- Frölunda take two-goal aggregate advantage back to Sweden
- Leon Hüttl was the lone goal scorer for the German side
- The Swedes scored three unanswered goals
Victory went to Frölunda Gothenburg in this Champions Hockey League Quarter-Finals First Game, as the Swedes scored three unanswered markers to take a 3-1 aggregate advantage over ERC Ingolstadt. The Germans broke the ice, but a dominant display of both offence and defence helped put the visitors in a comfortable position as they head back to Sweden for the Return Game.
Frölunda found themselves with a bevy of chances in the opening stanza, but it was Ingolstadt drawing first blood when Leon Hüttl wristed it above the glove of Tobias Normann. The play developed when Kenny Agostino fed it behind the net to Abbott Girduckis, who threaded a pass from below the red line through traffic to Hüttl, who claimed his second of the tournament.
The Swedes bounced back in the second, however, netting two of their own, including one on the man-advantage.
22 seconds into the middle frame, it was Jere Innala converting on the powerplay when he redirected a shot-pass from Linus Weissbach from just above the goal crease. Frölunda's Henrik Tömmernes then scored the go-ahead goal at 32:33 to give his side the aggregate lead. Nico Pertuch made the initial save but Tömmernes, parked at the side of the blue paint, stayed with the play and whacked it home.
Excellent stretches of play continued to be the plotline for Frölunda in the third period as they scored their third straight goal, this time off of a good bounce in front, courtesy of Linus Högberg.
Högberg's was the final tally of the night as the Swedes, after chasing the lead for all of 20 minutes, will return to home ice holding a two-goal lead. Ingolstadt for their part, however, are still very much in the series.