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Cristiano DiGiacinto and Tyler Lewington had a boxing match. © EC Red Bull Salzburg / Gintare Karpaviciute - EC Red Bull Salzburg
5.000 fans scream: Bolzano fights, boxes – and loses.
It's no secret that clashes between HCB Südtirol Alperia and Red Bull Salzburg are always spectacular. Nevertheless, the sheer spectacle of ice hockey that the two teams conjured up on Monday was astonishing.
05 January 2026
From the Sparkasse Arena
From:
Thomas Debelyak
Ladies and gentlemen, is it March already? Are the playoffs already underway? No, of course not. It's the beginning of January, we're still in the regular season, it's still about points and not do or die. But the spectacle that HC Bozen and Red Bull Salzburg delivered on Monday in the madhouse that is the Sparkasse Arena had the feel of postseason hockey. In the end, however, Bozen had to bite the bullet: Salzburg won 2-1 in a penalty shootout.
That hardly any of the 5.000 fans left the Bolzano night with a somber expression, despite the defeat, was hardly surprising. The HCB players fought like gladiators against the reigning champions and the league's most in-form team (Salzburg now boasts eleven consecutive wins), throwing themselves in front of every shot, shaking the boards to their foundations, running and working tirelessly for their teammates. The heart of Bolzano beat loudly that evening.
And the spectators? They weren't just swept up in the emotions, they were completely carried away. The atmosphere in the Bolzano ice arena was like a madhouse, with the roars, chants, and whistles growing more deafening by the minute. The decibel level reached its peak in the 50th minute: Bolzano's Cristiano DiGiacinto delivered a brutal check to a Salzburg player, whose teammate Tyler Lewington retaliated with a fistfight. After several wild blows, DiGiacinto wrestled his opponent to the ice and was celebrated by the entire arena.
DiGiacinto and Lewington resorted to violence. © Vanna Antonello
But of course: Red Bull Salzburg snatched the extra point in the penalty shootout (Troy Bourke was the only shooter to score) that evening, extending their winning streak to eleven games. Especially in the final period, HC Bern squandered a golden opportunity to score the game-winner when the Foxes had a 90-minute two-man advantage. However, Salzburg's backup goalie David Kickert was in superb form – as was his counterpart Sam Harvey, who thrilled the fans with several brilliant saves.
The highlights
| Lots of applause | Even before the game starts, there is applause in the Sparkasse Arena: Salzburg star Thomas Raffl is playing his 1.000th match today – and this is being honored by the Bolzano fans despite all the rivalry. |
| It fits perfectly. | The roughly ten Salzburg fans who had traveled to the game were the first to celebrate. After a scramble in front of the Bolzano net, the puck slipped through to Huber, who, alone in front of Harvey, scored with a quick wrist shot to make it 1-0 (12th minute). |
| With force | The in-form Bradley brings Bolzano back into the game! During the power play, the Italian-Canadian is set up by DiGiacinto and leaves Salzburg's backup Kickert no chance with a one-timer (16th minute). |
| Boxing match | The atmosphere had been simmering for some time and finally boiled over in the 50th minute. After a brutal check by DiGiacinto, Salzburg's Lewington avenged his unfortunate teammate: gloves came off and fists started flying. After a flurry of blows, DiGiacinto wrestled his opponent to the ground – and the stadium erupted. |
| Penalties | The tension is palpable in the final minutes, both goaltenders outdo each other with big saves, and Bolzano also misses a 5-on-3 power play opportunity. And so it goes to a penalty shootout, where Salzburg's Troy Bourke is the only player to score. |
After this spectacular game, HC Bozen's next big match is on Friday. The Foxes will be playing away against the Graz99ers. HC Pustertal suffered a defeat in Klagenfurt on Monday.
