National League Showdown: Fribourg-Gottéron Dominates Genève-Servette 6-1

2024-01-19 22:37:35

Updated19. January 2024, 11:37 p.m.

Ice hockey: Fribourg-Gottéron was too strong for Genève-Servette

Winner for the 6th time in a row, the Fribourgeois beat Genève-Servette 6-1 and temporarily seized first place in the National League. Revenge Saturday at Vernets.

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Cyril Pasche Fribourg

Friborg Marcus Soerensen comes up against Geneva goalkeeper Jussi Olkinoura.

Claudio De Capitani/freshfocus

During a successful and at times electric evening against Genève-Servette (6-1), Fribourg-Gottéron provisionally took first place in the National League from the ZSC Lions (rest on Friday) and confirmed its status as the best French-speaking team by defeating the reigning Swiss champions. The Eagles will, however, have the opportunity to take their revenge on Saturday on their ice rink in Les Vernets.

A curious goal in its conception allowed Fribourg-Gottéron to lay the foundations for its sixth consecutive success in the championship. While the Dragons were playing outnumbered, a rather surprising “forgetting” by GSHC striker Tanner Richard benefited Samuel Walser. The Dragons defensive striker, also author of a double (14th and 31st), beat GSHC goalkeeper Jussi Olkinuora with a precise high shot (14th, 1-0).

The Genevans, however, were quick to react, on the same powerplay sequence. Thirty-five seconds after Walser’s goal, a long-range shot from Sami Vatanen surprised Dragons goalkeeper Reto Berra, who was masked by several players (14th, 1-1).

A solid match despite fatigue

Three days after its trip to Finland and its historic qualification for the final of the Champions Hockey League against the Swedes of Skelleftea (February 20 at Vernets), Genève-Servette delivered a solid match, despite fatigue and obvious wear and tear.

Coach Jan Cadieux’s players, however, experienced a lot of difficulty, particularly in the first part of the evening, to find a solution to the speed of the Friborg team. The Dragons took the opportunity to take the lead: Christoph Bertschy, five against four, scored 2-1 with a subtle deflection which left the Finnish goalkeeper of GSHC without reaction (17th).

Fribourg, provisional leader of the National League

Just after mid-match, Samuel Walser took advantage of an approximation by the Genevans in their defense zone to score his second goal of the evening (31st, 3-1). In the third period, the Friborgs took off thanks to Sandro Schmid (52nd, 4-1) and Killian Mottet (53rd, 5-1). Fribourg-Gottéron is now provisional leader of the National League ranking and clearly number one in the current hierarchy of French-speaking clubs. Saturday on their ice rink in Les Vernets, the Genevans will probably be revengeful.