Fribourg-Gottéron will go up against Champions Hockey League veterans Red Bull Munich as the two sides meet in Switzerland at BCF Arena to start their Round of 16. While both clubs maintained excellent records through the Group Stage, Fribourg’s perfect run cannot be understated and should give fans of the Swiss side some hope going against a formidable opponent in Munich who manufactured four wins in the initial leg of the competition.

From puck drop on Game Day 1, Fribourg have done almost everything flawlessly and that couldn’t be more evident than in their last match against another powerhouse team, Leksands IF, where the Swiss defeated the Swedes in convincing fashion by a final of 3:0. On offence, French forward Jordann Bougro leads the way with six points (1G,5A) alongside Nathan Marchon who’s tallied four points (4G,0A). Their D-men have also been active, but none more so than American Ryan Gunderson who paces all Fribourg blueliners with seven points (2G,5A).

Scoring, however, hasn’t been an issue for the German side either who, along with Fribourg have managed to find twine 25 times. Frederik Tiffels has been outstanding with ten points (5G,5A) through six games, while Canadians Ben Street (3G,6A) and Trevor Parkes (4G,4A) have been essential to Munich’s success so far. Additionally, American defenceman Zachary Redmond leads the Munich backend with nine points (0G,9A), giving the Germans scoring depth throughout their lineup.

With special teams operating at essentially even numbers, this home-at-home series can go either way, with both offensive and defensive statistics not necessarily favouring either side. Consequently, in a game of mistakes, this match-up will come down to who makes fewer and who capitalises when the opportunity presents itself.