers. We look forward to watching him grow as a player with us this season.
New Players for 2019/20 Jacob Andersson, D, IF Björklöven (Allsvenskan) Arvid Lundberg, D, Växjö Lakers (SHL) Niclas Burström, D, Växjö Lakers (SHL) Jesper Frödén, F, AIK (Allsvenskan) Jacob Olofsson, F, Timrå IK (Allsvenskan) Rickard Hugg, F, Kitchener Rangers (OHL) Philip Broberg, D, AIK (Allsvenskan) Oskar Östlund, G, Storhamar Hamar (GET Ligaen) Tom Pyatt, F, Utica Comets (AHL)
Legendary Players in the Club Pär Mikaelsson Roland Stoltz Hardy Nilsson Hasse Svedberg Eilert ”Garvis” Määttä Anders ”Acka” Andersson Hasse Svedberg Göran Lindblom Göran ”Klimpen” Häggroth Göte Almqvist Jan ”X:et” Erixon
Statements Head Coach Tommy Samuelsson’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “Our first objective is to advance from the highly competitive Group Stage and take it round by round from there and hopefully reach the final.”
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Head Coach Tommy Samuelsson’s comments about the other teams in the group: SC Bern: “A well-known, top club in Europe, both in terms of success over the years and incredible fan interest. A very interesting team for us to take on and an inspiring challenge. There are actually some special connections between the clubs – their head coach Kari Jalonen played for Skellefteå in the 1987/88 season. That’s some while back of course, but Skellefteå fans never forget their former players.” Kärpät Oulu: “One of the top clubs in Finland year after year. Kärpät have produced many players that have made it to the NHL over the years. They are our closest rival in the group stage, both geographically and because matches between Swedish and Finnish teams are always tense. We have some connections here as well. I coached Ludwig Byström at Färjestad BK in 2014/15 before he left for North America. They also have a recent Skellefteå player, Janne Pesonen, who delivered over a point per game over two seasons with AIK from 2014-2016.” Grenoble: “The least known of our opponents in the Group Stage but nonetheless inspiring and perhaps the most dangerous one we will face. We have a few players with experience from the Swedish league in Grenoble as well. The most wellknown is Damien Fleury, who had success with Södertälje SK and Västerås IK. I myself had the privilege of coaching a young Sasha Treille whilst at Färjestad in 2008/09 – we won the championship together that year.”
Club Trivia Each year when Skellefteå AIK have their first practice session on ice, their home arena is filled with fans. The supporters are also able to get autographs and skate with the players before the session. The club has been focusing on their youth talents and awards senior contracts its best juniors each year. Gustaf Lindvall, Filip Berglund, Jonathan Pudas, Petter Granberg, Joakim Lindström, Felix Dahlroth, Johan Alm, Adam Pettersson, Linus Lindström, Albin Eriksson, Jonatan Berggren and Andreas Wingerli have all played junior hockey for Skellefteå AIK. Skellefteå AIK have trained many skillful players that have been given an NHL contract over the years. For example: Adam Larsson, Melker Karlsson, Viktor Arvidsson, Sebastian Aho and Oscar Lindberg.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Ishockey Faceoff = tekning Offside = offside Puck = puck Hockey stick = hockey klubba Goal = mål Penalty = straff Referee = domare
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Web & Social Media Website: www.junost.org Facebook: www.facebook.com/hcjunost Twitter: www.twitter.com/HCJUNOST Instagram: www.instagram.com/hc_junost_minsk YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/ UCdeozfERKG2W_3O73r1cfKQ VK: vk.com/hcjunost2003
YUNOST MINSK FOUNDED: 2003
Club Staff
Glory Times
CEO: Alexei Torbin Sport Director: Igor Novikevich Head Coach: Mikhail Zakharov
IIHF Continental Cup titles: 3 – 2007, 2011, 2018 National titles: 8 – 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2016, 2019
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Group Stage (4th in Group B) 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Round of 32 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as National Champions
Arena Info Name: Chizhovka-Arena Address: Tashkentskaya 19-2, 220077 Minsk, Belarus Capacity: 7,925 Year opened: 2013
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Media Contact Dmitry Arhipenko E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +375 44 515 17 00
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Accreditation for home matches of the Hockey Club “Yunost Minsk” for the Champions Hockey League 2019/2020 starts a month before the first match of the team in the tournament. Journalists and photographers wishing to attend the matches of our club should send the following information to the e-mail [email protected], putting down: name, surname of the journalist, name of the media. Representatives of foreign media are accredited through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus. Accreditation cards will be available 24 hours before the start of the match.
Three Stars on the Team Igor Brikun: Played for Junior-Minsk, Gomel, Neman and Saryarka. Two-time champion of the Belarus Extraliga – 2012/2013 and 2013/2014. Silver medalist of the Belarus Extraliga from 2011/2012 and bronze medalist from 2010, 2015 and 2016. Played for the Belarus national team at the 2009 and 2015 World Championships, Alexander Kulakov: Graduate of the Yunost Ice hockey children’s school, Kulakov began his career in the Belarus Extraliga in 2000 with Yunost Minsk. He then moved to the Keramin hockey club for the 2001/02 season and then to the Vitebsk Hockey Club for 2002/03. In 2003 he decided to move to Dynamo Minsk and played in the KHL between 2008 and 2018, also spending time with fellow KHL side Torpedo HK (Nizhny Novgorod). Kulakov participated in the U-18 World Championship in 2000 and played for the U-20 national team of the Republic of Belarus between 2001-2003. He participated in the U-20 World Championships in 2001, 2002 and 2003. He played at the World Ice Hockey Championships in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2017, as well as at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games with the national team. In 49 matches of the 2018/2019 regular season of the Extraliga, Alexander recorded 38 points (5 goals + 33 assists). In the playoffs of the President Cup he recorded 9 points (2 goals + 7 assists). Sergei Drozd: Sergei Drozd started to play professional ice hockey at a very young age – at just fifteen years old (in 2005) he played his first match of professional ice hockey in the first league of the Russian
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championship for the farm team of Yaroslavl Lokomotiv, for which he played until 2008. From 2009 he played for the WHL hockey club Tri-City Americans. In 2010 he signed for Dynamo-Minsk, where he played until 2017. In 2017 he moved to HC YunostMinsk, where he has played to this day. In 2008 he played for the junior national team of the Republic of Belarus and participated in the Junior World Championships in 2008. In 2009 he played for the U-20 national team of the Republic of Belarus and has played for the national team since 2010.
