The 2nd leg of both Men’s Champions Cup Semi-Finals are set to take place this week as Swedish side Pixbo take on SV Wiler-Ersigen in Switzerland and Finnish team Nokian KrP hosts Czech side Mladá Boleslav.
Nokian Krp Vs Mladá Boleslav
In a close and physical game 1 between the 2 sides it was the Czech hosts who came out on top with a 8-5 win. If game 2 goes the way of game 1 then expect to see more battles both on and off the ball. Hosts Nokian have only 1 loss in the Finnish F-Liiga to date so far (To TPS) and have a lot of confidence after defeating Swedish superstar team Storvreta in the Quarter-Finals. They will be without defensemen Olli Arkkila who missed game 1 against Mladá Boleslav and has now been confirmed to be out for the season, a blow for Nokian KrP with Arkkila key defensively for them in their QF win against Storvreta. Mladá Boleslav will also be without a defenseman for Game 2 in the Semi-Finals as Adam Hemerka will be out with suspension for rule violation 614:3 “When a player is guilty of violent physical play”. Without a key man on the defense the Czech side may need to call upon goalkeeper Lukas Bauer yet again who had a stunning 29 save performance in Game 1.
Nokian KrP Vs Mladá Boleslav – Thursday 14th November, AGCO Power Arena, 17:30 CET (18:30 Finnish local time), Live on the IFF App
SV Wiler-Ersigen Vs Pixbo
The first match ended in a decisive 11-4 victory for Pixbo who head into the 2nd leg full of confidence. With a home crowd it will certainly be interesting to see how Wiler-Ersigen respond after their game 1 loss. An area of doubt that the Swiss team can exploit is Pixbo recently getting their first loss of the season in the SSL to Jönköping. Before the loss on 12th November Pixbo were one of the best form teams in the world having won every league game in the SSL (9 in a row) and only suffering one loss all season in their first round match of the CC Quarter-Finals to Esport Oilers. Wiler-Erisgen have had a more up and down start to their season, which despite drawing and beating Tatran Stresovice in the Quarter-Finals of the Champions Cup, can only find themselves in 4th in the Swiss UPL. Losses to Langnau, Chur and Zug have hurt their standing in the league but with a week’s break between their victory over Basel and their 2nd leg against Pixbo, the Swiss side should be fresh and ready to take on the challenge. Key players for both side is Felix Lanver for Pixbo, currently sitting atop the CC scoring charts and Jan Burki for SV Wiler-Ersigen who got the winning goal against Tatran and is a dynamic two way defender.
SV Wiler-Ersigen Vs Pixbo – Friday 15th November, Sporthalle Grossmat, 19:00 CET, Live on the IFF App
