UPC VIENNA CAPITALS 0 - 2 LULEA HOCKEY
Taken from; http://www.redbull.com/cs/Satellite/en_INT/Article/UPC-Vienna-Capitals-put-up-strong-fight-against-021243296113170
A second sensational victory in the European Trophy proved too much for the UPC Vienna Capitals. With a supremely in-form Matt Zaba in goal, the Capitals managed to stay in contention through to the 46th minute of this semi-final game against Lulea Hockey, but the Swedes ultimately went on to nail a well deserved 2-0 victory. Which puts Lulea through to the final of the Red Bulls Salute in Bratislava on Sunday, where they will face the winner of the second semi-final game between Färjestad BK and Tappara.
The UPC Vienna Capitals may have been the host team, but they began as befits a home team by putting their opponents under considerable pressure. In the very first minute of play the Capitals enjoyed a power play situation and created their first solid goal scoring opportunity courtesy of Rafael Rotter, who ultimately failed to beat Lulea's goalie Gustafsson with a short-range shot. A shot by Andre Lakos also narrowly missed its mark, and then Lulea seized the initiative and put the Vienna defence under considerable pressure on more than one occasion. But as was the case on Friday against Berlin, the Caps' goalie Matt Zaba was on superb form today and dealt with everything that was thrown at him.
Lulea well and truly upped the ante in the second period, launching ever bigger attacks against the Capitals. Lulea were confident and patient enough to wait for the right moment. But Vienna put up a strong defence, giving Lulea a very hard time. So the score was still 0-0 after 40 minutes, although Lulea were clearly emerging as the dominant side. As the game progressed the Capitals were unable to create any decent opportunities and then in the 46th minute it happened: a shot by Kilström hit the goal frame, but then the puck landed on Matt Zaba's back and ended up in the net. The way it happened Lulea were fortunate to have gone 1-0 up, but in terms of how they were playing, their lead was very much deserved. The onus was now on Vienna, but the Swedes had the game very much under control and Koivisto wrapped up a breakaway with a goal that sealed Lulea's 2-0 victory. The Capitals exit the tournament after a top class performance. Goalie Matt Zaba was voted man of the match again, just as he was after the Berlin game on Friday.
RED BULLS SALUTE - SEMI-FINAL
Luleå Hockey – UPC Vienna Capitals 2-0 (0-0, 0-0, 2-0)Goals: Kilström (46th), Koivisto (58th)
Head coach Tommy Samuelsson: "I'm very proud we were able to perform so well against such strong opponents and keep the game open for so long. As expected, Lulea put us under enormous pressure and played a very tight game, but with a little good fortune we could have taken the lead. We created some early opportunities. It was unfortunate how we conceded the first goal. Both goalies outdid themselves. In the end, though, it was the little things that made all the difference."
The head coach of the winning team, Jonas Rönnqvist, didn't mince his words: "Our victory was well deserved. Our defence was strong and we used that to create several opportunities, two of which we turned to our advantage."
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