HCP Junior in a celebratory mood: Three titles in five days

A year ago, HCP Junior Selection narrowly missed out on the IHL Division I (formerly Serie C) championship. Back then, coach Max Oberrauch's team lost the fifth final game against HC Chiavenna 4-7. Twelve months later, the Puster Valley team turned the tables and secured the championship with three victories. For President Stefan Oberleiter's club, however, it was just one of three championship titles: HCP Junior's U16 and U14 teams also claimed their respective titles.

Last week went down in the history of the club, founded in 2009. Within five days, the HCP Junior players brought three championship titles back to Bruneck. "This was our best season yet. I'm overwhelmed and incredibly proud of our boys," beamed Stefan Oberleiter.

Last Saturday, HCP Junior Selection won the third game of the best-of-five final series against the dethroned champions from Lombardy 3-1 in front of nearly 1.000 spectators at the Bruneck Intercable Arena, securing the "scudetto" (the trophy). Captain Michael Purdeller and his teammates won both the regular season and the Master Round. In the quarterfinals, they dispatched HC Trento with two victories. In the semifinals, the Puster Valley team suffered their only defeat of the season against AHC Vinschgau, but advanced to the finals with two wins, where they made short work of Chiavenna. On their way to the championship title, HCP Junior won 23 of their 28 regular season games (goal differential: 139-55).

"The relief is immense." “The relief at winning the title was immense, especially after the huge disappointment of losing the final a year ago. We were the best team this winter and could only beat ourselves,” assures Oberleiter, who is also the sporting director. HCP Junior, which had previously focused entirely on youth development, fielded a senior team in the 2014/15, 2015/16, and 2017/18 seasons. After a six-year hiatus, the 2024/25 season saw the return of a second senior team in Bruneck, alongside the HC Pustertal ICEHL team.

“We won as a team and were a close-knit unit. In the 2024/25 season, we probably had the more talented players. This winter, however, the mix of young and experienced players was perfect. Typically, eight players from the U19 team played. With an average age of 21,14 years, we were also the youngest team,” the president, who was also responsible for sporting management, said with pride.

"We haven't decided anything yet." Whether HCP Junior will make the jump to the Italian Hockey League (IHL) next season after winning the title is currently uncertain. "The IHL has been our dream and goal since returning to the senior level. We are convinced that we technically belong in the IHL, but we are undecided about what would be better for our numerous U19 players from a sporting perspective: the IHL or IHL Division I. Furthermore, we would have to bring back some of our players for the IHL. The higher budget, the foreign players, and dual nationals in the IHL are also major concerns for us. We haven't decided anything yet. We will meet in the coming weeks and carefully consider where we will play starting in the fall," explains Oberleiter.

Two out of ten youth teams win titles In the following days, two of HCP Junior's ten youth teams struck gold. On Tuesday, HCP Junior Yellow was crowned U16 champion. The team, coached by Czech Tomas Cernik, eliminated Rittner Buam in the quarterfinals and Kaltern/Lana in the semifinals, each in two games. In the final, the Puster Valley team defeated HCB Foxes Academy 7-4 and 2-1 in a shootout.

On Wednesday, the U14 team, coached by Felix Oberrauch, finally brought the third "scudetto" (league title) to Bruneck. They had celebrated two clear victories against Zoldo in the semi-finals and left HC Eppan no chance in the final. The Puster Valley U19 team also acquitted themselves admirably, only to be eliminated in the pre-playoff against HC Aosta. A total of 215 children and teenagers play in the HCP Junior youth program, where Stefan Asper serves as technical director.

<a data-caption="Am Donnerstag gehörte den drei Meistermannschaften des HCP Junior in der zweiten Drittelpause des Halbfinalspiels zwischen dem HC Pustertal und Laibach die große Bühne in der Intercable Arena. © Max Pattis" data-fancybox="inline-311922" target="_image" href="https://s3-images.sportnews.bz/_images/scale/1280x1280/img/2026/04/am-donnerstag-gehoerte-den-drei-meistermannschaften-des-hcp-junior-in-der-zweiten-drittelpause-des-halbfinalspiels-zwischen-dem-hc-pustertal-und-laibac.jpg"><img alt="On Thursday, the three championship-winning HCP Junior teams took center stage at the Intercable Arena during the second intermission of the semifinal match between HC Pustertal and Ljubljana. © Max Pattis" class="uk-img-preserve" src="https://s3-images.sportnews.bz/_images/scale/1280x850/img/2026/04/am-donnerstag-gehoerte-den-drei-meistermannschaften-des-hcp-junior-in-der-zweiten-drittelpause-des-halbfinalspiels-zwischen-dem-hc-pustertal-und-laibac.jpg"> On Thursday, the three championship-winning HCP Junior teams took center stage at the Intercable Arena during the second intermission of the semifinal match between HC Pustertal and Ljubljana. © Max Pattis

	SP	TV	P
1. HC Meran	5	15:12	12
2. HC Asiago	3	16:12	7
3. Rittner Buam	2	8:2	6
4. SG Cortina	3	8:10	3
5. Wipptal Broncos	2	8:10	2
6. Underland Cavaliers	3	9:12	2
View all

	SP	TV	P
1. SV Kaltern	4	23:4	12
2. HC Aosta	4	17:6	12
3. HC Eppan	4	19:12	9
4. Fassa Falcons	4	12:11	6
5. HC Varese	4	16:17	6
6. Alleghe Hockey	3	12:12	4
View all

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HCP Junior in a celebratory mood: Three titles in five days

HCP Junior won the IHL Division I, the U16 and the U14 championships. "That was our best season so far," said President Stefan Oberleiter happily.

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