Champions Hockey League Season Review 2018/19

season review 2018/19

8

A NIGHT TO REMEMBER

24

RESULTS & STANDINGS

52

HALL OF FAME

IMPRINT The name Champions Hockey League (CHL), all CHL logos and marks as well as the content and all other proprietary materials depicted in this booklet are the property of the CHL and the respective CHL participating clubs and may not be reproduced without the prior written consent of the CHL. Copyright: Champions Hockey League (CHL) AG 2019. All rights reserved.

Editors: Monika Reinhard, Jannine Kamm, Philip Schuler, Luke Fisher, Jon Rowson, Adam Chawner, Derek O’Brien Photos: CHL participating clubs, Infront, Bildbyrån, Twelfth Man Artwork & Print: KRT Media AG, Lucerne

TABLE OF CONTENTS

8

A NIGHT TO REMEMBER

12,044 fans in a sold-out Scandinavium saw the Frölunda Indians win their third CHL title – a magic night not only for the home team.

EUROPEAN HOCKEY FAMILY

40

Fans don’t shy away from travelling thousands of kilometers to support their teams in the CHL and embracing European ice hockey culture.

38

44 WHO HAS THE BEST FANS? We sought to find out with the CHL Fan Challenge.

46 OFF-ICE HONOUR The first ever CHL Marketing Award winners were chosen.

3

EXCITING LIVE CHARTS Advanced statistics enhance the fan experience for CHL games.

EDITORIAL

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

T

he fifth Champions Hockey League season is history! And it culminated in a fantastic way with a sold-out Final in the Scandinavium arena in Gothenburg. In front of a record-breaking crowd of 12,044 fans, the home team Frölunda Indians demonstrated why they have been called the powerhouse of European club ice hockey: In their fourth CHL Final in five years, the Swedes earned their third title with a 3-1 victory against Red Bull Munich.

However, despite the defeat, I would like to emphasise that the German side can also be very proud of what they have achieved as they truly went beyond and delivered an outstanding 2018/19 CHL campaign.

Overall, the parity among teams stood out in the 2018/19 CHL season. We started with 32 teams from 14 countries and on the way to Frölunda Indians being crowned champions, many others made their mark.

Take HC Bolzano (ITA) and Rouen Dragons (FRA) for example, who became their respective countries’ first ever qualifier for the CHL Playoffs. Or Czech powerhouse HC Pilsen who were on a roll with a perfect record – until they faced the eventual champions in the Semi-Finals. And don’t forget about the two Red Bull teams. The Semi-Final between Munich and Salzburg was something new to European ice hockey and created tremendous excitement for the CHL.

Stage games last season and 17 out of 29 playoff games were decided by only one goal. Furthermore, for the first time in CHL history there were four different countries (Austria, Czech Republic, Germany and Sweden) represented in the Semi-Finals.

All signs which indicate that almost any team can win the CHL.

From August to February we witnessed many tight duels, which highlights the strong competition amongst Europe’s elite ice hockey clubs. Playing in the CHL is a sporting challenge – there are no easy games anymore. Over 40% of the Group

I would like to take the opportunity to say thank you to the aforementioned stakeholders and I am already looking forward to next season.

History has been made in the five Champions Hockey League seasons up to date with the Frölunda Indians being a big part of it.

We are looking forward to the future and will keep on working hard and evolving the competition to make it even more exciting for the clubs, leagues, sponsors, partners, broadcasters and fans.

Peter Zahner, President

“ PLAYING IN THE CHL IS A SPORTING CHALLENGE.” Peter Zahner, CHL President

In his first year as CHL President Peter Zahner witnessed many tight duels and strong competition amongst Europe's elite.

4

EDITORIAL

CEO’S MESSAGE

T

“ OUR FOCUS IS TO INCREASE THE CHL FAN EXPERIENCE.”

he Champions Hockey League is already five years old. How time flies!

Anyhow, we are still in the build-up phase of our product. Brand awareness and media exposure are growing, players and coaches are keen to challenge themselves against the best teams in Europe and clubs

strive for international prestige and the opportunity to build their brands outside of their domestic markets. But nevertheless, we still have a way to go until fans and media fully jump on the bandwagon without any objections. This is the challenge the CHL Office tackles on a daily basis, with the strong support of the clubs and other stakeholders.

A focus for the 2018/19 season was to increase the CHL fan experience, based on the feedback we received from approximately 21,000 people in our comprehensive Fan Survey conducted in November 2017.

We’ve discussed this feedback internally for many hours, and also shared the survey’s findings intensively with our clubs. The launch of the CHL Fan Challenge was a direct result of this: an interactive platform for fans all over the world which allowed them to engage with the CHL and the participating clubs, to learn about the European ice hockey family – and to win great prizes (for more information see page 38).

As each team’s involvement is crucial for the success of such an activity, we’ve allocated prize money for the best ranked teams in order to heat up the race between them. Of course, we not only wanted the clubs to be active in the Fan Challenge, but also seeing their own ideas and creativity when it comes to enhancing the CHL fan

Martin Baumann, CHL CEO

experience. That’s why we introduced the CHL Marketing Award. This initiative allowed us to award the most creative and active club, but also to collect best practice cases which can be shared with the whole CHL family. The knowledge transfer across borders is one of the CHL’s priorities and also one of the major advantages which CHL participation offers. 50% of last season’s clubs applied for the first CHL Marketing Award (see page 44 for the result) – a good amount, but I wish for the number to increase in the next edition.

Every day we are working to evolve our product and offer fans an exciting experience with the CHL, both online and offline. A new edition of our pan-European Fan Survey is planned for late 2019 and I’m really looking forward to seeing how the efforts of the CHL family are perceived.

I would like to thank all of our stakeholders for their continued commitment and their support in 2018/19 and look forward to organising an even better CHL campaign together with all of you in 2019/20.

Martin Baumann, CEO

5

Martin Baumann is proud of the successful implementation of the CHL Fan Challenge and the CHL Marketing Award, two initiatives which helped to increase the fan experience.

6

THE BIGGEST WINNER THAT NIGHT WAS NOT FRÖLUNDA – IT WAS THE CHAMPIONS HOCKEY LEAGUE. Thomas Ros (Journalist, Aftonbladet)

7

A NIGHT TO In February, a sold-out Scandinavium of 12,044 fans saw the Frölunda Indians win their third CHL title in Gothenburg. It was a highlight in the Champions Hockey League's five-year history – and an event leaving everyone with the feeling of wanting more.

5

February in Gothenburg had all the ingredients for a perfect night of ice hockey. On the one hand, hosts Frölunda Indians, the most successful team in the Champions Hockey League so far, competing in their fourth Final to win their third title. On the other hand, the away team traveling from Munich, the fairytale story of the season, the first German team ever to make it further than the Round of 16, and with it creating unbelievable excitement in their own country. This was all combined with the biggest ever CHL Final venue, a capacity almost double that of previous events.

four more TV stations announced the presence of their crews for on-site coverage (Sport1, ARD and ZDF from Germany, as well as MTV from Finland).