New Players for 2019/20 Yan Shelepnuov, G, Vitkovice Ridera Ostrava (TELH) Denis Tsyganov, F, Kurgan (VHL) Dmitri Kolgotin, F, Kurgan (VHL) Maxim Maltsev, F, Sokol (VHL)
Legendary Players in the Club Alexander Kulakov Andrei Antonov Igor Brikun
Statements Head Coach Mikhail Zakharov’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “It’s difficult for us to define a goal for the CHL, because last year’s team that won the national championship of Belarus for the eighth time in 2018/19 has undergone
several changes since. Eight top players are gone, and we have had to rethink the roster. We have tried to build a capable team, that will showcase not only our club but also our national league in the Champions Hockey League. Our focus for this year’s CHL season is to compete against new hockey clubs from various European countries. We have never played Lausanne, the Pelicans or Trinec, so it will be interesting for us to gain new experience. Head Coach Mikhail Zakharov’s comments about the other teams in the group: Oceláři Třinec: “Last season Oceláři Třinec were crowned champions of the Czech Extraliga, which already says a lot about their quality. There are many highclass hockey players in this team – Martin Růžička, Erik Hrňa, Tomáš Marinko, who all know how to win games. Our task is to play competently and in an organized way in the defense zone, middle zone and attack.” Lausanne HC: “We will play our first match against a very skilled Lausanne HC side. Last season they finished third in the regular season of the Swiss National League, which means they play some high-quality hockey. I think we will be able to hold them off – especially in the first match, which we will play at home. We will fight for all 3 points.”
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Lahti Pelicans: “We already played against a Finnish team in last season’s CHL, so we have experience with playing against clubs from Finland. The Lahti Pelicans are a strong and fast team. Finland has a strong championship, so it’s always difficult to play against clubs from there. In general, I think that all the teams in our group can play very well, including us, so we will all have to wait until August to see who wins.”
Club Trivia The Yunost children’s hockey Olympic school was founded in 1975 and has been the best hockey school in the territory of the Republic of Belarus for many years now. On March 19, 2003, the Yunost hockey club was formed, the name of which points to one of the main strategies for its development: the desire to trust its own hockey players and work for the benefit of all Belarusian hockey. One of our most successful graduates is four-time Stanley Cup winner Sergei Fedorov, who learned to play hockey in the Yunost children’s hockey school. Yunost Minsk play their home matches in the Chizhovka Arena in Minsk. The arena was built for the 2014 World hockey Championship, which were held in the capital of the Republic of Belarus. The main arena holds 8 807 spectators.
The club’s head coach is Mikhail Zakharov, who has won the most Belarusian titles as a hockey coach. Yunost Minsk reached their main sports achievements under his leadership. The club has always paid attention to social projects – players of the team visit children’s homes, schools and other educational institutions, as well as give master classes for young hockey players.
Players’ Trivia Graduate of the Yunost Ice hockey children’s school, Kulakov began his career in the Belarus Extraliga in 2000 with Yunost Minsk. He then moved to the Keramin hockey club for the 2001/02 season and then to the Vitebsk Hockey Club for 2002/03. In 2003 he decided to move to Dynamo Minsk and played in the KHL between 2008 and 2018, also spending time with fellow KHL side Torpedo HK (Nizhny Novgorod).
Kulakov participated in the U-18 World Championship in 2000 and played for the U-20 national team of the Republic of Belarus between 2001-2003. He participated in the U-20 World Championships in 2001, 2002 and 2003. He played at the World Ice Hockey Championships in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2017, as well as at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games with the national team. In 49 matches of the 2018/2019 regular season of the Extraliga, Alexander recorded 38 points (5 goals + 33 assists). In the playoffs of the President Cup he recorded 9 points (2 goals + 7 assists).
Beyond Hockey Our goalkeeper Igor Brikun is famous not only for his reliable performances but is also known throughout the Belarusian hockey community as a big fan of fishing.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey =Хоккей (Hokkei) Faceoff = Вбрасывание (Vbrasyvanie) Offside = Вне игры (Vne igry) Puck = Шайба (Shaiba) Hockey stick = Клюшка (Klushka) Goal = Гол (Gol) Penalty = Буллит (Byllit) Referee = Судья (Sudziya)
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Web & Social Media
TM
Website: www.rungsted.is Facebook: www.facebook.com/ RungstedSeierCapital Instagram: www.instagram.com/ rungstedseiercapital YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/ UCIqWJwtnc703tw0iEPWEA5w
RUNGSTED SEIER CAPITAL
Club Staff President/Chairman: Thomas Friberg CEO: Thomas Friberg General Manager: Thomas Friberg Sport Director: Morten Hagen Head Coach: Erik Hjalmarsson
FOUNDED: 1941
Glory Times National titles: 4 – 1955, 1963, 2002, 2019 Danish Cup: 5 – 2000, 2004, 2005, 2017, 2019
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Media Contact Thomas Friberg E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +45 225 085 11
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Please send an e-mail to [email protected]
Three Stars on the Team Nikolaj Rosenthal: Born in 1991 and raised in Gentofte. Spent 2 seasons in the NAHL, before returning to Denmark in 2011. Has been a part of the Rungsted team since 2013 and was the league’s top goal scorer last season with 39 goals.
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as National Champions
Arena Info Name: Bitcoin Arena Address: Stadionalle 11, 2960 Rungsted Kyst, Denmark Capacity: 2,380 Year opened: 1971
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Mattias Persson: Born in 1985 and is known as “The Magician” in Rungsted. Spent many years with Malmö, before signing with Rungsted at the start of the 2017/2018 season. You can always expect the unexpected from this highly skilled forward.
