Friday’s matchup promises a thrilling battle as ZSC Lions Zurich take on Straubing Tigers at the Swiss Life Arena. With both teams in top form and prepared for Game Day 3, this encounter is shaping up to be one you won’t want to miss.

Both Zurich and Straubing have kicked off the season with strong 2-0 wins-losses records, placing them third and fourth on the leaderboard, respectively. The Swiss have collected 6 points so far, dominating Storhamar Hamar and Ilves Tampere with identical 4-1 victories, giving them an impressive 8:2 goals-scored to goals-against ratio. Straubing have also performed well, shutting out SønderjyskE Vojens 3-0 and edging out Skellefteå AIK in a shootout, accumulating 5 points in total.

Despite their excellent starts, both teams still have areas to improve, particularly in their powerplay execution. Zurich have only converted 2 out of 8 powerplay opportunities, while Straubing have capitalised on just 4 of 16 chances. However, both squads excel in penalty killing. Straubing in particular have been disciplined, picking up only three penalties so far and not allowing any goals while short-handed. Zurich have conceded just one goal out of nine penalty kills.

Key players to keep an eye on include Zurich’s goaltender Šimon Hrubec, who boasts an impressive save percentage of over 96%, along with forwards Denis Malgin and Chris Baltisberger, both with 1 goal and 2 assists. On Straubing’s side, forward Cole Fonstad has been a standout, scoring twice so far.