“Every single CHL Final so far was a great success and every edition had its own story,” CHL CEO Martin Baumann, who has been with the competition since the very beginning and thus witnessed the development very closely, said. “But during the build-up to the 2019 Final, there was something in the air. Everyone involved had the feeling that something truly great was being created for us.”

The Scandinavium was sold out within a couple of hours. 12,044 fans were keen to be part of the ultimate European season showdown, with around 500 travelling from Germany. About 75 journalists and photographers also requested media accreditation, a new record for a CHL Final. And the broadcasting side raised the bar with 65 territories worldwide getting live coverage from 29 TV partners. Additionally, along with the Swedish host broadcaster SVT,

And he was right: When the countdown was close to face-off, the arena’s light dimmed and the intro show captured everyone there with its magic. Everything was set for an outstanding hockey night

8

8

CHL FINAL in Gothenburg. Two-time champions Frölunda took the lead right from the start. Backed by the home crowd the Swedes scored three goals, while the Munich team struggled to shine on D-day. Hope was restored after a late goal – but the minutes ticked away and the score stayed at 3-1 until the end of regulation time.

1

The magic night in Gothenburg culminated with the Frölunda Indians celebrating in front of a sold out home crowd, winning their third CHL title, leaving the ice as the undisputed force in European club ice hockey. But it was also a huge success for Red Bull Munich, their team, fans and a whole hockey country – despite the bittersweet loss.

“As beautiful our sport is, it can be just as painful. To fail at the final stage, and to watch the other team celebrating, hurts badly,” Munich’s Konrad Abeltshauser summarised shortly after the final buzzer. “For now, it is painful. But we must be proud of what we have achieved in the Champions Hockey League.”

2

Pain will heal, memories remain. History was made. It was truly a night to remember.

REMEMBER

3

1: Frölunda’s Head Coach Roger Rönnberg lifting the European Trophy. The CHL Final at the Scandinavium was his 60th Champions Hockey League game – a record!

2: With 22 points, Ryan Lasch was not only a crucial part of Frölunda’s team, but he also became the league's undisputed Top Scorer.

3: Winning their third CHL title in front of a sold-out home crowd at the Scandinavium was magic for the Frölunda players.

ANNIVERSARY

5 YEARS OF TOP-NOTCH CLUB ICE HOCKEY IN EUROPE: THE CHL IS HERE TO STAY 2018/19 was special for the Champions Hockey League: The competition was running its operations for the fifth consecutive season. As building a pan-European club competition in ice hockey was a struggle before, this is a great success. Furthermore, fan and club acceptance are growing and contracts are already in place until 2022/23. The future looks bright! Happy anniversary!

2014/15

2015/16

2016/17

2017/18

Final: Luleå Hockey – Frölunda Indians 4-2

Final: Kärpät Oulu – Frölunda Indians 1-2

Final: Frölunda Indians – Sparta Prague 4-3 OT

Final: Växjö Lakers – JYP Jyväskylä 0-2

Venue: Coop Norbotten Arena

Venue: Oulun Energia-Areena

Venue: Frölunaborgs Isstadion

Venue: Vida Arena

Capacity: 6,200 attending (sold out)

Capacity: 6,200 attending (sold out)

Capacity: 6,044 attending (sold out)

Capacity: 5,750 attending (sold out)

The Champions Hockey League became the new pan-European club competition featuring 44 clubs from 11 leagues and 12 countries.

For its second season of play, the CHL increased in size from 44 to 48 teams. A team from Belarus was welcomed which increased the number of participating leagues to 12.

The league continued with 48 teams and Poland was announced as a new Wild Card country. This expanded the number of leagues taking part to 13.

The fourth CHL season started with big changes: The league was cut down to 32 teams with all having to earn their places on sporting merits.

The season culminated in the Final in Gothenburg on 7 February 2017. Frölunda contested their third straight Final and made history by winning back-to-back CHL titles after a dramatic 4-3 overtime win over Sparta Prague.

125 games were played over the season all the way through to the final showdown in Växjö on 6 February 2018. For the first time in CHL history the trophy left Sweden as JYP Jyväskylä shut out the Lakers in a 2-0 win.

SEASON

The season ended with game No. 161 on 9 February 2015 with an all-Swedish Final where home team Luleå Hockey defeated the Frölunda Indians 4-2, staging a dramatic third-period four-goal comeback after being down 2-0 after two.

SEASON

SEASON

Overall, 157 games were played including the Final between Kärpät Oulu and Frölunda Indians on 9 February 2016 where the Swedes made up for their loss in the 2015 Final, winning 2-1 in Oulu.

10

SEASON

all-time trivia 5

seasons

3137

players in teams’ lineups

725

games

13

leagues

2018/19 SEASON

Final: Frölunda Indians – Red Bull Munich 3-1 Venue: Scandinavium Capacity: 12,044 attending (sold out)

The anniversary season was the second consecutive one with 32 teams who all earned their places thanks to outstanding performances in 13 national leagues.

124 thrilling matchups led to the ultimate one-game Final in Gothenburg. After missing out last season, Frölunda were back and nailed down their third CHL title against German-side Red Bull Munich.

3 different

champions from 2 countries

77

teams

16

countries 11 teams

played all 5 seasons

THE CHL GIVES US THE CHANCE TO BATTLE THE BEST OF EUROPE AND IT’S A GREAT CHALLENGE. Greg Ireland (Head Coach, HC Lugano)

12

13

16 May 2018 GROUP STAGE DRAW

timeline

The 2018/19 Group Stage Draw was held at the IIHF World Championships in Copenhagen.

28/29/30 May 2018 MARKETING & COMMUNICATION WORKSHOPS

FAN AMBASSADORS GOING BEYOND

The CHL Office met with marketing & communication managers from participating clubs in Zurich, Stockholm and Prague.

Phil Förster of Red Bull Munich was selected out of 32 Fan Ambassadors to win a trip to the CHL Final. He wasn’t the only one travelling to Gothenburg: Chris Klinger (RBS) and Josefin Ceder (VLH) joined him and all were welcomed by Rebecca Gordon (FHC).

12 June 2018 GENERAL ASSEMBLY & CLUB INFO MEETING

The annual ordinary General Assembly was held in Prague, followed by a club information event for shareholders and all participating clubs.

14-28 August 2018

TREVOR PARKES VOTED MVP Leading Red Bull Munich to the CHL Final as the first German team, Parkes was voted MVP by both fans and a jury. The Canada-native had an outstanding season with 9 goals in as many games.

PRESS CONFERENCES Journalists were invited to meet with CHL and club representatives in all founding league countries.

BEST GOAL OF THE SEASON SCORED BY CICHY Michael Cichy scored a beautiful between-the-legs goal voted best of the season in their Group Stage fixture versus HC Bolzano, which eventually turned out to be the first CHL victory for a Polish team.

30 August 2018 SEASON START The first game of the season faced-off at 17.00 CEST. HC Pilsen beat HC Lugano 3-2 on home-ice.

10 October 2018 ATTENDANCE RECORD This season’s attendance record of 13,715 was registered at PostFinance Arena for the SC Bern vs Red Bull Salzburg game.

19 October 2018

CHAMPIONS HOCKEY LEAGUE IN NHL19 For the second time, the CHL was fully integrated into EA Sports’ NHL19, which included the 32 participating teams and their players, CHL team uniforms, arenas and home atmospheres.

