It took until the final Group Stage game but the reigning champions Frölunda Gothenburg secured their passage to the Round of 16 with a win over IFK Helsinki.

With both teams chasing a spot in the Round of 16, it was all about the start to try and determine who would be more likely to advance. Both sides had their chances early, with Frölunda getting closest with an effort that rang off the post inside the opening few minutes.

Midway through the first though, and the reigning champions would open the scoring. All it took was a powerplay opportunity for Frölunda to get the advantage, as CHL all-time scorer Ryan Lasch would get his 30th ever goal in the competition, with a tap in at the back door after the puck spilled loose to him from the initial shot.

Just a few moments later and it was two. Frölunda cycled the puck well around the zone, with the puck ending up behind the goal line and on the stick of Lasch who fed it back to Christian Folin who made the initial pass, and kept moving towards net, firing a one timer from in tight into the back of the net, and that’s how Frölunda carried a two goal advantage into the second period.

It was a more cagey affair in the second period, with both goaltenders keeping any more goals going on the board, so with twenty minutes remaining, Frölunda carried a two goal cushion into the third, with Helsinki needing a big period to salvage their hopes of advancing further.

With the time ticking away, Frölunda controlled the pace of the game, but weren't able to extend their lead. Late on as Helsinki found themselves on the powerplay, they made the bold call to pull the goalie for the extra attacker, and the gamble paid off. Jordan Schmaltz fired the puck through traffic, finally beating Matthew Tomkins to set up an interesting finish.

When the net was empty again though, this time it didn't go the way of Helsinki, they managed to get a lot of attempts, but nothing would stick, and when Nicklas Lasu fired the puck down the ice and into the empty net, it secured the victory for Frölunda. Joel Lundqvist added a fourth shortly after with Lasch adding an assist for his 99th ever CHL point, sealing a 4-1 victory for Frölunda, while Helsinki crash out in the Group Stage.