Friday, 28. March 2025 |
Final! Red Bulls beat Bolzano 4:1 in the semi-final series 4:2 home win sealed Salzburg's participation in the final once again // win2day ICE Hockey League | PlayoffsEC Red Bull Salzburg beat HCB Südtirol Alperia 4:2 in the fifth playoff semi-final game in the win2day ICE Hockey League to reach the final again. The Red Bulls took a 2-0 lead in the sold-out Eisarena Salzburg and never relinquished it, although the South Tyroleans, who played over-hard at times, managed to close the gap to one goal twice. After goals from Lucas Thaler, Troy Bourke and Benjamin Nissner, Dennis Robertson made the final score 4:2, even though the game remained hard-fought until the end. The Red Bulls won the semi-final series 4:1 with another very strong Atte Tolvanen in goal to reach the final round for the fourth time in a row.
In the final, the Red Bulls will face the winner of the second semi-final match-up between Klagenfurt and Linz, this series is still ongoing. The best-of-seven final series kicks off on Friday, April 4. Whether the Red Bulls start with a home or away game depends on the final opponent.
Highlights Red Bulls vs. HCB Südtirol Alperia
Course of the game
The game started very controlled on both sides. Bolzano again had more shots on goal at first; nothing unstoppable yet, although Atte Tolvanen had to get his glove out. The Red Bulls were usually driven out of the offensive zone quickly in their first attacks. Until the 11th minute, when Lucas Thaler took a shot from the high slot and put it right into the corner of the net. That was like an initial spark and both teams stepped up the pace. The Red Bulls came close to scoring a second goal during a powerplay in the final minutes, but Bolzano goalkeeper Sam Harvey was lucky to prevent Salzburg from taking a bigger lead after 20 minutes.
Salzburg quickly increased their lead in the second period. After a Florian Baltram shot, Troy Bourke was in the right place on the rebound and netted to make it 2:0 (23'). This was followed by a long fistfight between Christiano Digiacinto and Salzburg's Dennis Robertson, but the Red Bulls did not let this put them out of the game. It went back and forth, with both teams alternating strong phases. Bolzano then closed the gap, with Brad McClure netting in the powerplay in a scramble to make it 1:2 from the visitors' perspective (32'). It remained a fight to the death until the second break with top-class chances on both sides. But the Red Bulls held on to their one-goal lead even after the highly emotional second period.
Benjamin Nissner had the first top chance in the final period with a one-timer from the slot (42'). After a hard tackle on Lucas Thaler, who was unable to continue, the game went on without a penalty after a video review, but Benjamin Nissner provided the direct answer and scored under the crossbar after a solo run (44'). Bolzano came back, Scott Valentine had a half-open goal after a defensive error (56'). And again the answer: Dennis Robertson's irresistible long-range shot less than 30 seconds later for a 4:2 lead was unstoppable (47'). Bolzano then raced towards Salzburg's goal and tried everything, sometimes with unsightly actions, to prevent the defeat. But the Red Bulls remained wide awake until the end and finally celebrated their well-deserved promotion to the final against the Bolzano Foxes.
Statement Oliver David & Thomas Raffl
win2day ICE Hockey League | Playoff Semifinals | Game 5
EC Red Bull Salzburg - HCB Südtirol Alperia 4:2 (1:0, 1:1, 2:1)
Goals:
1:0 | 10:54 | Lucas Thaler
2:0 | 22:19 | Troy Bourke
2:1 | 31:53 | Brad McClure | PP
3:1 | 43:05 | Benjamin Nissner
3:2 | 45:32 | Scott Valentine
4:2 | 45:57 | Dennis Robertson
Spectators: 3.400
1/5
2/5
3/5
4/5
5/5
Numbers of the game
Statement by Thomas Raffl
“That was a big step in the right direction. We knew from previous years that it would be a very tough semi-final series against Bolzano. In the end, we were able to come out on top. Any game could have gone the other way, but that's what makes our team special, that we win even close games. And today was of course a great atmosphere in front of the home crowd.”
Playoff semi-final | Red Bulls vs. Bolzano | 4:1
1 | Tue, 18.03.25 | EC Red Bull Salzburg - HCB Südtirol Alperia 3:1 (0:0, 3:1, 0:0)
2 | Fri, 21.03.25 | HCB Südtirol Alperia - EC Red Bull Salzburg 2:3 (0:2, 1:0, 1:1)
3 | Sun, 23.03.25 | EC Red Bull Salzburg - HCB Südtirol Alperia 2:3 (1:0, 1:2, 0:0) OT
4 | Tue, 25.03.25 | HCB Südtirol Alperia - EC Red Bull Salzburg 2:3 (0:1, 1:1, 1:0) OT
5 | Fri, 28.03.25 | EC Red Bull Salzburg - HCB Südtirol Alperia 4:2 (1:0, 1:1, 2:1)
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