PLAYOFF DRAW The pairings of the best 16 teams were drawn in Helsinki, setting the path to the CHL Final.

GET TO KNOW YOUR FANS AND ENGAGE WITH THEM In the Semi-Finals and Final, a pilot for a fan engagement tool on Facebook and in-arena was run.

This application will be launched for all 125 games in the 2019/20 season.

Stay tuned!

5 February 2019 CHL FINAL In front of a sold out 12,044 crowd, Frölunda Indians defeated Red Bull Munich to be crowned CHL Champions for the third time.

14 14

THE CLUBS FINLAND

32 TEAMS STRIVING FOR EUROPEAN GLORY

NORWAY

SWEDEN DENMARK BELARUS

UNITED KINGDOM

The 2018/19 Champions Hockey League featured a good mixture of teams. Some were new, some were returning, but all of them had the same goal: to compete with the continent’s elite and to make it as far as possible in the battle for the European Trophy.

GERMANY

POLAND

CZECH REPUBLIC SLOVAKIA FRANCE

AUSTRIA SWITZERLAND

ITALY

T

he heat for the 2018/19 Champions Hockey League season was already on when the “race to qualify” climaxed at the end of regular seasons and in the playoffs of national leagues. Clubs, fans and media picked it up in a very enthusiastic way, giving the CHL an additional buzz and reach. From February to April, almost week by week, the question was raised: who’s in?

The record of participating teams was the following:

Eventually, 32 teams from 13 leagues and 14 countries qualified.

HC Bolzano, the Italian champion in the Austrian EBEL league added an extra country to the CHL map. 19 out of the 32 qualified teams had been competing in the previous season already, while 10 were returning and three were completely new to the competition (Aalborg Pirates/DEN, GKS Tychy/POL, THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers/GER).

4 National League Finalists

MEET THE TEAMS

15 champions (CHL Champions JYP Jyväskylä, IIHF Continental Cup Winners Yunost Minsk & 13 National Champions)

3 Regular Season Winners 6 Regular Season Runners-up 3 National League Semi-Finalists 1 Regular Season third-placed team All together the participating teams hold a total of 220 national championships between them. Truly a group who deserved to compete in the Champions Hockey League!

Are you keen to learn more about the CHL teams, their players and their cities? Check out our “Meet the Teams” videos provided by each club – and enjoy the diversity of Europe!

15

THE CLUBS

32 teams… 15 First appearance, and the Danes shocked ZSC & Vienna on opening Game Days.

Participation

Let a playoff place slip through their hands in the last two Game Days.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19 Progress

GS

Closer games than a year before, but somehow got less points; unbelievable road support.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

R16

QF

SF

F

Points percentage

GS

Progress

R16

QF

SF

F

GS

Points percentage

16.7 P%

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

Progress

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19 Progress

R16

QF

SF

F

Points percentage

0.0 P%

Despite an unbelievable atmosphere at the “Wellblechpalast”, the Eisbären were out after four games.

GS

R16

QF

SF

50.0 P%

33.3 P%

Name:

Aalborg Pirates

Name:

Cardiff Devils

Name:

Djurgården Stockholm

Name:

Eisbären Berlin

Country:

DEN

Country:

UK

Country:

SWE

Country:

GER

Founded:

2012

Founded:

1986

Founded:

1891

Founded:

1954

National Titles: 1

National Titles: 6

Merzlikins’ shutouts over JYP helped them into the playoffs, and he almost got them past Frölunda.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

QF

SF

Points percentage

F

GS

Progress

R16

QF

SF

F

GS

Points percentage

37.5 P%

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19 Progress

R16

QF

SF

F

Points percentage

66.7 P%

Ultimately undone by two losses to Bolzano that cost them a playoff place.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

Progress

R16

National Titles: 22

Shocked Lugano and took Pilsen to overtime, but couldn’t get through the Group Stage.

Participation

Progress

GS

National Titles: 16

Undefeated until the Semi-Finals, then the now three-time Champions came along and spoilt the party.

GS

R16

QF

SF

Points percentage

16.7 P%

50.0 P%

Name:

HC Lugano

Name:

HC Pilsen

Name:

HC05 Banská Bystrica

Name:

IFK Helsinki

Country:

SUI

Country:

CZE

Country:

SVK

Country:

FIN

Founded:

1941

Founded:

1929

Founded:

1964

Founded:

1897

National Titles: 7

National Titles: 1

National Titles: 3

16

F

Points percentage

National Titles: 7

F

champions…

Fifth straight year in CHL, topped their group, but again out in the first playoff round.

Participation

Great atmosphere at home, first win for a Polish team, and wellbacked away too.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19 Progress

GS

Fifth season, fourth final, third Trophy; the undisputed Kings of Europe over the past five years.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

R16

QF

SF

F

Points percentage

GS

Progress

R16

QF

SF

F

GS

Points percentage

75.0 P%

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

Progress

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19 Progress

R16

QF

SF

F

Points percentage

76.9 P%

From last in their league to the top 16 in Europe 11 months later, the Foxes were one of the fairytale stories.

GS

R16

QF

SF

16.7 P%

50.0 P%

Name:

EV Zug

Name:

Frölunda Indians

Name:

GKS Tychy

Name:

HC Bolzano

Country:

SUI

Country:

SWE

Country:

POL

Country:

ITA

Founded:

1967

Founded:

1944

Founded:

1971

Founded:

1933

National Titles: 1

National Titles: 5 CHL Titles:

Last year’s Champions eliminated in the Group Stage after being shut out twice by Lugano in crucial games.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

GS

National Titles: 4

Kupari & Heponiemi were unable to be the difference as the Finnish champions were surprised by Salzburg.

Peter Mueller’s goals were not enough to stop Kometa falling to Nordic opposition in the Quarter-Finals.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

QF

SF

Points percentage

F

GS

Progress

R16

QF

SF

F

GS

Points percentage

33.3 P%

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19 Progress

R16

QF

SF

Points percentage

60.0 P%

Munich upset them twice: by a last-second goal in the Group Stage and in the Round of 16.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

Progress

R16

National Titles: 21

3 (2016, 2017, 2019)

Participation

Progress

F

GS

R16

QF

SF

Points percentage

40.0 P%

70.0 P%

Name:

JYP Jyväskylä

Name:

Kärpät Oulu

Name:

Kometa Brno

Name:

Malmö Redhawks

Country:

FIN

Country:

FIN

Country:

CZE

Country:

SWE

Founded:

1923

Founded:

1946

Founded:

1953

Founded:

1972

National Titles: 2 CHL Titles:

F

Points percentage

National Titles: 8

National Titles: 13

1 (2018)

17

National Titles: 2

F

THE CLUBS

…14 europea Another season as the ‘victims’ of a fairytale, as this time they fell to Rouen to exit early.

Great travelling fans, got Belarus’ first ever road win in the CHL but fell in the Group Stage.

Participation

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19 Progress

GS

Two home defeats left the 2018 Semi-Finalists with too much to do, despite winning in Stockholm after.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

R16

QF

SF

F

Points percentage

GS

Progress

R16

QF

SF

F

GS

Points percentage

16.7 P%

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

Progress

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19 Progress

R16

QF

SF

F

Points percentage

33.3 P%

Won an all-Red Bull Semi and made history as the first German side in the CHL Final.

