The Lahti Pelicans host Vítkovice Ridera in a match-up of two teams that enter Game Day 3 in Playoffs positions – Vítkovice in eighth with five points and Lahti in 11th with three.

After opening with a 5-1 home loss to the Växjö Lakers, the Pelicans rebounded with an 8-3 win over the Rouen Dragons on a short trip to France. They will now play their final two home games of the Regular Season this weekend, so they’ll want to pick up some points to possibly improve their standing.

Vítkovice looked very good in two home games last weekend, taking five of six possible points from a 4-3 shootout win over perennial German powerhouse Red Bull Munich and a 4-1 defeat of the Rapperswil-Jona Lakers. They’ll see if they can keep that momentum going on a two-game trip to Finland, starting with this game.

These are two of the better-scoring teams in the Champions Hockey League – Lahti tied for second with nine goals scored after two games, while Vítkovice are one of five teams with eight. Vítkovice have a CHL-best powerplay percentage of 41.67%, while the Pelicans are tied for third with 33.33%. On the defensive side, Vítkovice have been better at keeping the puck out of their net with four goals against, in contrast with Lahti’s eight.

Individually, Vítkovice’s Dominik Lakatoš is tied for the CHL lead in points with five heading into Game Day 3. He’s scored two goals on 10 shots and also leads all CHL forwards with six blocked shots. Defenceman Stuart Percy has four points.

For the Pelicans, Aatu Jämsen leads with four points and three players have three, including CHL all-time scoring leader Ryan Lasch. Forward Patrik Carlsson is tied for second in the CHL with a +4 rating.