HC Bozen – Red Bull Salzburg 1:2 (after penalties)
HSBC: Harvey (Gibson); Samuelsson-Valentine, Gildon-Seed, Miglioranzi-DiPerna, Larcher; DiGiacinto-Gersich-Gazley, Schneider-Pollock-McClure, Frigo-Mantenuto-Bradley, Frank-Misley-Brunner, MarchettiCoach: Shedden
RBS: Kickert (Tolvanen); Robertson-Corcoran, Nienhuis-Lewington, Stephens-Hörl, Wimmer-Schreier; Thomas Raffl-Nissner-Schneider, Michael Raffl-St. Denis-Coe, Huber-Baltram-Bourke, Kraus-Thaler-Hochkofler
Coach: Viveiros
Gates: 0-1 Mario Huber (11:57), 1-1 Matt Bradley (15:39). Decisive penalty: Troy Bourke
Viewers: 4.960
ICE Hockey League, the other games
Klagenfurter AC – HC Pustertal 3:2 (click here for the report)Goals: 1:0 Schwinger (00:32), 2:0 From (15:35), 2:1 Bowlby (19:48), 3:1 Waschnig (32:06), 3:2 Frycklund (55:37)
Audience: 4.239
Vienna Capitals – Villacher SV 5:2
Goals: 1-0 Koschek (3:21), 1-1 Sintschnig (22:31), 2-1 Souch (23:30), 2-2 Hutchinson (24:19), 3-2 Wallner (46:23), 4-2 Vey (52:04), 5-2 Mitch Hults (59:44)
Audience: 6.040
AV Fehervar – Graz99ers 5:2
Goals: 1:0 Nemeth (18.51), 2:0 Erdely (24.20), 2:1 Roy (30.00), 3:1 Hari (42.33), 4:1 Richards (43.23), 4:2 Schiechl (46.18), 5:2 Gerlach (54.28)
Audience: 3.165
Olimpija Ljubljana – Ferencvaros Budapest 5:1
Goals: 1:0 Brennan (6.00), 2:0 Pance (6.44), 3:0 Simsic (17.04), 4:0 Mahkovec (23.01), 5:0 Mahkovec (27.08), 5:1 Molnar (58.00)
Audience: 1.354
Pioneers Vorarlberg – HC Innsbruck 6:4
Goals: 0:1 Klassek (2.36), 1:1 Maier (5.26), 2:1 Macierzynski (11.28), 2:2 Corbeil (15.17), 3:2 Bukarts (17.42), 4:2 Dornbach (27.05), 5:2 Maier (33.51), 5:3 Moberg (44.23), 5:4 Rappold (54.51), 6:4 Dornbach (59.10)
Audience: 1.912
| SP | G | U | V | TV | P | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. EC Klagenfurt | 35 | 24 | 0 | 11 | 123:83 | 74 |
| 2. Graz99ers | 34 | 23 | 0 | 11 | 112:75 | 70 |
| 3. EC Salzburg | 35 | 23 | 0 | 12 | 115:71 | 66 |
| 4. HCB South Tyrol | 33 | 21 | 0 | 12 | 119:80 | 64 |
| 5. Olimpija Ljubljana | 36 | 22 | 0 | 14 | 134:100 | 62 |
| 6. HC Pustertal | 34 | 19 | 0 | 15 | 118:96 | 57 |
| 7. Fehervar | 34 | 16 | 0 | 18 | 80:107 | 48 |
| 8. Vienna Capitals | 34 | 15 | 0 | 19 | 87:101 | 45 |
| 9. Linz | 34 | 16 | 0 | 18 | 110:112 | 44 |
| 10. EC Villach | 33 | 13 | 0 | 20 | 101:113 | 42 |
| 11. Ferencvarosi | 34 | 12 | 0 | 22 | 87:120 | 41 |
| 12. Vorarlberg | 33 | 10 | 0 | 23 | 78:135 | 31 |
| 13. HC Innsbruck | 35 | 8 | 0 | 27 | 84:155 | 22 |
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