It was a long time coming, but after seven Champions Hockey League campaings marred by early exits and disappointing setbacks, EV Zug and their fans can finally celebrate going beyond the Quarter-Finals in their eighth installment as they defeated Mountfield HK in a tightly-contested game by a 4-3 aggregate final.
After ending their First Game in a 2-2 tie, both clubs were well aware of what was riding on their Return Game result and they delivered with a tight-checking affair that saw one spectacular play end it in OT when Brian O'Neill made a nifty move in close to propel the Swiss to the Semi-Finals.
"As you get older you cherish the moments when you play in games which are really meaningful"EV Zug's Brian O'Neill
“Any time you do something that makes history for the club, that’s a really proud moment for the team,” O’Neill said, “this team have had a lot of success over the last two years and I’m just happy to be a part of some of the record-breaking wins.”
The American is skating in his first season with the club, but is already enjoying a standout year in the pan-European competition – he currently leads the team in CHL scoring with 17 points (6G, 11A) through 10 games and is a key reason why the Swiss own an 8-2 record thus far.
But, he admits, getting this result was no easy venture and Mountfield made them earn every inch.
“I thought that team did such a good job of taking time and space away,” he explained, continuing, “they played really structured and really aggressive and they’re a tough team to play against.” When there was ice to be found in the 3-on-3 OT, however, O’Neill took full advantage.
The play started when Dario Simion pounced on a loose puck in the Swiss zone before dropping it back to O’Neill who danced around a defender with a beautiful spin-o-rama before bringing the puck back to his forehand and sliding it past Henri Kiviaho to secure the win.
“I fortunately got some time with the puck [during the 3-on-3] and I ended up making a good play,” he said.
For the 34-year-old, enjoying moments like these comes at a premium when you enter the later stages of your career, and so, for the moment, he’s just trying to live in the moment and relish in what his team has accomplished so far, saying, “As you get older you cherish the moments when you play in games which are really meaningful. That was a really important game, the most important game this season so far, so to get an opportunity to play in a game like that is really exciting and I think it shows who’s ready to play.”
Achievements aside, making it to the Semi-Finals is just one more rung on a ladder leading to the ultimate prize and O’Neill doesn’t plan on stopping Zug’s historic run any time soon as they prepare to face off against last year’s Runners-Up, Tappara Tampere.
“They just beat one of the top teams in Sweden 5-1 so that’s going to be a really tough building to play in. It’s going to be a huge challenge for us,” O'Neill admitted. The forward is no stranger to Finland, though, having played for six years with Jokerit. “I’m looking forward to getting back to that country and playing in front of those fans,” he said.
Hopefully we can build on this and get all the way to the Final.O'Neill on his expectations going forward
As for his fans, O’Neill was humbled by and appreciative of the nearly 4,000 faithful that packed the BOSSARD Arena for Tuesday night’s tilt.
“Really appreciate it,” he began, “I mean, I’ve played all over Switzerland and most of Europe and that fanbase that we have is second to none. They really gave us a boost tonight and just a cool experience playing in front of them.”