The poster promised a tight confrontation with two great goalkeepers in goal, the first match of these play-off semi-finals confirmed it. At the end of a tense encounter, HC Biel overcame Zurich 1-0 thanks to a goal from defender Alexander Yakovenko two minutes from the end of regulation time.
Säteri-Hrubec, the match within the match
Before that, Simon Hrubec delayed the deadline for a long time. The ZSC Lions Czech goalkeeper multiplied the saving parades, especially in the first period, and disgusted the Zealand attackers. Opposite, Harri Säteri was still impeccable in saving his team more than once. If Bienne generally dominated the first third and possession while Zurich proceeded against, the debates were quickly balanced with 27 shots on target on both sides.
A heroic resistance…
To take the first point of this series, the Seelanders first showed self-sacrifice and great solidarity, illustrated by this heroic resistance during five minutes of numerical inferiority at the end of the match after a severe penalty inflicted on Gaetan. The Biel captain did nudge his opponent on the disputed action… to get rid of the grip of a player who was illegally surrounding him.
… before delivery
The storm passed, a floating shot from the Russian defender of HC Bienne, far from being the clearest opportunity, ended up deceiving a masked Simon Hrubec. An explosion, a release. But the real deliverance will only come to the mermaid, after a final failed attempt by Sven Andrighetto. Phew! But how hard it was to keep this advantage on the ice before going to Zurich on Saturday (8:00 p.m.) for a new showdown. /jpi