Wednesday, 20. August 2025 |
Red Bull Hockey Juniors at the EVZ Prospects Challenge in ZugInternational U20 tournament with top-class teams from all over Europe// JuniorsThe Red Bull Hockey Juniors played their first pre-season tournament in Switzerland from Wednesday to Sunday, facing some top-class opponents.Right from the start, EV Zug proved to be a real test of strength. The hosts set the pace from the outset and consistently exploited coordination errors by the Juniors. Despite a committed offensive effort, the young Salzburg team suffered a 1-5 defeat in only their second preparatory game.
Just one day later, they faced Finnish top club Tappara Tampere. This time, the Juniors got off to a much better start: a brace from Wurzer and Krainer and a strong performance from goalie Ankirchner secured a comfortable 4-0 victory. This secured the team, coached by Finnish duo Teemu Levijoki (head coach) and Ilkka Pakarinen (assistant coach), second place in the group and a battle for third place against GCK/ZSC Lions.
In the match for third place, the Juniors once again put in a solid performance, but despite numerous chances, they lacked the necessary efficiency. The Lions won the game 2-1, even though Salzburg threw everything forward in the final minutes with a sixth field player and clearly dominated the shot statistics.
Now it's time to look ahead: at the next tournament in Tábor, the juniors will face adult opponents for the first time – the Czech second division teams SK Horacka Slavia Trebic and HC Tábor. With these games, the coaches want to prepare their team optimally for the upcoming Alps Hockey League season, in which both young, dynamic and experienced teams await the Salzburgers.
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Copyright: EV Zug / Felix Klaus, Philipp Hegglin
// Juniors
Head Coach Teemu Levijoki
"We were able to improve significantly over the course of the tournament. We weren't quite gelled in the first game, but against Tappara we were able to perform at the same level as our opponents. In the last game, we lacked composure in front of goal. Overall, however, we have laid a good foundation on which we now want to build. I am particularly proud of the victory against a team from my home country of Finland – and of the fact that we fielded 13 Austrian players. We can now expect an even higher level of play and significantly more experience against the Czech teams."
Red Bull Hockey Juniors bei der EVZ Prospects Challenge
EV Zug U20 – Red Bull Hockey Juniors 5:1 (2:0, 1:1, 2:0)
Goals:
Luca Kogler
Tappara Tampere U20 – Red Bull Hockey Juniors 0:4 (0:2, 0:1, 0:1)
Goals:
Maximilian Wurzer (2x)
Benedikt Krainer (2x)
ZSC Lions U20 – Red Bull Hockey Juniors 2:1 (1:0, 1:1, 0:0)
Goals:
Luca Kogler
Mit Galerie
Juniors off to a successful start to the preseason// JUNIORS
Red Bull Hockey Juniors play their first test match on Friday// JUNIORS
11 academy talents at the U18 national team camp// NEXTLEVEL