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Matthias Mantinger and Raphael Andergassen celebrated the next victory. © I. Foppa / HC Pustertal
There is the league lead: Pustertal rocks the league
HC Falkensteiner Pustertal had the chance to take the lead in the ICE Hockey League (ICEHL) on Friday evening. A stubborn, feisty Villacher SV made life extremely difficult for the Wolves for a long time, but after a tough battle, the Black and Yellows reached this milestone.
24 October 2025
From the Intercable Arena
From:
Leo Holzknecht
With five wins from their last six matches, Raphael Andergassen and his team had put themselves in an excellent position. Another victory against the Villach Eagles – and the Wolves would have taken the lead in the standings. In the Intercable Arena, packed with over 2.500 fans, their dream became reality. Villach were already leading 3-1 and seemed to have the win safely in the bag, but the Pustertal team's fighting spirit secured the South Tyroleans a 4-3 victory after extra time, which meant they topped the table!
The home team started the game weakened, as defensive cornerstone Jonathon Blum was out for the short term. He was replaced by 18-year-old Gabriel Nitz, making his ICEHL debut. Without their leading man, the HCP appeared more vulnerable than usual. And so, after a double strike within 19 seconds, they fell behind 3-1. However, the strength of character that has characterized the Wolves this season remained the same. The ambition, willingness to work, and indomitable will were there (again).
After Austin Rueschhoff narrowed the gap before the second siren, the fans witnessed a wild final period. On the one hand, Villach should have sealed the victory early on, but on the other, the Jaspers team also missed countless great chances. With 76 seconds left, the spell finally broke – Nick Saracino saved the Black and Yellows and sent them into overtime. JC Lipon then became the celebrated hero.
Before the away clash in 48 hours against champions Red Bull Salzburg, the Wolves lead the table by one point over Olimpija Ljubljana. HC Bozen, who have played one game less, are only two points behind. easily beat HC Innsbruck on Friday.
The highlights
| Ouch, Di Tomaso | An entertaining first period ends 0-0 – despite both teams having plenty of top-class chances. At the start of the second period, Philipp Lindner beats Greg Di Tomaso. Pasquale manages to parry his shot, but he's powerless to stop Nick Hutchinson's tap-in. |
| Curious gate | Pustertal tries to respond – and Matthias Mantinger hits the post. A little later, the crowd gets very loud. After a long-range shot by Di Tomaso, Mark Katic puts the puck into his own net with his hand. |
| What's going on here? | Just 21 seconds after the equalizer, Elias Wallenta beats Luca Zanatta and finds Kevin Hancock, who scores with a direct shot. Just 19 seconds later, Adam Helewka makes it 3-1 with a deflection. |
| glimmer of hope | Pustertal responds before the end of the third period: Mikael Frycklund makes a perfect pass to Austin Rueschhoff, who, free in front of Cannata, hits the top corner with pinpoint accuracy. |
| Dramatic ending | Pustertal breathes a sigh of relief when Lindner hits the post and Rauchenwald fails miserably on a 2-on-0 counterattack. At the other end, Rueschhoff also lacks composure on a solo run before Saracino scores after a Bowlby burst of energy. Lipon then slams the puck into the top corner in overtime. |
HC Pustertal – Villacher SV 4:3 nV
HCP: Pasquale (Rabanser); Lauridsen-DiTomaso, Glira-Osmanski, Zanatta-Nitz; Bowlby-Bardreau-Saracino, Lipon-Ticar-Ierullo, Rueschoff-Frycklund-Purdeller, Mantinger-Andergassen-Lobis.coach: Jasper
VSV: Cannata (Steiner); Katic-Kudla, Lindner-MacPherson, Strong-Vallant, Uschan; van Nes-Rauchenwald-Hutchinson, Scherbak-Hancock-Wallenta, Hughes-Helewka-Sintschnig, Rebernig-Maxa-Erne, Tschurnig.
coach: Tuomie
Gates: 0:1 Hutchinson (24.20), 1:1 Di Tomaso (35.05), 1:2 Hancock (35.26), 1:3 Helewka (35.45), 2:3 Rueschhoff (39.20), 3:3 Saracino (58.44), 4:3 Lipon (62.59)
Viewers: 2547
ICE Hockey League:
HC Innsbruck – HC Bozen 1:4Goals: 0-1 Mantenuto (1.08), 0-2 Gazley (31.49), 0-3 Seed (38.16), 1-3 Owre (49.22), 1-4 DiGiacinto (49.52)
Audience: 2.200
Red Bull Salzburg – FTC Telekom 7:2
Goals: 1:0 Robertson (13.59), 2:0 Schneider (16.52), 3:0 Bourke (19.41), 4:0 Bourke (21.52), 4:1 Tyni (25.27), 4:2 Tammela (30.03), 5:2 Nissner (32.12), 6:2 St. Denis (34.34), 7:2 Robertson (49.05)
Audience: 3.400
Fehervar AV19 – EC-KAC 1:2 nP
Goals: 1-0 Stipsicz (3.57), 1-1 Murray (37.34); decisive penalty: Murray
Audience: 4.026
Black Wings Linz – Graz99ers 3:2 aet
Goals: 1:0 Ograjensek (7.57), 1:1 Huber (41.30), 2:1 Mackinnon (48.43), 2:2 Bailen (59.51), 3:2 St-Amant (63.29)
Audience: 4.092
The table
| SP | G | U | V | TV | P | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. HC Pustertal | 12 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 42:26 | 26 |
| 2. Olimpija Ljubljana | 12 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 62:34 | 25 |
| 3. HCB South Tyrol | 11 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 40:22 | 24 |
| 4. EC Salzburg | 13 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 41:30 | 24 |
| 5. Graz99ers | 12 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 42:30 | 22 |
| 6. EC Villach | 13 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 46:44 | 22 |
| 7. EC Klagenfurt | 11 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 31:25 | 21 |
| 8. Ferencvarosi | 12 | 5 | 0 | 7 | 35:38 | 16 |
| 9. Fehervar | 12 | 5 | 0 | 7 | 24:37 | 16 |
| 10. Vienna Capitals | 11 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 31:40 | 13 |
| 11. HC Innsbruck | 12 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 29:57 | 8 |
| 12. Linz | 11 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 31:43 | 7 |
| 13. Vorarlberg | 12 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 21:49 | 7 |
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