GS

R16

QF

SF

16.7 P%

53.9 P%

Name:

Mountfield HK

Name:

Neman Grodno

Name:

Oceláři Třinec

Name:

Red Bull Munich

Country:

CZE

Country:

BLR

Country:

CZE

Country:

GER

Founded:

2013

Founded:

1988

Founded:

1929

Founded:

1998

National Titles: 7

Made the Playoffs again, plus had amazing travelling fans with 1000 in Stockholm.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

QF

SF

Points percentage

F

GS

Progress

R16

QF

SF

F

GS

Points percentage

37.5 P% Storhamar Hamar

Name:

Tappara Tampere

Country:

NOR

Country:

FIN

Founded:

1957

Founded:

1955

National Titles: 7

R16

QF

SF

18

GS

R16

QF

SF

33.3 P% THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers

Name:

TPS Turku

Country:

FIN

Country:

GER

Founded:

1922

Founded:

1980

National Titles: 11

Name:

National Titles: 17

F

Points percentage

50.0 P%

Name:

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19 Progress

Points percentage

62.5 P%

Kaapo Kakko attracted most of the eyes as TPS finished behind sides who made the top eight.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

Progress

R16

National Titles: 3

First participation with great fans at home & on the road but fell victims to Rouen’s magical run.

Participation

Progress

GS

National Titles: 2

“Curse of Round of 16” still over them after heavy defeat in Brno left too much to overturn.

F

Points percentage

F

n countries The first Austrian team in the Semi-Finals, and were only three goals short of being the first in the Final too.

Participation

There’s just something about Sweden – consecutive playoff exists now to Växjö & Malmö.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19 Progress

GS

First French team in the Round of 16, beating Czech & German sides before bowing out.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

R16

QF

SF

F

Points percentage

GS

Progress

R16

QF

SF

F

GS

Points percentage

50.0 P%

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

Progress

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19 Progress

R16

QF

SF

F

Points percentage

37.5 P%

A single penalty shot separated them from returning to the Semi-Finals again.

GS

R16

QF

SF

62.5 P%

50.0 P%

Name:

Red Bull Salzburg

Name:

Rouen Dragons

Name:

SC Bern

Name:

Skellefteå AIK

Country:

AUT

Country:

FRA

Country:

SUI

Country:

SWE

Founded:

2000

Founded:

1970

Founded:

1931

Founded:

1921

National Titles: 6

National Titles: 15

Last season’s finalists lost in Salzburg & Bern as they were eliminated in the Group Stage.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

QF

SF

Points percentage

F

GS

Progress

R16

QF

SF

F

GS

Points percentage

50.0 P%

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19 Progress

R16

QF

SF

Points percentage

33.3 P%

Finally managed to beat Frölunda after two seasons, but went out in the ‘Battle of Champions’.

Participation

14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 18/19

Progress

R16

National Titles: 3

Stayed strong at home, but not enough on the road to advance past the first round.

Participation

Progress

GS

National Titles: 16

Another season unable to break past Group Stage, despite winning in Gothenburg in a tough group.

F

GS

R16

QF

SF

33.3 P%

62.5 P%

Växjö Lakers

Name:

Vienna Capitals

Name:

Yunost Minsk

Name:

ZSC Lions Zurich

Country:

SWE

Country:

AUT

Country:

BLR

Country:

SUI

Founded:

1997

Founded:

2001

Founded:

2008

Founded:

1930

National Titles: 2

National Titles: 8

National Titles: 9 CHL Titles:

19

F

Points percentage

Name:

National Titles: 2

F

Points percentage

1 (2009, old format)

20

ANY TRUE COMPETITOR, NO MATTER THE SPORT OR DISCIPLINE, WANTS TO COMPETE AND PUSH THEMSELVES AGAINST THE VERY BEST. Andrew Lord (Head Coach, Cardiff Devils)

21

highlights Group Stage

GKS TYCHY GET POLAND’S FIRST VICTORY GKS Tychy made a splash in their first season in the Champions Hockey League. Tychy’s Game Day 5 victory against HC Bolzano, in which Michael Cichy scored a stunning between-the-legs goal – voted Best Goal at the end of the season – was the first victory for a Polish club in the CHL. Previous Polish teams had come close but failed to get on the board, meaning Tychy will go down in Polish hockey history.

UNDEFEATED RUN OF HC PILSEN BOLZANO CONTINUING FINE FORM

Pilsen dominated a strong Group H that included defending champions JYP, winning all 6 of their Group Stage matches to advance to the Playoffs from top position.

With 17 points from 5 regular time wins and 1 overtime win, HC Pilsen not only had the highest amount of gained points but were also the only team to go undefeated in the Group Stage of the competition. HC Pilsen also dominated individual statistics in the Group Stage, as key player David Stach recorded 3 goals and 8 assists, for a total of 11 points from 6 matches – the highest amount of all players.

With a spectacular run from the bottom of the EBEL to the finals, eventually winning the Austrian league for the second time, HC Bolzano qualified for this year’s CHL campaign. The Foxes had previously appeared in the 2014/15 CHL season but failed to escape their group. This time, they fared much better, thanks especially to the goaltending of former NHLer Leland Irving and Marco Insam’s 6 goals, many of them timely. Bolzano finished second in Group C with 10 points, thus qualifying for the Playoffs and becoming the first Italian team to ever make the knockout stages.

22

YOUNG STARS LEAD THE WAY Alongside Frölunda forward Samuel Fagemo, a number of young players impressed in this year’s CHL Group Stage. 20-year-old Czech forward Petr Kodýtek made a name for himself, by scoring seven points (4+3) in HC Pilsen’s successful Group Stage campaign, whilst future Finnish superstar Kaapo Kakko scored twice for TPS Turku. HC Kometa Brno are one of Europe’s hockey hotbeds, and gave ample playing time to 18-year-old Karel Plášek and 16-year-old Erik Meluzín. The latter scored his first professional goal in the Quarter-Finals.

CHALLENGER LEAGUE TEAMS IMPRESS ONCE AGAIN In the Champions Hockey League, anything can happen. In 2018/19, the Challenger League teams showed yet again that there are no easy games with a string of impressive upsets recorded in this year’s competition.

Norway’s Storhamar Hamar repeated their 2015/16 success by reaching the Round of 16, picking up a historic victory against Finnish powerhouse Tappara Tampere along the way. France’s Rouen Dragons also reached the knockout stages, defeating the THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers and Mountfield HK. Although not finishing in the top two in their groups, Yunost Minsk and Neman Grodno

proved that Belarus is one of the CHL’s toughest away trips. The Belarussian clubs won three of their six games at home, defeating teams from the Founding Leagues. Neman fans will long remember their 3-2 overtime victory over perennial Swiss contenders EV Zug, and Yunost were roared on by their home support to a 6-1 victory against Malmö Redhawks. Slovakia’s HC05 Banská Bystrica struggled to find consistency in this year’s CHL campaign, but mustered a 5-2 victory against HC Lugano, whilst Poland’s GKS Tychy and Denmark’s Aalborg Pirates both recorded their first wins in CHL play.