Legendary Players in the Club
Head Coach Erik Hjalmarsson’s comments about the other teams in the group: HPK Hämeenlinna: “The Finnish Liiga is a very competitive league and being able to win in such a strong league speaks a lot about the quality and strength HPK as a team have.” EV Zug: “EV Zug are actually one of our partner clubs, and we know each other very well. Being a European top 10 club, means you are an extremely skilled team. The Bossard Arena will definitely be a tough place to play. We look very forward to actually playing EV Zug for the first time, and not just meeting each other off the ice.” HC Pilsen: “We are not too familiar with Czech teams in Denmark since we don’t have many Czech players in the Danish league, but it’s evident that the Extraliga is a very strong league, and HC Pilsen ranking as a top 15 team in Europe clearly shows their hockey is top level. I personally really look forward to facing HC Pilsen.”
Leonid Trukhno Nicolai Clausen Stefan Elvenes
Club Trivia:
Thomas Lillie: Born in 1996 and raised in Vojens, before spending two years in the Swedish junior hockey system. He played for Frederikshavn before signing for Rungsted Seier Capital in 2018. He was an integral part of the championship winning team last year and is expected to earn his first national team start this year.
New Players for 2019/20 Anders Poulsen, C, Herning Blue Fox (Metal Ligaen) Mario Lucia, F, Stavanger Oilers (GET Ligaen)
Founded in 1941, Rungsted are one of the oldest clubs in Denmark.
Statements Head Coach Erik Hjalmarsson’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “Rungsted Seier Capital’s goal is plain and simple – to win hockey games. No Danish team has ever advanced to the knockout stages, and even though we know it will be difficult, we will do everything possible to be the first Danish team to do so.”
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They have been owned by Finn Rosenthal and Lars Seier Christensen since 2015. The Bitcoin Arena was built in 1971 and is the oldest hockey-rink still in use in Denmark.
The club mascot is a deer named Rungdolph. The deer in the logo comes from a time when the city of Hoersholm was called Hirschholm in the 17th century – Hirsch meaning deer in German. The city served as the king’s royal hunting ground. Notable fans include former tennis pro Frederik Fetterlein and former national team football player Per Frandsen.
Players’ Trivia Joachim Holten Moeller could become Rungsted’s most capped player if he carries on playing for another two seasons. He surpassed his father Per Holten Moeller last season, who was 5th on the list with 437 games. His younger brother also played for Rungsted, and his grandfather Otto Holten Moeller was a founding member of the club in 1941.
Beyond Hockey We have a French bulldog named “Otto” as our team pet. He also has a stall in the locker room (even though he never really uses it).
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Ishockey Faceoff = Faceoff Offside = Offside Puck = Puck Hockey stick = Ishockeystav Goal = Mål Penalty = Udvisning Referee = Dommer
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Web & Social Media Website: www.bruleursdeloups.fr Facebook: www.facebook.com/bruleursdeloups Twitter: www.twitter.com/bruleursdeloups Instagram: www.instagram.com/bdl_officiel YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/ UCfjnfPgPTRj5rpvHgj0Pxpw
GRENOBLE
Club Staff FOUNDED: 1963
President/Chairman: Jacques Reboh General Manager: Jean-François Dufour Sport Director: Jean-François Dufour Head Coach: Edo Terglav
Glory Times National titles: 7 – 1981, 1982, 1991, 1998, 2007, 2009, 2019
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Group Stage (3rd in Group F) 2014/15: Did not qualify
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as National Champions
Media Contact Alexandre Duyck E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: + 33 6 66 99 77 88
Accreditation for CHL Home Games To obtain your “Press” accreditation, please send your request by e-mail 24 hours before the meeting to [email protected].
Three Stars on the Team Damien Fleury: French international forward, captain of the national team. He has won the league with Grenoble 3 times.
Arena Info Name: Pôle Sud Address: Avenue d’Innsbruck, 38100 Grenoble, France Capacity: 4,208 Year opened: 2001
Kyle Hardy: Arrived in Grenoble in 2016. Kyle Hardy is a real star player for the club – he was named the best defenceman of the championship in 2017/2018.
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Lukas Horak: Czech goalkeeper Lukas Horak arrived in Grenoble in 2016. He is nicknamed “GoldHorak”, Lukas was voted Best Championship Goalkeeper in 2017/2018 and Best Playoffs Goalkeeper in 2019.
New Players for 2019/20 Peter Valier, F, Bordeaux (Ligue Magnus) Yann Sauve, D, Villacher SV (EBEL) Alex Aleardi, F, Rouen Dragons (Ligue Magnus) Sébastien Raibon, G, Montpellier (France2)
Legendary Players in the Club Cristobal Huet Gaétan Laliberté Jean Leblond Philippe Treille Alexandre Texier
Club Trivia Why “Brûleurs de Loups”? Journalist Albert Fontaine watched a Grenoble match and saw the Grenoble strikers put pressure and encircle the opposing goal. Seeing this he referred to them and nicknamed the Grenoble ice hockey team the Grenoble “Wolf Burners”. Grenoble are the most attended team in France with over 3,500 spectators per game (total stadium capacity of 4,208 places). Grenoble were the first French club to organize the Winter Classic Game in front of 19,767 spectators in 2016. Mascot: “#55 Jeff Le loup Famous fan clubs: we have 2 clubs : “Les Irréductibles” and “Les T’Hockeys”
Statements
Players’ Trivia
Head Coach Edo Terglav’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “Taking one game at the time, being consistent and performing against tough teams.”
Joel Champagne: second highest amount of assists in League Magnus in 2018/2019 with 44 assists from 44 games.
Head Coach Edo Terglav’s comments about the other teams in the group: SC Bern: “Play well without the puck, compact in the neutral zone and don’t give much defensively.” Kärpät Oulu: “Well-balanced team both offensively and defensively. They have been dominating Liiga in goals for and goals against for the last two seasons. They are aggressive in the defensive zone and play quick up the ice and create chances.” Skellefteå AIK: “Have puck possession in all three zones and are very quick on the counter.”
