For HC Bern, led by goaltender Sam Harvey, the game is about securing home-ice advantage in the first playoff round. © Vanna Antonello

It's about home advantage: Bolzano's fight with the dragon

The ICE Hockey League regular season is slowly but surely entering its final stretch. Both South Tyrolean teams have away games on Wednesday. HCB Südtirol Alperia travels to Slovenia, while HC Falkensteiner Pustertal faces an away game in Vorarlberg.

February 24, 2026

From: cst

South Tyrol's ice hockey clubs aren't under immense pressure at the moment. HC Bolzano and HC Pustertal have already secured their playoff spots. However, home ice advantage is also at stake, and for the Bolzano Foxes, this means a direct matchup on Wednesday.

The Green Dragons of Olimpija Ljubljana are the closest challengers to the South Tyrolean team in the fight for fourth place. HCB captain Daniel Frank emphasized even before their victory against Fehervar that securing home-ice advantage was crucial. While home-ice advantage is still theoretically possible for the Puster Valley Wolves, in practice, that ship has likely sailed. Therefore, the Pioneers Vorarlberg's primary focus is on getting ready for the playoffs.

The opponent will end their season after the regular season. Vorarlberg no longer has a chance to extend their season by reaching the pre-playoffs.

ICE Hockey League: Wednesday's games

Vienna – Graz (19.15 p.m.)
Klagenfurt – Innsbruck
Fehervar – Salzburg
Ljubljana – Bolzano
Vorarlberg – Pustertal (7:30 pm)