23

RESULTS & STANDINGS

GROUP STAGE RESULTS Group A ZSC Lions Zurich

v

Aalborg Pirates

6- 5 OT

Vienna Captials

v

Frölunda Indians

1- 4

ZSC Lions Zurich

v

Frölunda Indians

3-2 SO

Vienna Captials

v

Aalborg Pirates

2-3 OT

Frölunda Indians

v

ZSC Lions Zurich

4-2

Aalborg Pirates

v

Vienna Capitals

1- 6

Frölunda Indians

v

Vienna Capitals

1- 4

Aalborg Pirates

v

ZSC Lions Zurich

1- 2

Frölunda Indians

v

Aalborg Pirates

6-0

ZSC Lions Zurich

v

Vienna Capitals

7-4

Aalborg Pirates

v

Frölunda Indians

1- 5

Vienna Captials

v

ZSC Lions Zurich

2-6

GKS Tychy

v

IFK Helsinki

3- 5

HC Bolzano

v

Skellefteå AIK

4-3 SO

GKS Tychy

v

Skellefteå AIK

1- 8

HC Bolzano

v

IFK Helsinki

4-1

IFK Helsinki

v

HC Bolzano

1- 2 SO

Skellefteå AIK

v

GKS Tychy

6- 2

Skellefteå AIK

v

HC Bolzano

2-1

IFK Helsinki

v

GKS Tychy

2-1

IFK Helsinki

v

Skellefteå AIK

1-5

GKS Tychy

v

HC Bolzano

5-3

Skellefteå AIK

v

IFK Helsinki

3-4 OT

HC Bolzano

v

GKS Tychy

6-4

Frölunda Indians

13

ZSC Lions Zurich

13

Vienna Capitals

7

Aalborg Pirates

3

Skellefteå AIK

14

HC Bolzano

10

IFK Helsinki

9

GKS Tychy

3

Group C

24

Group B Malmö Redhawks

v

TPS Turku

8-4

Red Bull Munich

v

Yunost Minsk

4-3

Malmö Redhawks

v

Yunost Minsk

4-1

Red Bull Munich

v

TPS Turku

5-1

TPS Turku

v

Red Bull Munich

5-3

Yunost Minsk

v

Malmö Redhawks

6-2

TPS Turku

v

Malmö Redhawks

1-2

Yunost Minsk

v

Red Bull Munich

0-3

TPS Turku

v

Yunost Minsk

3-1

Red Bull Munich

v

Malmö Redhawks

3-2

Malmö Redhawks

v

Red Bull Munich

6-1

Yunost Minsk

v

TPS Turku

2-1

Neman Grodno

v

Kometa Brno

4-2

Eisbären Berlin

v

EV Zug

3-5

Neman Grodno

v

EV Zug

2-4

Eisbären Berlin

v

Kometa Brno

2-3

Kometa Brno

v

Neman Grodno

6-2

EV Zug

v

Eisbären Berlin

6-1

EV Zug

v

Neman Grodno

2-3 OT

Kometa Brno

v

Eisbären Berlin

4-3

Kometa Brno

v

EV Zug

2-3

Eisbären Berlin

v

Neman Grodno

4-1

Neman Grodno

v

Eisbären Berlin

2-4

EV Zug

v

Kometa Brno

2-1

Malmö Redhawks

12

Red Bull Munich

12

TPS Turku

6

Yunost Minsk

6

EV Zug

16

Kometa Brno

9

Eisbären Berlin

6

Neman Grodno

5

Group D

25

RESULTS & STANDINGS

GROUP STAGE RESULTS Group E Oceláři Třinec

v

Djurgården Stockholm

1-6

Storhamar Hamar

v

Tappara Tampere

3-2 SO

Oceláři Třinec

v

Tappara Tampere

2-8

Storhamar Hamar

v

Djurgården Stockholm

2-3 OT

Tappara Tampere

v

Storhamar Hamar

6-1

Djurgården Stockholm

v

Oceláři Třinec

3-4

Djurgården Stockholm

v

Storhamar Hamar

5-2

Tappara Tampere

v

Oceláři Třinec

3-2 OT

Oceláři Třinec

v

Storhamar Hamar

2-3

Djurgården Stockholm

v

Tappara Tampere

3-5

Tappara Tampere

v

Djurgården Stockholm

5-1

Storhamar Hamar

v

Oceláři Třinec

6-2

Växjö Lakers

v

SC Bern

1-2

Cardiff Devils

v

Red Bull Salzburg

2-5

Växjö Lakers

v

Red Bull Salzburg

5-2

Cardiff Devils

v

SC Bern

2-3 OT

Red Bull Salzburg

v

Cardiff Devils

4-2

SC Bern

v

Växjö Lakers

4-3

SC Bern

v

Cardiff Devils

3-2

Red Bull Salzburg

v

Växjö Lakers

4-3

Växjö Lakers

v

Cardiff Devils

3-1

SC Bern

v

Red Bull Salzburg

2-1 SO

Cardiff Devils

v

Växjö Lakers

5-6 SO

Red Bull Salzburg

v

SC Bern

2-1

Tappara Tampere

15

Storhamar Hamar

9

Djurgården Stockholm

8

Oceláři Třinec

4

Red Bull Salzburg

13

SC Bern

13

Växjö Lakers

8

Cardiff Devils

2

Group G

26

Group F Mountfield HK

v

THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers

1-2

Kärpät Oulu

v

Rouen Dragons

4-0

Mountfield HK

v

Rouen Dragons

3-2

Kärpät Oulu

v

THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers

9-3

THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers

v

Mountfield HK

4-3 OT

Rouen Dragons

v

Kärpät Oulu

2-4

Rouen Dragons

v

Mountfield HK

2-0

THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers

v

Kärpät Oulu

4-3

Kärpät Oulu

v

Mountfield HK

3-2

Rouen Dragons

v

THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers

4-2

THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers

v

Rouen Dragons

2-5

Mountfield HK

v

Kärpät Oulu

3-4 SO

Kärpät Oulu

14

Rouen Dragons

9

THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers

8

Mountfield HK

5

HC Pilsen

17

HC Lugano

9

JYP Jyväskylä

6

HC05 Banksá Bystrica

4

Group H HC Pilsen

v

HC Lugano

3-2

HC05 Banksá Bystrica

v

JYP Jyväskylä

1-6

HC Pilsen

v

JYP Jyväskylä

4-2

HC05 Banksá Bystrica

v

HC Lugano

5-2

JYP Jyväskylä

v

HC Pilsen

2-6

HC Lugano

v

HC05 Banská Bystrica

4-1

JYP Jyväskylä

v

HC05 Banská Bystrica

6-0

HC Lugano

v

HC Pilsen

2-3

HC Pilsen

v

HC05 Banská Bystrica

6-4

HC Lugano

v

JYP Jyväskylä

2-0

JYP Jyväskylä

v

HC Lugano

0-1

HC05 Banksá Bystrica

v

HC Pilsen

2-3 OT

27

WE KNOW IT'S GOING TO BE TOUGH, BUT THE DESIRE TO MAKE THE NEXT ROUND IS SO GREAT. WE BELIEVE WE CAN. Anthony Guttig (Forward, Rouen Dragons)

28

29

highlights Playoffs

SWISS SORROW – FROM FOUR TO ZERO Switzerland had four participants in the 2018/19 CHL season – ZSC Lions Zurich, HC Lugano, SC Bern and EV Zug. The season started promisingly, as all four advanced from the Group Stage with relative ease and Switzerland entered the Round of 16 with the most teams of all countries.