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Christophe Tartari, born and raised in Grenoble, has never left the Grenoble ice hockey organisation and has played the most games for the club with a total of 441.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Hockey sur Glace Faceoff = Engagement Offside = Hors Jeu Puck = Palet Hockey stick = Crosse Goal = But Penalty = Pénalité Referee =Arbitre
Web & Social Media Website: www.friskasker.no/hockey Facebook: www.facebook.com/Friskasker Twitter: www.twitter.com/friskasker Instagram: www.instagram.com/friskaskeralag / www.instagram.com/friskaskermarked YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/friskasker2011 LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/ frisk-asker-hockey/
FRISK ASKER FOUNDED: 1922
Club Staff
Glory Times National titles: 4 – 1975, 1979, 2002, 2019
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
President/Chairman: Øystein Hærem CEO: Nicolay Sørensen General Manager: Ole Gerhard Haug Sport Director: Nicolay Sørensen Head Coach: Jan Andre Aasland & Vidar Wold
Media Contact Fredrick Bråten Haugland E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +47 932 90 600
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as National Champions
Accreditation for CHL Home Games
Arena Info
Nils Berg-Jensen Mobile: +47 907 45 137 E-mail: [email protected]
Name: Askerhallen Address: Brages vei 2, 1387 Asker, Norway Capacity: 2,800 Year opened: 1969
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Ole Gerhard Haug Mobile: +47 926 88 300 E-Mail: [email protected]
Three Stars on the Team
Legendary Players in the Club
Anders Bastiansen: Team captain Anders Bastiansen has played over 110 matches for the Norwegian national team. He won the SHL league title twice whilst playing for Färjestad and has played over 500 matches in the SHL in total. He has played 460 matches in the GET-league and 54 matches in EBEL. He received the” Gullpucken” in 2010/11 for “Player of the year”.
Mats Zuccarello Thor Martinsen Johnny NilsenMorten Setereng Morten Johansen
Henrik Ødegård: Assistant captain with 54 matches for the Norwegian national team. Henrik has played for one season in the USA for the Missouri Mavericks. Has played more than 560 matches in the GET-league for three teams. Niclas Dahlberg: Our goalie has been selected for the “Norwegian All-Star Team” in three out of the last four seasons. He was outstanding in this year’s finals. His save percentage has never dropped below 90% whilst playing for Frisk Asker.
New Players for 2019/20 Mikael Dokken, F, Storhamar Hamar (GET Ligaen) Reid Petryk, C, Idaho Steelheads (ECHL) Alex Lavoie, C, HC Innsbruck (EBEL) Henrik Fayen Vestavik, G, Ringerike (GET Ligaen) Mikael Dokken, F, Storhamar Hamar (GET Ligaen) Erik Beier Jensen, F, Frisk Asker U21 (Norway U21)
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Statements Head Coach Vidar Wold’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We look forward to playing in the CHL for our very first time. The opportunity to play against some of the best teams in Europe is enormously useful to us and it will be a completely different “ballgame” than what we are used to in the Norwegian GET League. We have good enough skills when it comes to the technical and tactical aspects of the game, but we must learn the speed of play in the CHL. We come in as underdogs and want to prove that Norwegian ice hockey is on the right track. The CHL will be a great start to the season for us as a team, for our fans and for our sponsors!” Head Coach Jan Andre Aasland’s comments about the other teams in the group: KAC Klagenfurt: “A traditional Austrian team that has been a stable top table performer in recent years in the EBEL. The team’s most high-profile player last season was our Norwegian national team goalkeeper Lars Haugen. He had an impressive 93% save percentage in the regular season and an even more amazing 94% in the playoffs. Another key player is American forward Nick Pettersen who is the big star of the team. The team is coached by Pettri Matikinen, a recognized coach who, amongst other things, was one of Finland’s coaches when they became World champions in 2011.”
EHC Biel-Bienne: “One of the top teams in the very high quality Swiss National League. EHC Biel are coached by Antti Törmänen, who has great experience both as a player and as a coach. He played one season in the NHL with Ottawa and played both in the World Cup and in the Olympic Games for Finland. One of the team’s most important players is goalkeeper Jonas Hiller – with a total of 9 seasons in the NHL for Anaheim and Calgary, the 37-year-old is one of Switzerland’s most acclaimed players of all time. The team also have high quality players upfront with trio Marc Antoine Pouliot (Canada), Toni Rajala (Finland) and Damien Brunner (Swiss) being the most productive.” Tappara Tampere: “Tappara, with their 17 championship titles, are a traditional and well supported club in Finland. They have reached the finals of the SM-Liiga 6 times in the last 7 years, which is very impressive. They are a team with a winning mentality, and we are looking forward to meeting them! In the 2018/19 season they finished second in the regular season and third in the playoffs. The team’s biggest star is forward Kristian Kuusela, a player
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who is always at the top of the league table season after season. He also won the World Championship with Finland this year. Tappara have the most CHL experience from our group and are probably seen as favourites in Group A.”
Club Trivia Mascot: “Friskus”
Players’ Trivia Team captain Anders Bastiansen has played more than 110 matches for the Norwegian national team. He won the SHL league title twice whilst playing for Färjestad and has played over 500 matches in the SHL. He has played 460 matches in the GET-league, and 54 matches in EBEL.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language Ice Hockey = Ishockey Faceoff = Dropp Offside = Offside Puck = ßPuck Hockey stick = Hockeykølle Goal = Mål Penalty = Straffe Referee = Dommer
Web & Social Media Website: www.gkstychy.info Facebook: www.facebook.com/gkstychy.oficjalny Twitter: www.twitter.com/GKSTychy1971 Instagram: www.instagram.com/gkstychy YouTube: www.youtube.com/GKSTychyTV
GKS TYCHY
Club Staff President/Chairman: Krzysztof Woźniak Sport Director: Wojciech Matczak Head Coach: Andrei Gusow
FOUNDED: 1971
Glory Times National titles: 4 – 2005, 2015, 2018, 2019 National Cup: 8 - 2001, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2014, 2016, 2017 National Supercup: 2 – 2015, 2018
Media Contact
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances
Accreditation for CHL Home Games
2018/19: Group Stage (4th in Group C) 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Journalists can apply for accreditations by e-mail: [email protected]. Please include the name, surname, type of accreditation, name of company and ID number.
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as
Three Stars on the Team
National Champions
Arena Info Name: Stadion Zimowy Tychy Address: ul. de Gaulle’a 2, 43-100 Tychy, Poland Capacity: 2535 Year opened: 1968 (total renovation 2009)
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Krzysztof Trzosek E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +48 508 568 123
Michael Cichy: One of the best hockey players in Poland. Our top scorer from last two seasons, Michael has fantastic play reading of the game and creates a great duo with Alex Szczechura. He was born in the USA, but his mother is from Poland. He is eligible to play for the Polish national team.
