- Rögle stay perfect through the Group Stage
- Zurich lose on home ice for first time this season
- The Swedes claim top place in Group D
Rögle Ängelholm stayed perfect through the Group Stage as they cemented their place at the top of the standings with their 4-3 win over ZSC Lions Zurich, their fourth victory over the Swiss dating back to last season.
Zurich opened the scoring on the powerplay three minutes into the first when Simon Bodenmann found himself wide open in the slot where he wristed the puck past Christoffer Rifalk.
Dennis Everberg got the Swedish side on the board on a 5-on-3 near the midway mark of the first when the puck bounced around in the crease before it found Everberg's stick and then the back of the net.
Rögle got off to a quick start in the second with William Wallinder giving his side a 2-1 advantage off a point shot through traffic. The 20-year-old let one go from the blueline that made its way over the shoulder of Šimon Hrubec 1:42 in for his first tally of the season.
Later on, a lucky bounce would tie things up for the Swiss as Sven Andrighetto scored his fourth of the season. The puck pinballed around in the crease before the forward put it home to make it 2-2 draw in the middle frame.
But then the visitors would take their second lead of the contest in the closing minutes when Anton Bengtsson deflected one past Hrubec. The play was briefly reviewed to ensure no high stick was involved, but the goal stood and the Swedes took a 3-2 lead into the third.
Six minutes into the final period, Marco Kasper extended his team's lead on a wraparound second effort. The Zurich netminder made the initial save, but Kasper stayed with it and put it home to give his team some insurance.
The Swiss would not go away, however, and with less than three minutes to go in regulation, Chris Baltisberger would halve the deficit for the hosts when he slid one past Rifalk from the top of the paint. In a last ditch effort, Zurich pulled their netminder with one and half to go but the Swedes were able to weather the storm and skate away with their sixth consecutive win of the season.