EV Zug faired especially well in the Group Stage – with 16 points from 5 wins and a sole overtime loss, they recorded the second highest amount of points of all teams. But the Round of 16 proved to be tough. Zug carried their great form into the first match of the Playoffs and beat Red Bull Munich. Both Lugano and Zurich settled for draws on home ice, keeping their hunger for the return games, with only Bern losing to a strong Malmö Redhawks side. The return games were close and full of tension right up to the final whistle. HC Lugano and the ZSC Lions both led at the end of the second period but goals late into the final third resulted in both teams dropping out. With similar results from EV Zug, who lost their aggregate lead, and SC Bern, who were unable to overcome the Redhawks, Switzerland went from four participants in the CHL to zero in the space of one single night.

REGIONAL DIVERSITY The Round of 16 saw an interesting line up of countries in the 2018/19 season of the CHL, as for the first time ever, there were 9 of them! Teams from traditional participants Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Germany and Austria were joined by French team, the Rouen Dragons, who stunned Europe by miraculously beating the THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers in an all-ornothing tie to qualify from Group F. In doing so they became the first French team to reach the Round of 16 in the competition’s history.

It was a similar story for HC Bolzano, who qualified by finishing second in Group C – also a first for club and country. Norwegian club Storhamar Hamar also made a surprise appearance, as they repeated their Round of 16 participation from the 2015/16 season.

Despite all the teams dropping out at this stage of the competition, this season, more than ever before, proved just how diverse the teams in the CHL are and that everybody really does have chance of winning.

RED BULL MUNICH’S HISTORIC RUN Perhaps the biggest story of this past CHL season was the run of Red Bull Munich all the way to the Final. It was the first time that a German team had advanced past the Round of 16. After finishing tied for top spot in Group B with the Malmö Redhawks and seeded second, they were drawn against EV Zug in the first playoff round and dropped the first game 3-2 on home ice. The following week in Switzerland, they won 2-0 to advance, getting the late aggregate-winner from Frank Mauer. In the Quarter-Finals, they were rematched against Malmö and got off to the right start with a 2-1 win at home. The return leg in Sweden was a wild affair, with the Redhawks winning the regulation game 5-4, which sent the tie to over-

time. There, Trevor Parkes completed his hat trick and Red Bull Munich continued their march. Up next were Red Bull Salzburg, with Munich once again opening at home.

After a scoreless draw, Munich then won the return game in Austria 3-1 courtesy of twopoint efforts from Yannic Seidenberg and Michael Wolf, the latter announcing just days later that he would retire at the conclusion of the season. For the Final, Munich travelled to Gothenburg to face the twotime European champion Frölunda Indians.

It wasn’t an easy task, but after falling behind 3-0, Red Bull turned in a solid third period and got a goal from Yasin Ehliz. That’s as close as they’d come, but it was a ride that the team’s fans won’t soon forget.

31

RESULTS & STANDINGS

PLAYOFF RESULTS ROUND OF 16

QUARTER-FINALS

SEMI-FINALS

FINAL

EVZ 3 0 3 RBM 2 2 4 RBM 2 5 7 MAL 1 5 6 MAL 4 1 5 SCB 1 0 1 RBM 0 3 3 RBS 0 1 1 KAR 4 3 7 ZSC 4 2 6 KAR 2 1 3 RBS 3 1 4 RBS 3 5 8 ROU 3 1 4

32

Red Bull Munich

1-

GOTHENBURG, SWEDEN 5 FEBRUARY 2019

SEMI-FINALS

QUARTER-FINALS

ROUND OF 16

6 1 5 TAP 10 5 5 KOM 2 1 1 KOM 10 4 6 FHC 6 1 5 FHC

Frรถlunda Indians

-3

5 1 4 HCL 9 6 3 FHC 4 3 1 PLZ 7 4 3 SKE 6 4 2 STO 4 3 1 SKE 5 3 2 PLZ 12 6 6 PLZ 3 1 2 HCB

33

championstrivia

FACTS & FIGURES

youngster power

shot stopper

true warrior

SAMUEL FAGEMO

MATIJA PINTARIČ

BALASZ KOVACS

The natural-born scorer definitely left his mark on the Champions Hockey League.

The Slovenian certainly never got bored during his eight CHL games this season.

The Linesman will remember the CHL Final 2019 forever – for more than one reason…

In his first ever appearance on 9 October 2018, Fagemo scored a hattrick in Frölunda’s 6-0 win against the Aalborg Pirates. Only four months later, he opened the score in his hometown of Gothenburg to become the youngest-ever

Not 100, not 200, but an incredible 311 shots were fired on the Rouen goalie, making 290 saves in the process or 36.25 per game. The only goalie to ever save more shots on target was Leonardo Genoni (SC Bern) in 2015/16

Every time the Swiss ref looks in the mirror, he will be reminded of that night at the Scandinavium by a scar on his jaw. During the first period of the game, Kovacs was hit in his face by a deflected puck and had to be patched up on

scorer in a CHL final at the age of 18 years, 10 months and 22 days and moved on to lift the European Trophy with his teammates that night.

The talented youngster will not soon be forgotten.

with 344 in 12 games – an average of 8 shots per game fewer than Rouen’s Slovenian shot stopper faced. Pintarič not only helped Rouen to their first win in the CHL but was also the backbone of their first Playoff qualification.

the Frölunda Indians bench.

Without flinching, the linesman had his cut stapled four times and then finished the game: “It was the CHL Final – I couldn’t bail on my referee team!”

34

sporttrivia 5.9

goals

per game on average

125

games 3 most game

winning goals TREVOR PARKES (Red Bull Munich)

2.09

1

26 most blocked shots MILAN GULAŠ (HC Pilsen)

ST

GOAL OF THE SEASON

VOJTĚCH NĚMEC (HC Pilsen) at 12:34 against HC Lugano

24:34 most time on ice per game: TAYLOR ARONSON (THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers)

4.38 most goals per game

TAPPARA TAMPERE

most points per game on average per country

32.14% Top Power Play efficiency

SWEDEN

STORHAMAR HAMAR

36

THE FANS WERE GREAT. THEY ARE SERIOUSLY OUR SEVENTH MAN. Marco Insam (Forward, HC Bolzano)

37

FANS

challengeranking

ZURICH FANS TAKE IT ALL Who has the best fans in the Champions Hockey League? We set out to find out during the 2018/19 season. Across a variety of interactive online and offline challenges, fans and teams were ranked against other across Europe to see who came out on top.

A

head of the season start in August the CHL launched its new Fan Challenge, designed to find out which of the 32 teams in the competition has the best fans. The interactive platform offered ice hockey enthusiasts from all over the world a virtual place to meet, to compete and to learn about the CHL and the participating teams.

