From Hell to Heaven: The Incredible Journey of the HCB

“The best HCB of all time” In recent years, HCB Südtirol has mostly started the season incompletely. This year is completely different: Last summer, the new coach Pat Curcio had all the players on board, including some supposedly top-class players, earlier than ever before at HCB. And for the first time, the coach was given an assistant, Philip Barski. At the traditional press conference at the start of the season, HCB boss Dieter Knoll announced that this year's HCB squad was the best of all time.

Knoll's statement was criticized several times in the following months as being too full-bodied, because the start of the season went quite wrong: in the first month, the White-Reds lost seven out of nine games, although sometimes only very narrowly. The “best HCB of all time” soon found itself at the bottom of the table and settled there for a long time. Five different goalkeepers The first personnel change concerned the goalkeeper: at the end of October, Marcel Melichercik was released and replaced by Matt Climie. After a good match against Linz, which the Foxes won 4-2, Climie suffered a serious knee injury during training. At short notice, substitute goalie Jacob Smith had to step in for two (lost) away games with 18-year-old Robin Quagliato, who actually plays for Vipiteno, as a backup. Now the HCB club management signed the next goalkeeper, the Czech Jakub Sedlacek, who only played 6 games for the HCB because he was lured to Slovan Bratislava by the KHL funds. And so it happened that a new goalie had to be found again, which was a definite stroke of luck: On December 3rd, Pekka Tuokkola played his first match for the HCB, but it took some time before he was fully convincing. Sointu and Miceli come along But back to the fall: Goalie Melichercik's last match was also the last match for a long time for goalgetter Austin Smith, who suffered a long-term concussion and had to miss dozens of games. Since Anton Bernard was also out due to injury during this time, the club signed two new outfield players - with completely different levels of success: the Finn Mathias Sointu proved to be a hit, while the young Italian Stephen Pietrobon was not suitable for the EBEL after only 2 games, so he Asiago was passed on. A few days later, another new addition followed: Angelo Miceli would also prove to be an absolute reinforcement as the season continued. In Miceli's debut match on November 21st, defensive giant Mat Clark suffered a serious knee injury. The low point at the end of November – with a turnaround The HCB crisis became increasingly dire: in November the “Füchse” lost 6 out of 7 games. Therefore, HCB boss Dieter Knoll pulled the ripcord and decided to change coach. Instead of Pat Curcio, the Finn Kai Suikkanen was hired. However, his HCB adventure began with two defeats. At the beginning of December, the HCB was at the bottom of the table, 6 points behind the penultimate Fehervar and an impressive 35 points behind the leader Vienna Capitals.

Although the Füchse managed five wins in a row in the second half of December, they were unable to get away from the bottom of the table for the time being. During this time, the Foxes were without attacker Chris De Sousa for five games, who was suspended after a fight with Tom Zanoski in the hallway to the players' locker room in Zagreb. Gander is out with a broken jaw Another four wins in a row at the beginning of January meant that the HCB was able to at least move up to 9th place. In the first of these victories, the 1:4 against Salzburg on January 3rd, Markus Gander threw himself into an opponent's shot and was hit full in the face. Unfortunately, the Sterzinger was out for the rest of the season with a broken lower jaw. In this phase, the HCB was able to recognize for the first time the value of the Finnish trio Suikkanen/Tuokkola/Sointu. For a short time, the people of Bolzano even had a small chance of slipping into the pick round of the top 3 by the end of the basic round at the end of January, but they ultimately finished the first phase in 6th place and started the qualification round with the goal of 9 bonus points , to get one of the 2 places for the quarterfinals. False start in the qualification round too But the Foxes once again experienced a false start: with two unexpected defeats against Fehervar and in Znojmo, they were pushed back to the bottom of the table. Thanks to the growing team spirit and fighting spirit, four wins in a row followed and the playoffs were once again within reach. In the meantime, Mat Clark had returned to the team in defense after his knee operation. Crazy match against Znojmo The last match of the Qualification Round on March 4th was significant for this year's HCB: at home against Znojmo, the White-Reds only needed a single point to definitely advance to the quarter-finals. But the match started disastrously: After the first third, the guests were 1-3 ahead and the HCB seemed to be on the way to an early summer vacation. Dominic Monardo's 0:1 in the 3th minute started an incredible season finale, which seven weeks later would complete the “Cinderella story” with the championship title. The Bolzano team ultimately won the playoff against Znojmo with a 28-4 overtime win and started the playoffs as the big underdogs. Dreaded quarter-final opponent Despite the mixed season, the opposing teams knew about the strength of the HCB. None of the top 3 teams chose the supposedly “easiest” draw in the live pick. The EC-KAC ultimately had no other choice and had to come fourth after the regular round against the Foxes. In the first quarter-final game, the South Tyroleans won home advantage from Klagenfurt. However, the KAC hit back with two wins and put Kai Suikkanen's team behind for the first time - and it wasn't the last deficit in a playoff series. With two overtime victories they captured the match puck and finally used it confidently with a shutout in Bolzano. Basic round dominator eliminated in the semi-finals In the semi-finals, the Vienna Capitals were not only the reigning champions, but also the dominators of the regular round. In the first game, the Viennese impressively underlined their role as favorites and recorded a clear 4-0 win. From this point on, Kai Suikkanen touched the concrete in defense and his team won four times en-suite. In the third of these victories there was also a setback: HCB defender Stefano Marchetti, who had become a constant, tore a tendon in his forearm and was out for the rest of the season. The Viennese never scored more than two goals in these games. Goalie Pekka Tukkola not only impressed with outstanding saves in this series. The déjà vu of 2014 Everything was set for an exciting and tactical final series with EC Red Bull Salzburg. As in the quarter-finals, the South Tyroleans conquered the home advantage in the first game. Once again, the Foxes' trump card was defense. However, Salzburg stepped up and equalized the series in the second home game. Kai Suikkanen once again changed his team's tactics and from this point on they played more offensively again. And with great success. In game three they regained the series lead with a 4-2 win in Bolzano before Salzburg equalized again.

In a fifth final game that couldn't be surpassed in terms of excitement, Salzburg captured the first match puck after a 6:5 overtime victory. It wasn't the first time this season that the people of Bolzano had their backs against the wall and once again they had the right answer. A spectacular 6:3 brought the final series into a decisive game seven in Salzburg. There was the déjà vu of 2014 in the Salzburg ice arena. And like four years ago, HCB Südtirol Alperia celebrated the championship in Salzburg as outsiders with a 3-2 win in the playoff.

ICE Regular Season ICE	SP	TV	P
1. Klagenfurt	47	183:101	102
2. Fehervar	46	146:126	89
3. Salzburg	46	142:107	87
4. HCB South Tyrol	46	137:125	76
5. Linz	46	146:116	75
6. Villach	46	155:136	74
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From Hell to Heaven: The Incredible Journey of the HCB

HC Bozen Südtirol Alperia had an incredible journey this season on the way to its second EBEL triumph. From the initial laurels into an infinitely deep hole and then all the way to the top. This up-and-down journey was peppered with countless episodes that are worth retelling.

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