Scott Valentine doesn't have fun in the playoffs. © HCB

Bolzano's leader warns: "Don't plan anything for Sunday!"

He's the man for the rough stuff. He's brimming with charisma. One piercing look from him is enough to galvanize an entire team. And that's precisely why Scott Valentine is needed more than ever at HC Bolzano these days. Now he's making a resounding statement.

March 28, 2025

Scott Valentine doesn't speak sentences; he whispers them. In the finest High German, in soft tones. During conversations, the Canadian repeatedly turns his head to the side, rarely looking at the person he's speaking to. But when the man with the full beard and a grim expression jerks his head around and meets his conversation partner with his frosty gaze, it means: pay attention! Valentine is heard without turning the decibel scale with his voice.

This could SportNews He was able to see for himself on Thursday, when Valentine took a quarter of an hour to answer his most burning questions. Interviews of this kind are routine for him. He has played well over 700 professional hockey games in his career, and for years he was a leading player in Augsburg. Now he's in Bolzano.

A very clear focus

Valentine is a seasoned pro. So it's no surprise that in our conversation, he avoids even the slightest touch on topics that aren't related to the ongoing semifinal series. His career, which has yet to win a title? His personal future? South Tyrol as his second home? All irrelevant; it's playoff time! "Now, all that matters is what happens on the ice. The rest can wait," says the 33-year-old defenseman.

“Now everyone has to deliver” Scott Valentine

Valentine is trying to erase anything that could distract him and his teammates from the sporting side of things during this time. "The focus is on the fifth match against Salzburg, then on the home game on Sunday," he says without batting an eyelid. The second match would only take place if Bozen wins in Salzburg this Friday evening. Otherwise, they'll head off on summer vacation without another home game. And now comes Valentine's announcement: "Don't plan anything for Sunday, we're bringing the series back to Bozen!"

A wake-up call

It is not a matter of optimism, nor an overestimation of his own abilities, that the veteran from Metcalfe, a suburb of the Canadian capital Ottawa, SportNewsinterview reveals. Rather, he wants to send a signal. "We had six months in the regular season to prepare for this moment, to get in the mood. Now, in the playoffs, everyone has to deliver. Every shift is so important. Every moment on and off the ice can be decisive. It's all about full throttle."

Scott Valentine also takes Bulls captain Thomas Raffl to task. © HCB

Valentine doesn't just talk the talk, he walks the walk. Just in time for the start of the playoffs, he's shifted into high gear. He's leading the way, delivering powerful checks, playing uncompromisingly, with focus and straightforwardly. However, he's also aware of the extremely difficult situation his Foxes are in. They need to win three games in a row against the Salzburg Bulls, who, as Valentine put it, "are wide awake in the decisive moments and simply know how to win games." Otherwise, HC Bozen will be eliminated in the semifinals. Just like last year.

There is a deep thorn

Speaking of last year, Valentine draws his courage from past defeats, of all things. "The seventh final game we lost two years ago here at home in our living room is seared into my memory. It's the biggest defeat of my career. Then came the elimination in overtime of the very last semifinal game last year. We want, yes, we have to somehow make that a thing of the past." The veteran has also communicated this to his teammates in recent days.



At 33, Valentine is one of the Foxes' oldest and most experienced players. When Valentine says something, the others listen. "But I'm not the only leader here. Frank, Frigo, Halmo, they've all won titles here," and then the Canadian names someone else: "Sam Harvey is our backbone, not just on the ice, but our most important man. He rarely says anything, but when he takes on a teammate, it means something. To me, those are quiet leaders. And we have plenty of them on the roster."

Now, in any case, everyone is in demand, whether they are loud or quiet leaders. The entire HC Bozen team now needs a lot of character to snatch a place in the final from the champions from Salzburg. Trailing 1:3 in the series, the match begins at 19.15:XNUMX p.m. (SportNews ticks live) into the fifth semi-final match.

ICE Semifinal, Game 5 (Friday, March 28):

Red Bull Salzburg – HCB Südtirol Alperia
Game starts at 19.15:XNUMX p.m.
Best of 7 series: 3:1

Klagenfurter AC – Black Wings Linz
Game starts at 19.30:XNUMX p.m.
Best of 7 series: 2:2