Serie A: Showdown for first place on the last matchday

Master round

Alleghe Tegola Canadese – Fiat Professional Wolves

With two successes in a row, the Wolves have regained the top of the table and they don't want to give it up anymore. With only one match remaining, the Pusterers have to hold their own against the fourth-placed team in Alleghe in regular time on Saturday in order to secure first place. “The return of many key performers has led to the upswing, I'm thinking of players like Joe Cullen, Jean Sebastien Aubin and Ben Guitè. The team performed well in the derby. It's true that Bozen was missing an important player in Alexander Egger, but we achieved success with a lot of effort and the will to win. Now the last 60 minutes await us. We want to win the intermediate round, but if we don't, we certainly won't make a drama out of it. For us, the home advantage would play an important role, because with an audience like ours, that would be a big plus. “It would also be a reward for our fans who always support us,” said the sporting director of the Fiat Professional Wolves, Roman Erlacher. Alleghe is already focused on the playoffs, so Tom Pokel will likely rest some key players. The Pusterers, however, have to go to work without Thomas Erlacher (out for another week) and Patrick Bona.

Ritten Sport Renault Trucks - HC Valpellice Bodino Engineering On paper, Ritten is the clear favorite. After the rest day on Thursday, the “Rittner Buam” will welcome the players from Torre Pellice, who will safely finish the Master Round in fifth place in the table and will therefore meet Alleghe in the quarter-finals. Meanwhile, the home side are lying in wait, just one point behind in second place. In order to overtake the wolves, the players from the South Tyrolean plateau have to hope that the Pusterers make a misstep. If both teams had the same number of points on Saturday evening, Ritten would go into the playoffs as first in the table due to the better record in the direct duels in the Master Round. Coach Rob Wilson has to do without Ryan Ramsay, Dan Tudin and Alexander Eisath. They will be joined by Matteo Rasom, who will be out for at least six weeks due to a shoulder injury he sustained in the game against Bolzano on Tuesday. Defender Slavomir Tomko is serving the last game of his suspension for the Piedmontese.

Relegation Round

Hafro Cortina – Aquile FVG Pontebba

The fate of the two teams that will face each other on Saturday in the Olympic Stadium in Contina has already been sealed. Cortina is assured of third place in the Relegation Round, now the Ampezzo team is just waiting for the name of the Master Round winner. Whether they will meet Ritten or Pustertal in the quarter-finals will not be decided until Saturday. Pontebba, on the other hand, wants to use the last matchday of the interim period to prepare for the playouts against Fassa, which begin on Tuesday evening.

SHC Val di Fassa Ferrarini - Migross Supermercati Asiago

The situation is already clear not only in Cortina and Pontebba, but also in Fassa and Asiago. The Ladins showed with their 9-4 win over Pontebba on Thursday that they are ready for the playouts, where they will face the Friulians again. Asiago was also victorious on the last matchday. Coach John Parco's boys brought Milan to their knees and now definitely have first place in the relegation round in their pocket. In the quarter-finals they therefore have to play against the reigning champions Bolzano, with the first away game in the Eiswelle on Tuesday. Both teams will rest several players on Saturday as the focus now turns to the crucial phase of the season.

Serie A – Matchday 10 Master and Relegation Round – Saturday, February 16, 2013 Master round

Alvise de Toni Stadium in Alleghe, 20:30 p.m Alleghe Tegola Canadese – Fiat Professional Wolves Referee: Gamper D., Metelka, Lorengo, Unterweger

Arena Ritten in Klobenstein, 20:30 p.m Ritten Sport Renault Trucks – HC Valpellice Bodino Engineering Referee: Benvegnu', Gastaldelli, Mori, Pardatscher

Day off: HC Bolzano

Relegation Round Olympic Stadium in Cortina, 20:30 p.m Hafro Cortina – Aquile FVG Pontebba Referee: Cassol, Rebeschin, Mazzocco, Zatta

Gianmario Scola Stadium in Alba di Canazei, 20:30 p.m SHC Val di Fassa Ferrarini – Migross Supermercati Asiago Referee: Bosio, Ferrini, Cristeli C., Cristeli M

Day off: Milan Rossoblu

The Serie A table Master round

1. Fiat Professional Wölfe Pustertal 51 points 2. Ritten Sport Renault Trucks 50 3. HC Bozen 49 * 4. Alleghe Tegola Canadese 42 5. Valpellice Bodino Engineering 38

*one more game

Relegation Round

1. Migross Supermercati Asiago 43 points 2. Milano Rossoblu 38* 3. Hafro Cortina 35 4. Val di Fassa Ferrarini 23 5. Aquile FVG Pontebba 6

*one more game

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Serie A: Showdown for first place on the last matchday

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