"One of the key findings of our big fan survey from November 2017 was that we need to do more to increase the CHL fan experience," explained CEO Martin Baumann. "We looked at a variety of ideas and proposals, but something fans of all 32 teams across Europe could take part in, both on- and offline, and win things for both themselves and their team, was something we thought ticked those boxes."

By playing, fans were able to win great prizes for themselves – the ultimate of which being a VIP trip for two to the CHL Final. In addition, they also collected points for their favourite team, with prize money for the Top 3 teams of both the Group Stage and the Playoffs.

38 38

CHL FAN CHALLENGE

Online challenges included a Prediction Game, Hockey Manager, Voting for the Best Goal Songs, and making predictions as to who would be Top Scorer for both each fans’ own favourite team and across the entire CHL. Offline, fans were measured to see how loud they were at home games. The CHL Fan Challenge further provided a detailed 'Away travel' section, where teams provided useful information about visiting their cities for games – the most helpful profiles were rewarded with additional points from fans.

Kai “Kaiza” Mertes won the fan ranking of the CHL Fan Challenge and was invited to the CHL Final in Gothenburg, where he was awarded the CHL Fan Challenge Trophy.

The first CHL Fan Challenge ended with a runaway victory for ZSC Lions Zurich. The Swiss side managed to activate their fans the most, and won both the Group Stage and Playoff team ranking, which led to accumulated prize money of 15,000 Euros. “We are proud of our fans and of making history by being the first club to ever win the CHL Fan Challenge," CMO Roger Gemperle said. “We reminded our fans consistently about the upcoming Fan Challenge activities by using the tools provided by the CHL – which provided pleasing results." The club will invest the earned prize money partly into its own, and fan, activities.

The CHL Fan Challenge will be back in 2019/20 with new features and innovations. Stay tuned! www.chl-fan-challenge.com

TOP 3 PLAYOFFS

1. ZSC Lions Zurich (SUI)

527,840

2. THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers (GER)

433,410

3. Kärpät Oulu (FIN)

353,335

1. ZSC Lions Zurich (SUI)

276,760

2. Storhamar Hamar (NOR)

144,160

3. THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers (GER)

125,395

Name

TOP 3 GROUP STAGE

TOP 3 PLAYOFFS

Team

1. Kaiza

THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers (GER)

6,755

2. Kirschtorte

EV Zug (SUI)

6,245

3. ShortY

EV Zug (SUI)

6,160

1. Kaiza

THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers (GER)

11,170

2. garf17

Mountfield HK (CZE)

10,800

3. Kirschtorte

EV Zug (SUI)

10,750

39

fanranking

TOP 3 GROUP STAGE

Points

teamranking

Team

FANS

THE EUROPEAN HOCKEY FAMILY KEEPS GROWING CLOSER Teams are inviting their supporters to join them on their travels all over Europe and be part of their unique Champions Hockey League journey – and fans are all-in. Here’s to hockey supporters who don’t shy away from travelling thousands of kilometers and embracing European ice hockey culture.

E

veryone going to the ice rink to root for their team – be it in Poland, Switzerland, Finland, or anywhere else in Europe – has one common thread: their love of the game. Getting the chance to follow your team to international games and flying your team’s colours in a foreign country is an unparalleled experience you won’t soon forget.

Many travelling fans have taken the chance to meet opposing supporters, getting to know them and even growing close friendships.

Dumenig Stiffler, a Davos native and follower of the local team, became friends with Cardiff Devils supporters back in 2017 when they faced off in the Group Stage. A year later, the Swiss joined the Devils in the away stands of the PostFinance Arena in Bern and even travelled to an EIHL game in Belfast with his new pals.

500 Red Bull Munich fans wouldn’t let the opportunity slip to cheer on their team in the CHL Final at the packed Scandinavium in Gothenburg, 1000 Storhamar Hamar supporters took on the trip to Stockholm, THOMAS SABO Ice Tigers’ charter for fans going to the far-north city of Oulu was sold-out within minutes. And it doesn’t stop there…

CHL teams are doing an extraordinary job encouraging their supporters to join them on their journey and welcoming fans from all over Europe to their home towns, their arenas and their community. They truly went beyond themselves to let supporters take part in their Champions Hockey League experience.

European ice hockey fans have grown ever more interested in following their teams to away games and travelling to foreign places, visiting unknown cities and, of course, experiencing new – hockey – cultures. What you will take home are not only the memories of your team’s spectacular win or heart-breaking defeat, it’s the uncharted atmosphere of this international showdown. Eliška Kaslová who travelled to Bolzano with fellow HC Pilsen supporters for their Round of 16 game was thrilled about her team’s victory but was left even more impressed by the atmosphere at the Eiswelle arena, where the Italians cheered for their team until the very last second.

Over the last five years, the European Hockey Family has grown closer thanks to all those efforts. Let’s hope we can expand this marvellous family even further.

40

I really love how the CHL connects fans and teams from all around Europe.

We are all there for the love of the game.

Marco Vieira, Frölunda Indians

We sang with the Cardiff fans, had fondue with the Swiss and exchanged souvenirs with the Oulu supporters.

Chris Klinger, Red Bull Salzburg

We love to follow our beloved Storhamar around Europe. The CHL is the best part of the year for us together with the playoffs!

Atle Bekkelund, Storhamar Hamar

It was really nice to see another hockey town, to meet their fans and to experience a different match-day atmosphere.

Eliška Kaslová, HC Pilsen

I've met a lot of great hockey fans from other countries and even made some friends who I am still in contact with today. All of this wouldn't have been possible without the CHL! Dumenig Stiffler, HC Davos Seeing the final live was an absolute must for us, me being a Frölunda fan since a kid and Silvia following Red Bull Munich since working for Red Bull a few years back.

The event was amazing, but it took some time for Silvia to get over the loss ;)

Christian Arnell, Frölunda Indians

EVERY DAY WE ARE WORKING TO DEVELOP OUR PRODUCT AND OFFER FANS AN EXCITING EXPERIENCE WITH THE CHL. Martin Baumann (CEO, CHL)

42

43

MARKETING AWARD 1

FIRST EVER CHL MARKETING AWARD GOES TO POLAND The new CHL Marketing Award is not only a prize for Polish club GKS Tychy, but a benefit for the whole CHL family – as it eases knowledge transfer between the participating teams.

1

0,000 Euros were up for grabs when the Champions Hockey League introduced a CHL Marketing Award to clubs for the very first time. Announced at the three Marketing & Communication workshops in summer, club representatives got extra motivation to go beyond in their marketing efforts and to come up with creative ideas to promote their CHL games. “It is our intention to honour the most creative and active club promoting the CHL with this prestigious award”, CHL Marketing Manager Philip Schuler said. “Furthermore, we aim to collect as many best practice cases as possible through the submitted applications – which will be shared with the clubs at our workshops afterwards. It’s a win-win situation for everyone.”