Some fans in Poland call him the ‘silent killer’, because his name in polish language means ‘silence’. 2 gold medals with GKS 1 Polish Cup with GKS 1 SuperCup with GKS Adam Bagiński: Sixteen years in one club. He’s not from Tychy but now we can say that he’s “ours”. Probably the most brave hockey player in Poland. He always fought to the end for the team. He’s so proud that he can play for GKS Tychy and we are so proud that Adam is our player. 4 gold medals with GKS 7 Polish Cup with GKS 2 SuperCup with GKS 1 3rd place in Continental Cup with GKS Filip Komorski: He has been playing for GKS since 2015, is a calm and confident forward. Our media guy. Always smiling, funny and open to others people, he isn’t shy in front of the camera and knows what he should say. 2 gold medals with GKS 2 Polish Cup with GKS 2 SuperCup with GKS 1 3rd place in Continental Cup with GKS
New Players for 2019/20 Denis Akimoto, D, Zagłębie Sosnowiec (PHL) Michael Szmatula, F, Adirondack Thunder (ECHL)
Legendary Players in the Club Mariusz Czerkawski Krzysztof Oliwa Henryk Gruth Michał Woźnica
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Statements Head Coach Andrei Gusow’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “We would like to win every match and my players know about it. We remember from last season how the victory tastes. The whole team, fans and management were really happy, satisfied and proud. We have one goal - all the time we must get better and better. We never give up! GKS Tychy is the first team from Poland to win a CHL game. For sure in this season we want to improve this result. It will be very tough but everything is possible.”
Head Coach Andrei Gusow’s comments about the other teams in the group: Adler Mannheim: “In my opinion this is the favourite of our group. They are the German champions. They probably have the best youth academy in Europe. We will have to prepare for hard matches but we believe in our skills.” Djurgården Stockholm: “Djurgården played against AIK Skellefteå in the first round of the playoffs and they won. We had the opportunity to play against Skellefteå and we know how demanding the Swedish league is. All teams play at a high level. Djurgården is a very good team. They have technical skills and a lot off talented players. I heard that their coach mentioned during an interview he would like to play against better teams than GKS Tychy. We will see what happens but for sure we want to make a surprise. Moreover games against Djurgården will be special for Mariusz Czerkawski, former player of GKS Tychy who played there for few years.”
Vienna Capitals: “They are a very experience team. They had the opportunity to play in the CHL for few years. I talked with the coach from Neman Grodno who competed against Vienna two years ago. They are a strong team which has many players from Canada and the national team of Austria. In terms of level we can compare Vienna to HC Bolzano. Last season we won against Bolzano and now we can defeat Vienna as well.”
Patryk Kogut – the best freestyle swimmer (only at distance 50 meters) Jakub Witecki – the widest back in polish league Jarosław Rzeszutko – living sports encyclopaedia Alex Szczechura – the best golfer Michael Cichy – the best fisherman Denis Akomito – our polyglot (he speak English, Russian, Japanese)
Club Trivia
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language
A wolf is the official mascot of the club. His name is Tysek. The animal was selected from 170 proposals prepared by children as part of the art competition for the mascot GKS Tychy. The wolf is directly connected with the legend of foundation of Tychy city, and specifically with the district of Wilkowyje (“wilk” means wolf).
Players’ Trivia Players on Poland National Team still playing for GKS Tychy: Filip Komorski, Bartosz Ciura, Mateusz Bryk, Mateusz Gościński, Bartłomiej Jeziorski, John Murray
Beyond Hockey Bartosz Ciura – the best DJ in the locker room Bartłomiej Jeziorski and Remigiusz Gazda – “Fortnite” champions of the team Mateusz Bryk – builder, electrician – our handyman
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Ice Hockey = hokej Faceoff = wznowienie Offside = spalony Puck = krążek Hockey stick = kij hokejowy Goal = gol, bramka Penalty = kara Referee = sędzia
Web & Social Media Website: www.hc05.sk Facebook: www.facebook.com/hc05banskabystrica Instagram: www.instagram.com/hc05bb/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/ UCmgRleyyYYA2yNLfsPANfSw
HC05 BANSKÁ BYSTRICA
Club Staff
FOUNDED: 2005
President/Chairman: Juraj Koval CEO: Michal Longauer General Manager: Michal Longauer Sport Director: Július Koval Head Coach: Dan Ceman
Glory Times
Media Contact
National titles: 3 – 2017, 2018, 2019
Andrej Sliacky E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +421 911 178 664
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Group Stage (4th in Group H) 2017/18: Group Stage (4th in Group A) 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Accreditation for CHL Home Games
National Champions
Please send your request for accreditation to [email protected]. In the e-mail please state your full name, name of media organization, type of accreditation (press, web, photo, radio, TV), telephone number and vehicle registration number. All applicants will be notified of the accreditation approval via email.
Arena Info
Three Stars on the Team
Name: Banská Bystrica Ice Stadium Address: Hronské predmestie 4, 97401 Banská Bystrica, Slovakia Capacity: 2,841 Year opened: 1956
Jordan Hickmott: Our former player signed a one-year deal for the upcoming season. He played for Banská Bystrica in the 2016/17 season, which was his first season in Europe, and has been outstanding ever since. He finished fifth in the table of productivity in the regular season
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as
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and then added 15 points in 15 play-off games. After winning the title he went to play in the EBEL. Ivan Ďatelinka: Our alternate captain is starting his 5th season in our jersey. The big defenceman has been an important part of our team throughout the years – especially on the journey to winning all three of our national titles. He is very experienced and a tough guy to play against. Marek Bartánus: A big right-handed winger with good stickhandling skills and balance. Creates a lot of scoring opportunities for his line mates. Has a good shot.
