Bolzano vs. Pustertal: Like fathers, like sons

Their fathers won't be cheering in the stands because one will be on the ice in their own host company and the other will be on the ice as a coach. We're talking about Markus Brunner and Alex Gschliesser and their sons Pascal and Fabian.

Markus Brunner and Alex Gschliesser are almost the same age to the day. The former was born on May 18, 1973, the latter a week earlier on May 11, 1973. The two former attackers also have some other parallels. They took part in two U18 and three U20 World Championships together. Both later won World Cup honors with the “big boys” and also enjoyed the Olympic Games: Gschliesser was in the “Azzurri” Olympic squad in 1994 in Lillehammer, Brunner four years later in Nagano.

Her sons can only dream of that. Pascal Brunner is 21 years old, a winger and returned home in the summer of 2022 after 6 years in Switzerland. Last season he initially played for his hometown club HC Meran in the AlpsHL before reaching the final with HCB Südtirol in the ICEHL and receiving a contract with the runner-up for this season. The tall attacker has taken part in one U18 World Cup so far and missed promotion to the World Group with Italy at the World Cup in Division I Group A in Nottingham this spring.

Markus Brunner at a young age. © Max Pattis

Fabian Gschliesser, on the other hand, is 19 years old, a center forward and returned home this summer after 5 years in Salzburg. While he is an integral part of his hometown club Wipptal Broncos in the AlpsHL, he has only made a few changes to HC Pustertal in the ICEHL. Gschliesser has already taken part in one U18 and two U20 World Championships. However, he still has to wait for his debut with the big boys.

Markus Brunner and Alex Gschliesser not only hunted for goals together in the national team, but also played together for Meran in the 2002/03 season. And Brunner and Gschliesser Senior also chased the hard rubber disc at their sons' current clubs. That was in the 1995/96 season, when Markus Brunner became Italian champion with HC Bozen and Alex Gschliesser with EV Bruneck lost 3 derbies against HCB and achieved a 4:13 in the 1996th meeting on February 5, 5.

Alex Gschliesser © Pattis

“Matchi” Brunner ended his career in spring 2006 after losing his left eye in a duel with a HC Valpellice player a year earlier. Today the former Meran captain has nothing to do with ice hockey anymore. This is not the case with Alex “Puls” Gschliesser, who, after retiring from his career in the spring of 2008, moved to the coaching bench two years later and is now the coach at HC Brixen in the IHL.

In the following double interview, the now 50-year-old, proud player fathers look at the 188th derby between HCB Südtirol and HC Pustertal, their time in Bolzano and Bruneck and talk about their sons Pascal and Fabian.

What memories do you have of your time in Bolzano or Bruneck?

Markus Brunner: I spent two wonderful years in Bolzano. In the summer of 2 I returned home after two years in Canada because I had to do military service. I received a contract with HC Bozen as a 1992-year-old. We still played in the time-honored exhibition hall. It was my first year as a professional and the first year of Mike Rosati and the two Russians Igor Maslennikov and Sergei Vostrikow in Bolzano. We weren't the favorites back then. Milan was a lot stronger. Nevertheless, we narrowly missed the sensation in the final. In the 2/19 season I played again for HCB and we became Italian champions. I definitely don't want to miss these 1995 years.

Alex Gschliesser: I only have good memories of Bruneck. I came to Bruneck for the first time in the 1995/96 season and felt at home straight away. The climate was excellent and I liked the people straight away. Maybe that has something to do with the fact that my grandma was also a blower. I was only 22 years old at the time and played on the same line as Wladimir Jeremin and Maurizio Catenacci, whose son Daniel now also plays at HC Pustertal. I was then in Brunico in the 2003/04 seasons, when Fabian was born, and in 2005/06, and worked as a youth coach at HCP Junior in the winter of 2017/18. I always felt very comfortable and I always liked it.

What significance did the derby between HC Bozen and EV Bruneck have at the time?

G closer: For Bruneck, the derby against the big HC Bozen was the most important and biggest event during a season. This is still the case today and will not change so quickly in the future. Bolzano was mostly a contender for the title, Bruneck was an outsider. That's why the few victories against big rivals were always something special.

