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Bolzano (in red) and Ljubljana engaged in a fierce battle. © Matteo Groppo / DLife
38 nightmare seconds: Bolzano and 4.000 fans are horrified.
What a drama, what unbelievable scenes: HCB Südtirol Alperia threw away victory against Olimpija Ljubljana within a single minute on Saturday. The spectators couldn't believe their eyes.
March 14, 2026
From the Sparkasse Arena
From:
Thomas Debelyak
Ice hockey is known as the fastest team sport in the world. But sometimes ice hockey can also be the craziest. Just like on this Saturday evening at the Sparkasse Arena. In the third quarterfinal, HC Bozen, playing with unbridled energy for a long time, led 2-0 well into the final period and had victory firmly in their grasp. But then the unbelievable happened.
Ljubljana, who had been well contained by Bolzano until then, turned the match on its head within a minute. Or, to be more precise: the Slovenians scored three goals in just 38 seconds. The 4.000 fans were in a collective state of shock – and the 2-3 defeat was a reality. Just like in Game 1, HC Bolzano squandered a 2-0 lead at home. In the best-of-seven series, Ljubljana takes a 2-1 lead and regains the momentum.
For a long time on Saturday, things looked so good for the Foxes! For two periods, the Red and Whites celebrated the long-awaited strong playoff hockey, playing as a cohesive team, throwing themselves in front of shots, crashing into the boards, really giving it their all! Matt Bradley's two goals and the 2-0 lead sparked a roaring party in the stands – but then came the fateful 48th minute. Suddenly, the Bolzano ice hockey arena fell silent.
Suddenly, HCB collapses.
Within 38 seconds, HCB collapsed like a house of cards. Marcel Mahkovec (47:01), Andrew MacWilliam (47:15), and Nicolai Meyer (47:39) orchestrated an incredible playoff comeback – and an inexplicable Bolzano blackout. The Foxes never recovered from this resounding slap in the face, this shock, that evening.The highlights
| Double Bradley | Bolzano went all out for two periods and took a 2-0 lead. The man responsible: Matt Bradley! First, he scored in the slot after a perfect pass from Schneider (3rd minute), then he capitalized on Ljubljana's line-up chaos, broke away alone in front of the net after a pass from Gildon, and calmly slotted the puck past Tokarski (28th minute). |
| 47.01 minute | Ljubljana started the final period with a lot of energy. Initially, Harvey made a monster save to prevent them from getting back into the game (46th minute). Then, however, came the nightmare minute: Mahkovec scored on the power play to make it 1-2. |
| 47.15 minute | A one-touch equalizer: Drozg passes to Gregorc, who then passes to MacWilliam – and he scores with a deflected one-timer right under the crossbar. 2-2, hockey can be that simple. |
| 47.39 minute | The shock is complete: After a quick attack, Drozg passes across to league top scorer Meyer, who remains ice-cold in front of Harvey. The match has been turned around, the upset complete. |
The big question is: How could something like this happen? How could the previously so strong HCB suddenly fall apart? The Foxes don't have much time to analyze, as Quarterfinal 4 is already on Tuesday. HCB will be looking to fight their way back into the series. HC Pustertal, who celebrated his third victory against Red Bull Salzburg on Saturday, can, however, advance to the semi-finals.
HC Bozen – Olimpija Ljubljana 2:3
HSBC: Harvey (Vallini); Gildon-Seed, Samuelsson-Valentine, Barberio-DiPerna; Schneider-Bradley-McClure, Pollock-Gersich-Gazley, DiGiacinto-Mantenuto-Gennaro, Frigo-Misley-Frank, BrunnerCoach: Shedden
OLL: Tokarski (Kolin); Cosic-Brennan, McNeill-Halbert, MacWilliam-Gregorc, Crnovic-Mehle, Meyer-Boychuk-Drozg, Sabolic-Petan-Mahkovec, Simsic-Quince-Kapel, Pance-Bericic-Bukovec
Coach: Cooper
Gates: 1:0 Matt Bradley (2.52), 2:0 Matt Bradley (27.24), 2:1 Marcel Mahkovec (47.01), 2:2 Andrew MacWilliam (47.15), 2:3 Nicolai Meyer (47.39)
Viewers: 3.920
Standings in the best-of-7 series: 1:2
ICE Hockey League:
Red Bull Salzburg – HC Pustertal 3-4Goals: 1:0 Bourke (2.50), 1:1 Bardreau (13.33), 1:2 Frycklund (21.40), 2:2 Nienhuis (27.29), 2:3 Lauridsen (35.24), 3:3 Auer (37.33), 3:4 Blum (37.51)
Audience: 3.400
Score in the series: 0:3
Graz 99ers – Villach SV 3:1
Goals: 1:0 Swaney (10.18), 2:0 Huber (13.30), 2:1 Wall (26.52), 3:1 Kotkansalo (35.04)
Audience: 4.126
Score in the series: 3:0
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