New Players for 2019/20 Jordan Hickmott, F, EHC Linz (EBEL) Joona Jääskeläinen, F, Jukurit (Liiga) Tomáš Hrnka, F, HC Slovan Bratislava (KHL) Adam Žiak, D, TUTO Hockey (Mestis) Ville Räsänen, D, Chicago Steel (USHL) Tyler Beskorowany, G, Belfast Giants (EIHL) Mário Róth, F, HK Dukla Ingema Michalovce (SVK Extraliga)
Legendary Players in the Club Michal Handzuš Tomáš Surový Richard Zedník Vladimír Országh Tomáš Surový
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Statements Head Coach Dan Ceman’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “Our goal is the same as in previous years: Represent our organization and Slovak hockey with dignity and pride. Obviously, our goal at the rink every day is to win. However, our group is extremely difficult. We hope to play tight, hard hockey in each and every game. If we do that, then we stand a good chance of winning some games.” Head Coach Dan Ceman’s comments about the other teams in the group: Färjestad Karlstad: “Färjestad only lost 2 home games in regulation time during the regular season last year so they will be a huge challenge for us in our first CHL game of the year. We will need to focus on slowing them down through the neutral slow and making it difficult for them to enter our zone. If we do force them to chip pucks into our zone, they forecheck quite aggressively, so we will need to be excellent at neutralizing their forecheck. Simplicity will be a huge key for us.” Red Bull Munich: “4 straight years in the finals of the DEL says it all about this team. One of the best teams in Europe and they’ve added a long time NHL forward to their ranks to strengthen even more. They are a big, strong and skilled team that play a North American style of hockey and are very well coached. On the road we’ll have to play simply and focus on limiting high danger chances in our zone. They will almost certainly have more possession time in our zone, so we must protect the net, limit chances, and be very good on the counterattack. Flying in from a long trip to Sweden won’t make this game any easier. We’ll have to play very intelligent hockey.”
HC Ambrì-Piotta: “This team will play with a lot of structure. We’ll need to play very tight, give them no easy chances and establish a forecheck.”
Beyond Hockey Martin Nemčík has quite a special hobby – he is a proud owner of a cross motorbike.
Ice Hockey Vocabulary in our Language
Club Trivia HC05 Banská Bystrica were founded in 2005. We were promoted to the Extraliga in 2008 and we won our first medal in the 2010/11 season. We have played in the finals for five seasons in a row now – with three titles from the last three seasons. The nickname of the club is “The Rams” and the head of a ram is in our logo. The ram is a symbol of our stubbornness in achieving our goals and also our mascot.
Players’ Trivia Our new signing, goalie Tyler Beskorowany, was named as best goalie of the 2014/15 season of the DEL. Defenceman Ville Räsänen was drafted by the Carolina Hurricanes in 2017. Ivan Ďatelinka and Vladimír Mihalik have won all three championship titles in our history. Jordan Hickmott played for our team in the 2016/17 season and significantly contributed to winning the club’s first ever championship title. Marek Bartánus is a 5-time Slovakian Extraliga Champion and he has done so with three different clubs (HC Slovan Bratislava 1x, HC Košice 2x, HC05 Banská Bystrica 2x).
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Ice Hockey = ľadový hokej Faceoff = buly Offside = postavenie mimo hry Puck = puk Hockey Stick = hokejka Goal = gól Penalty = vylúčenie Referee = rozhodca
Web & Social Media Website: www.cardiffdevils.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CardiffDevils Twitter: www.twitter.com/cardiffdevils Instagram: www.instagram.com/cardiffdevilsofficial YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/ UC1aNdxWIewxuby89I83ielw
CARDIFF DEVILS
Club Staff FOUNDED: 1986
General Manager: Todd Kelman Head Coach: Andrew Lord
Glory Times National titles: 6 – 1990, 1993, 1994, 1997, 2017, 2018 National Cup titles: 3 – 2006, 2015, 2017 Playoff titles: 6 – 1990, 1993, 1994, 1999, 2018, 2019
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Group Stage (4th in Group G) 2017/18: Group Stage (4th in Group E) 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as Regular Season Runners-Up
Arena Info Name: Viola Arena Address: Olympian Drive, CF11 0JS, Cardiff, UK Capacity: 3,095 Year opened: 2016
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Media Contact Fie Adolfsen E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +44 751 709 47 26
Accreditation for CHL Home Games Please e-mail [email protected] at least 24 hours before the game for any media accreditation
Three Stars on the Team Joey Martin: This will be Joey’s 6th season with the Devils. The fans call him the GOAT (greatest of all time) and is widely regarded as the best player to ever wear the Devils jersey. He has been voted a First Team Elite League All-Star in each of his 5 seasons, winning the EIHL forward of the year 3 times and picking up the EIHL player of the year award twice.
Charles Linglet: This will be Charles’ second season in Cardiff after joining from the KHL last summer where he spent almost 8 seasons, the majority of that with Minsk. One of the most skilled players to ever play in Cardiff, he recorded 96 points (28+68) in 76 games last season leading the Devils in scoring and finishing third overall in the league scoring charts. Ben Bowns: Also entering his 6th season with the Devils is goaltender Ben Bowns who backstopped the Devils to their 9th trophy in 5 years when he saved 35 of 36 shots faced in the Playoff final against the Belfast Giants. He then went on to help Team GB stay in the top pool of international hockey, setting a new record for most ever saves in the group stage of the IIHF world championships, saving an impressive 230 shots.
New Players for 2019/20 Blair Riley, F, Belfast Giants (EIHL) Mike McNamee, F, Aalborg Pirates (Metal Ligaen) Masi Marjamäki, F, Pirati Chomutov (TELH) Sean McMonagle, D, Frisk Asker (GET Ligaen) Sam Jardine, D, Newfoundland Growlers (ECHL)
Legendary Players in the Club Doug McEwen John Lawless Jason Stone Steve Moria
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Statements Head Coach Andrew Lord’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “I’m very excited to get another go in the CHL. We’ve had two great years in the competition where I think both myself and the whole team, players to backroom staff, have been on a steep learning curve. I’m really excited about our group this year – I think it’ll provide a great test for us with three teams are really good squads who are coming off really good seasons. Our goal is to make some noise in the competition, hopefully get another couple wins in and maybe even go onto the next round as we saw the Nottingham Panthers do two seasons ago. I think the EIHL is really coming along and we’ve seen that with Team GB managing to stay up in Pool A and I just think right now is a really exciting time for UK hockey and that we are really starting to make a name for ourselves in European hockey and we want to build on that. We’d love to go through but most importantly I want us to start well. We have to find out skating legs early on in training camp as we’re already a bit behind the other teams who start earlier than us, but we will address that this year and hopefully find that upbeat tempo for the first game rather than game 4 or 5. It’s very special for us to be in the competition again and I know the guys really enjoy it and especially for our fans, it’s something they all look forward to and we can’t wait to get started again.”