The first-ever CHL Marketing Award, together with a cheque for the aforementioned 10,000 Euros, was handed over at the CHL Final in Gothenburg to GKS Tychy, the Polish representatives in the 2018/19 Champions Hockey League. A jury of six members (CHL Office, Infront, eSports, Two Circles, LGT Bank and Professor Jon Andrea Schocher) came to the conclusion that “Tychy deserves this appreciation for their fantastic work and efforts, their enormous creativity and smart execution of activities and promotions.”

Robert Hauffe, Marketing Manager of GKS Tychy, felt honoured to receive the prize from CHL CEO Martin Baumann in Gothenburg.

“We’re very proud and excited to be the first winners of the CHL Marketing Award,” he said. “We love the CHL, hope to qualify again and still have a lot of ideas and concepts in mind to defend our title.”

44 44

1: The Winners – CHL CEO Martin Baumann honoured the first-ever winners of the CHL Marketing Award in the first intermission of the CHL Final in Gothenburg and handed over the award and a cheque to GKS Tychy’s Krzysztof Trzosek (Media Officer, left) and Robert Hauffe (Marketing Manager, right).

2: Mini CHL Cup – Youth players played a mock version of GKS Tychy’s CHL Group Stage, and had the terrific opportunity to be part of the CHL adventure.

Kids were kitted out with original Warrior jerseys of Skellefteå AIK, HC Bolzano, IFK Helsinki and GKS Tychy.

3: GKS Tychy CHL CUP – 32 players competed for the title of the best virtual ice hockey team in Europe at a CHL branded event inside GKS Tychy’s own arena.

4: Players invite the City – Dressed in their CHL jerseys, players drove in a GKS Tychy car to several important places in the city. They attracted attention by inviting everyone to their CHL games with the help of a sound system, flyers and mini-hockey on the street.

Q&A Krzysztof Trzosek Media Officer GKS Tychy 2

How does it feel to be the first-ever CHL Marketing Award winners?

It’s an honour and pleasure that we were able to make our mark in the history books of the CHL and GKS Tychy. We put a lot of effort into our marketing campaign and have prepared many interesting and unusual events.

What was your motivation?

Everything started in May at the CHL workshop in Prague when the first edition of the CHL Marketing Award contest was announced, as well as the CHL main objectives to reach. Knowing the CHL’s expectations and its goals helped us to run our internal marketing activities in combination with the challenges the CHL is facing.

3

What can other teams learn from GKS Tychy?

4

I would like to emphasise that we showed all teams in Europe that a small club from Poland can achieve such success.

We didn’t need a lot of money for our marketing activities because the most important things were good ideas and involvement.

SCAN THE CODE AND WATCH THE VIDEO!

INNOVATIONS

ADVANCED STATISTICS: FOLLOW CHL GAMES IN MORE DEPTH In the Champions Hockey League, every small detail counts as teams battle to make it through each round. Fans can now experience the ups and downs of team in-game in real time – thanks to the help of advanced statistics and exciting live charts.

D

igital innovation is key for the Champions Hockey League to engage with the fans, promote the participating teams and players amongst them and grow the league all over the world.

Related to this principle, the CHL introduced advanced statistics as one of many new features in the 2018/19 season, with the goal to not only attract “hockey nerds” but also make game statistics easier to understand for everyone.

The outcome was visualisations of the game impact and the game flow, two live charts in the gamecentre which allow fans to follow and analyse games, just as coaches and team staff do during each match.

The game impact chart is based on CORSI data, and shows which players are having a positive and negative effect on the game for their team; while the game flow chart is based on shot attempts, and gives a clear indication as to who is dominating the game – something which is often perceived very subjectively.

On top of this, an extended advanced statistics section has been implemented on the statistics section of the CHL website and app.

Other new add-ons in this area include a Statistic Leaderboard, a Milestone Tracker and an enhanced Scoreboard in each individual games of the Gamecentre.

iOS

Android

DOWNLOAD THE OFFICIAL CHL APP!

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quickguide

CHOOSE A GAME in the Gamecentre on the CHL Website or in the official CHL App. CHECK OUT the 'Tracking' tab for visualisations of game statistics.

SCROLL DOWN to Game Impact & Game Flow visualisations.

Game Impact Find out which players are having a positive and a negative effect on the game for their team.

The more players a team has above the axis, the more they are generating positive impacts when they’re on the ice. Hold your cursor over a player’s circle for further statistics.

Game Flow Find out which team is dominating the game.

Often that’s something subjective, but with the game flow graphic you can see which team is creating the most shot attempts through each minute of the game. Sometimes you’ll find teams have long periods of pressure that result in a goal – other times it’s the opposite, they soak it up before pouncing at the other end.

Accumulated CORSI Data If you want to find out who has the best (and worst) accumulated CORSI data, check out the 'Advanced Statistics' tab in Player & Team Stats in the Statistics section of the CHL Website or CHL App. You’ll also find Offensive and Defensive Zone starts there.

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WE ALWAYS ENTER THE COMPETITION WITH THE GOAL TO WIN. Roger Rรถnnberg (Head Coach, Frรถlunda Indians)

51

HALL OF FAME

HALL O Champions 2015

2016

2017

2018

LULEÅ HOCKEY (SWE)

FRÖLUNDA INDIANS (SWE)

FRÖLUNDA INDIANS (SWE)

JYP JYVÄSKYLÄ (FIN)

2019 FRÖLUNDA INDIANS (SWE)

betsson 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

8

69 POINTS

MICHAL TEPLÝ (Bílí Tygři Liberec), 16 years, 4 months, 14 days

youngest scorer

attendance record

oldest scorer

FRÖLUNDA INDIANS & HC PILSEN

fastest goal RHETT RAKHSHANI (Malmö Redhawks)

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

5

seconds after face-off

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FRÖLUNDA INDIANS

JOEL LUNDQVIST (Frölunda Indians)

60

GAMES COACHED

ROGER RÖNNBERG (Frölunda Indians)

53

GAMES PLAYED

INITIATIVES

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WORD FROM THE WINNERS

“ THERE ARE NO EASY GAMES ANYMORE IN CHL.” Christian Lechthaler,

GM Frölunda Indians

W

e had something to prove in the 2018/19 CHL season. We were hungry for a comeback after the ignominious exit from the tournament in 2017/18. Losing the trophy was not at all what we had planned for, but indeed a reminder of how competitively strong the CHL is.

With two consecutive titles (2016 and 2017) we knew what was required of us.

And we knew how it felt to win. That was our driving force throughout the 2018/19 season. We went for a third title but were aware that we had set our goals high, and that it would be a huge challenge.

The Group Stage was a reminder of how much the CHL has developed on the sporting side in the recent years – there are no easy games anymore. We managed to win the challenging Group A, but not without effort. We managed to go unbeaten through the Playoffs against strong teams like HC Lugano, HC Pilsen and Kometa Brno.

In the Final we were up against Red Bull Munich in a sold-out and ecstatic Scandinavium arena. The 12,044 tickets sold out in just a few hours – clearly proving how huge ice hockey is in Gothenburg.

To win a third title in our own arena, in front of our own fans was a fantastic experience which will be a natural driving force for us next season.

We enjoy the CHL, we love to lift the European Trophy and we will not give up on it that easily.

We are going for title number four.

Christian Lechtaler, General Manager Frölunda Indians

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