Brunner: My real derby was always the one between Merano and Bolzano. But the duel between Bolzano and Bruneck was also a classic and had great significance for everyone involved. Everyone was looking forward to the derbies for days. There was an extra boost of motivation. There were also more spectators in the stadiums than usual. It wasn't just about the points, but above all about the honor.

Proud dad and trainer father: Alex Gschliesser with his 19-year-old son Fabian.

What has changed since then?

G closer: Quite a lot. The game has certainly gotten faster. Compared to the 1995/96 season, little has changed in terms of level. After all, there was a multinational championship back then too. The Alpine League was perhaps even better than the ICEHL today. The new arena brought about an enormous improvement in Bruneck. Everything has become more modern. The club is in a better financial position today than it was back then. There is a team that can play at the front and is currently top of the table for a reason.

Brunner: In the 1990s the level was extremely high. We would have been at the top of the German league back then. The style of play has changed a lot in recent years. Today everything is much faster and more technical. In our time, playing was much dirtier. There were hidden fouls and wild brawls. The spectators had fun. Nothing was given to you: there were enemies on the ice, and friends after the game. Over time, the rules have also changed: With the zero-tolerance rule, you can no longer allow yourself to do almost anything.

You can look back on a great career. What do you think your son can do?

Brunner: Pascal has a lot of potential and has good skills. He has talent, ambition and will. He is also strong physically, technically and as a skater. I am convinced that he can still go far. After 6 years in Switzerland, he wanted to return to South Tyrol because he no longer saw any prospects. Because Pascal is not counted as a foreigner in Switzerland, he could return there at any time if he gets the right offer.

G closer: Well, big career? I am happy with what I have achieved. I had good but also bad years and was more of a defensive striker until the Olympics. After that I changed and became an offensive attacker. Fabian is taller than me and physically stronger. I was a wing, while he can play in all positions in attack - including center. He is currently more defensively minded, although he also has offensive potential and can score goals. He always proved that when he was young. I have a lot of credit for him. But to do this he has to stay healthy.

What tips do you give your son? Where does he still need to improve?

G closer: I am not only a proud dad, but also a trainer father. But I try to stay out of it as much as possible and don't get involved. If he asks me for advice, I'm happy to help him and give him tips. Fabian can definitely improve offensively. He is on the right track. There is always room for improvement. But the next few years will be crucial.

Brunner: Because the game has changed in the last few years, I'm not always up to date. Pascal used to listen to me less. Today, when I give him tips, he tries to implement them. We talk and discuss ice hockey every now and then. It is important for Pascal that he gets the trust of the coach and gets as much ice time as possible. Where he may still have some catching up to do is the game without the puck.

What characteristics has your son inherited from you?

G closer: He has a very similar playing field to what I had. In addition to his playful qualities, Fabian inherited my ambition and hard work. And yet we are different. Not only is he 4 centimeters taller, but he's probably better at skating than me. He is a left-handed shooter while I was a southpaw. I was a winger, Fabian mostly plays in the middle.

Brunner: He is a very similar type of player to me. He is tall, physically strong and powerful. His playing style reminds me a lot of mine. Pascal completes the checks, has a good shot and will score goals at some point. He is a very complete player.

What is your result tip for the 188th derby between HCB Südtirol and HC Pustertal?

Brunner: Hopefully it will be a great game with a lot of spectators. The better one should win, although I'm already hoping for a Bolzano victory. But it won't be easy. I'm betting on a 3-2 win for the HCB.

G closer: I hope that HC Pustertal wins. My ex-team is in a very good mood and is bursting with self-confidence. But you should never underestimate Bolzano. It is a strong force that will definitely find a way out of the crisis. I'm guessing a 5:4 nV for HC Pustertal.

ICE Regular Season ICE	SP	TV	P
1. Klagenfurt	48	183:104	102
2. Fehervar	48	161:130	95
3. Salzburg	48	150:111	90
4. HCB South Tyrol	48	147:125	82
5. Linz	48	156:122	81
6. Villach	48	160:139	80
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Bolzano vs. Pustertal: Like fathers, like sons

They were both strikers. One comes from Meran, the other from Vipiteno. Both have a son who also plays ice hockey. One at HCB Südtirol, the other at HC Pustertal. Both will face each other on the ice at the Sparkasse Arena on Friday evening.

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