Head Coach Andrew Lord’s comments about the other teams in the group: Frölunda Indians: “We were actually hoping to get Frölunda and myself and our GM were pumped when the draw was made in Bratislava earlier this year. They are arguably the best team in European hockey and have been for the last five or so years and I know for myself and the players it’ll be a massive occasion but also for our fans. Welcoming hockey royalty to Cardiff will always be a big deal to us and we’ve had some good experiences playing Swedish Champions in Cardiff so hopefully we’ll have another good game to look forward to. It’ll be a great test for us and another awesome learning lesson for our team and league to get excited about and I know all our fans are excited to get to visit Gothenburg and watch the champions on home ice.” Graz99ers: “I think Graz have got a heck of a coach, who has been around for a long time and knows the team and has been part of their recent success. Their arena is a similar size and build to ours and I think we found last year against Salzburg that the Austrian style of hockey is maybe slightly more similar to the British style of hockey than perhaps other leagues in the CHL so it’ll be a fun match-up I’m sure and we’re excited to welcome them to Cardiff for the first time and head back to Austria in September.” Mountfield HK: “We know Mountfield well from their games against Nottingham two seasons ago but we’re under no illusion that it’ll be an easier game by any means. We know they were missing key parts of
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their squad then and they’ll have a better idea of the UK style of hockey. We start of our campaign against them in Cardiff so we’re obviously hoping for a strong start but we know there is no such thing as an easy game in the CHL and we’ll have to be at our absolute best from puck-drop to take anything from the game.”
Club Trivia The Cardiff Devils were formed during the summer of 1986 when Sports Nationwide built the Wales National Ice Rink in the centre of Cardiff. John Lawless, a 25-year-old Canadian, was given the responsibility of setting up a brand-new team, having been a trainee assistant manager at Peterborough who were owned by the same company. On 1 November 2010, the club announced the signing of Sawyer’s replacement, exNHL defenceman Craig Weller. With Weller on board and Voth back in the line-up, the club embarked on a record-breaking winning streak, which ended after a penalty shootout loss in Dundee on 16 January. The club did not lose a game between 28 October 2010 and 16 January 2011. On 9 January, the Devils went to the top of the Elite Ice Hockey League table with a 7–1 home win over Dundee Stars. The victory also saw first line winger Jon Pelle beat the league record for goals in a season (35), previously held by former Devils player Mike Prpich. As of 15 January 2011, the club now hold the UK record for games unbeaten in all competitions (22) and most consecutive league games unbeaten (21). The Devils management have had discussions with the IIHF and Guinness World Records who have verified that this is in fact a World Record.
Our mascot is a Tasmanian Devil known as ‘Taz’ who wears the number 666 on his jersey and is present amongst the fans during our home games. Famous fans include Luke Rowe – a welsh cyclist currently under contract with Team Ineos and part of the Tour De France win last summer.
Players’ Trivia Ben Bowns, Matthew Myers, Mark Richardson, Evan Mosey and Thomas Murdy were all part of the GB team that won back to back gold medals to be promoted to Pool A at international level and were in Slovakia with the team who after beating France on the last day managed to stay up – a huge achievement for British Ice Hockey. Matthew Myers will have his testimonial for the Devils this year to celebrate his 10th season with the club – and his 16th EIHL season. He is the most decorated player in EIHL history with 20 trophies. Mike McNamee played in the CHL last season with the Aalborg Pirates, recording 3 assists in 5 games. Masi Marjamäki played in the CHL with Tappara in the 2014/15 season.
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Beyond Hockey Matthew Myers and Bryce Reddick are Kidney Wales ambassadors. New signing Mike McNamee is a keen singer which he proves on his Instagram profile (@mcnamee_12) Joey Haddad (#27) is known as the Chef because of his love for cooking – also very into crosswords Matt Pope (#42) is very into Crypto currency – just check his twitter Luke Piggott (#21) aside from his career as a Cardiff Devils player in the Elite Ice Hockey League, Luke Piggott is actually a scientist in the European Stem Research Institute at Cardiff University, trying to find new ways to target stem cells in breast cancer patients and help find a cure from cancer. (https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/ wales-news/i-spend-mornings-trainingcardiff-8082080)
Web & Social Media Website: www.BelfastGiants.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/BelfastGiants Twitter: www.twitter.com/BelfastGiants Instagram: www.instagram.com/BelfastGiants YouTube: www.youtube.com/BelfastGiantsTV Snapchat: www.snapchat.com/add/belfastgiants
BELFAST GIANTS
Club Staff
FOUNDED: 2000
Glory Times National titles: 5 – 2002, 2006, 2012, 2014, 2019 National Cup Titles: 3 - 2009, 2018, 2019 Playoff Titles: 2 - 2003, 2010
Previous Champions Hockey League appearances 2018/19: Did not qualify 2017/18: Did not qualify 2016/17: Did not qualify 2015/16: Did not qualify 2014/15: Did not qualify
Head Of Hockey Operations: Steve Thornton Head Coach: Adam Keefe Commercial & Communications Manager: Mark Brooks Marketing & Communications Executive: Rachael Clydesdale
Media Contact Mark Brooks E-Mail: [email protected] Phone number: +44 2890 460044
Accreditation for CHL Home Games
Qualified for the 2019/20 CHL Season as Continental Cup Representatives
Arena Info Name: The SSE Arena Belfast Address: 2 Queens Quay, BT3 9QQ, Belfast, Northern Ireland Capacity: 7,500 Year opened: 2000
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Please request accreditation from [email protected] and accompany with a valid Press Card as well as links to recently (current or last season) published samples (pictures or articles) of your own work in hockey.
