Starting position
The Red Bulls and the Graz99ers have already met twice this season. Both times the Salzburg team won 3:2, the first time in Salzburg in mid-December only in overtime. The second victory at Christmas in Graz was also only secured after a heated final phase. The Red Bulls are therefore preparing for another game at eye level, in which the fifth-placed team from Graz will be pushing for their first win of the season against the Austrian champions (4th).
Recent developments also suggest an evenly matched duel. Both teams have won four times in the last five rounds. The Red Bulls, whose injury list is not getting any smaller, won their last game 5:3 in Villach on Friday, while Graz celebrated an 8:3 victory over Asiago at home yesterday. The Styrians are only two points behind the Red Bulls in the table and could knock them off fourth place with a three-pointer.
Special Teams
If avoiding shorthanded games is a permanent requirement for every team anyway, this also applies once again in Graz against the fifth-best power play in the league. The Red Bulls, on the other hand, have the worst penalty kill in the league with 74.3% of power plays defended.
Salzburg, on the other hand, are the best powerplay team in the league with a goal-scoring rate of 26.3%. The Styrians, on the other hand, have the best penalty kill in the league with 84.7% of overtime games defended.