In a game that was all offence, Linkoping HC outscored HC Davos 7-4 and now take a three-goal lead into their home leg. Read more in Gamecentre. 

by Steven Ellis

The first game between HC Davos and Linkoping HC in the Round of 32 provided enough scoring to fill multiple games, with Linkoping taking the opener 7-4 on Tuesday at Vaillant Arena in Davos, Switzerland.

The first period couldn't have started much worse for Davos, who were looking for a good result after struggling on the road in CHL action this year. But after just 29 seconds, Davos found themselves down a goal. On just the second shot that Joren van Pottelberghe faced in the contest, Vilmos Gallo converted a chance from Emil Sylvegard into the first goal of the game, an early marker that Davos was looking to grab back.

But a minute later, Linkoping doubled their advantage, This time, Niklas Fogstrom beat van Pottelberghe, a Detroit Red Wings goalie prospect, with another quick opportunity to give the Swedish team the 2-0 lead.

Davos were going to have to stay out of the penalty box if they were hoping to win, but being shorthanded actually helped them at the eight minute mark. Samuel Walser got hold of the puck in the offensive zone and sent the puck out to the slot from the side of the net. Greg Sciaroni picked up the pass and made a quick little move to change the trajectory of the puck and beat Marcus Hogberg to the right of his mask, putting Davos on the board with the majority of the first period still to play.

The second half of the period would see some good back-and-forth scoring action. First, Linkoping regained their two goal lead after Sylvegard danced around the net, sending the puck out to Gallo in front of the net. Gallo made no mistake, taking a second to regain his balance before sending it over van Pottelberghe for the 3-1 lead with under four minutes remaining in the period.

But Davos would fire back. With 28 seconds left in the opening period, Andres Ambuhl took a pass from Marc Wieser before sending a blister of a wrist shot on net, beating Hogberg for the 3-2 score.

At the 2:32 mark of the second, Linkoping made it a two-goal game once again. This time, Henrik Tornqvist's shot was deflected back in front by van Pottelberghe. Jorgen Karterud was in a perfect spot to pick up the rebound, moving to his backhand before beating the sprawling goaltender for the 4-2 advantage.

The action was quick and exciting in the final few minutes of the second period, with Linkoping finishing off the middle stanza with a 6-3 lead. At 32:35,  Niclas Lundgren took a slap shot from the blue line that beat all the traffic in front cleanly, giving Linkoping the 5-2 lead. Then, a minute later, Andrew Gordon took a pass in front from Broc Little, one-timing it past Davos's netminder to make it 6-2.

But Davos wasn't done scoring goals of their own. At 34:07, just 30 seconds after finding his team down by four, Davos' top scorer Perttu Lindgren took a pass from Ambuhl from far out, tipping in the goal at the doorstep to make it 6-3.

It took 10 goals in the contest for the first power play goal, but it would give Linkoping the 7-3 lead. Garrett Roe would take the shot towards the net with the man advantage, only to have Gordon tip in the shot just in front of the net to give the Swedish squad an enormous lead heading into the intermission.

Davos knew their chance at a victory was out of reach, but that doesn't mean they were ready to give up. With every goal being important in the tourament, Enzo Corvi made a good play along the boards before setting up for a wrist shot, beating Hogberg up high with a quick wrist shot on the power play to give Davos their fourth goal at the 45:21 mark. Unfortunately for the team in blue, their late game effort wasn't enough as they would end up dropping a 7-4 decision to their Swedish opponents on Tuesday night.

It was a crushing loss for Davos, who will need a big victory over Linkoping on the road next Tuesday at 20:00 local time to keep their hopes of advancing alive. For Linkoping, the team will look to keep their strong ways by sweeping the two-game series.