Three Stars on the Team Jordan Smotherman: The American forward makes it two seasons in-a-row with Belfast – helping the Giants to the Elite League and Challenge Cup titles in 2018/19. Smotherman signed for Belfast from the Iserlohn Roosters of Germany’s DEL and made an immediate impact – including scoring the memorable Challenge Cup Final game winning goal in overtime against the Guildford Flames on Sunday 10th March. Smotherman’s first season in teal was made the more impressive when, a few days prior to his arrival in Belfast - he changed his travel plans upon learning that the team had picked up an injury and arrived overnight in-time to face the Nottingham Panthers on Sunday 3rd February. From Corvallis, Oregon, he grew up in Westborough, Massachusetts. Smotherman was selected in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft in Round #4, 116th overall, by the Atlanta Thrashers. Smotherman went on to play in the NHL for the Thrashers as well as adding 373 AHL games, posting 78 goals and 86 assists for a total of 164 points. The 6’3”, 225 lbs forward won the Calder Cup with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves in the 2007/08 season, playing 99 games and recording 23 goals and 27 assists, for a combined 50 points on his way to helping the Atlanta Thrashers’ affiliate to the championship. Smotherman’s career moved to Europe in 2011/12 when he joined Danish side EfB Ishockey and was named on the league’s All-Star team for most goals and most points thanks to 31 goals and 29 assists, in 39 games played.
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Jordan also suited up in Sweden from 2012/13 to 2015/16 before returning to the USA with the Manchester Monarchs where he posted 46 goals and 46 assists, in 87 games and was named in the ECHL’s 2017/18 All-Star team. Matt Pelech: The Canadian arrived from Villacher of the EBEL and played in the NHL with both the Calgary Flames and the San Jose Sharks. The 6’4” 230lb defenceman was selected in the first round, 26th overall, of the 2005 NHL Draft and made five appearances for the Flames as well as eight for the Sharks. Pelech brings a wealth of experience to the Belfast blueline following multiple seasons spent in the AHL, DEL and EBEL. The Toronto native posted 425 AHL games with Quad City, Abbotsford, Worcester and Rochester. He split the previous four years in Europe with the DEL’s Schwenniger and Ingolstadt as well as with Austria’s Graz and Villacher. Kevin Raine: The 26-year-old rejoins the Giants blueline after helping the organisation to the 2018/19 Elite League championship as well as successive Challenge Cup titles in 2017/18 and 2018/19. The Canadian became the 183rd player to play for the Giants when he arrived in 2017 from the ECHL’s Florida Everblades.
Previously, the 6’1” defenceman won an OHL championship in 2011/12 with the London Knights and also captained Sudbury in 2013/14. Raine made his professional debut in 2013/14 with the AHL’s Portland Pirates before being invited to the 2014 NHL rookie camp and training camp of the Los Angeles Kings.
Legendary Players in the Club
Kevin’s solid play earned him a spot with the Kings organisation on the roster of their AHL affiliate, the Manchester Monarchs. In his first professional season, he won the Calder Cup with the Monarchs.
Statements
In 2015/16, the 207-pound defenceman signed with the Ontario Reign before splitting 2016/17 with the Charlotte Checkers and the Florida Everblades.
New Players for 2019/20 Shane Owen, G, Fife Flyers (EIHL) Matt Pelech, D, Villacher (EBEL) Jesse Forsberg, D, Saskatchewan (USports) Ciaran Long, F, Manchester Storm (EIHL) Ben Lake, F, Coventry Blaze (EIHL) Brian Ward, F, Adirondack Thunder (ECHL) Patryk Wronka, F, GKS Katowice (PHL) Patrick Mullen, D, Vienna Capitals (EBEL) Liam Morgan, F, Union College (NCAA) Jean Dupuy, F, Orlando Solar Bears (ECHL) Bobby Farnham, F Springfield Thunderbirds (AHL) Curtis Hamilton, F Graz99ers (EBEL) Liam Reddox, F, Växjö Lakers (SHL)
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Shane Johnson Colin Ward Rob Stewart Graeme Walton Paxton Schulte Todd Kelman
Head Coach Adam Keefe’s comments about the team’s goals in the Champions Hockey League: “This is an exciting time for our organisation and the city of Belfast – with the Champions League coming to Northern Ireland for the first time. Facing Augsburger, Liberec and Luleå gives us a tough challenge with their wage bills among the highest in Europe. I know our fans are excited at the opportunity of watching us go toe-to-toe with three great club teams and our players will be ready to go when the puck drops in August.” Head Coach Adam Keefe’s comments about the other teams in the group: Luleå Hockey: “Luleå, as former European champions, will likely provide us with the toughest test in our group. They are filled with quality players who skate very well, and we will need to prepare well to face such a prestigious side.” Bílí Tygři Liberec: “Our games against Liberec will be the organisation’s first against Czech opposition and we are looking forward to the challenge. We are just worrying about ourselves and getting to the top of our game in time to face Liberec.” Augsburger Panther: “We have faced German opposition previously in the Continental Cup however no-one with the quality that Augsburger contain. I know the Giants fans are excited to watch Augsburg
in action, both in Belfast and in Germany, and we need to make sure we focus on ourselves and be ready to go on 31st August & 8th September.”
Three-Time National League AND ThreeTime Challenge Cup Champions: Mark Garside Stephen Murphy Andrew Dickson
Club Trivia
Two-time Challenge Cup Champions: Kevin Raine
Founded in 2000 2019/20 is the 20th anniversary season Only professional ice hockey club in Northern Ireland Mascot: Finn McCool Famous Fans: Liam Neeson, Conleith Hill, Jamie Dornan, Rory McIlroy, Rory Best, Craig Gilroy, Colin Murray, Aimee Fuller
Players’ Trivia National Team Players: Patryk Wronka (Team Poland) Mark Garside (Team Great Britain) Paul Swindlehurst (Team Great Britain) Ciaran Long (Team Great Britain) Lewis Hook (Team Great Britain) Mark Garside (Team Great Britain) Stephen Murphy (Team Great Britain)
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2019/20 will be a Testimonial season for Mark Garside – ten seasons with the Belfast Giants
Champions Hockey League AG Gubelstrasse 24 6300 Zug Switzerland +41 44 562 27 77 championshockeyleague.com
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