The Eisbären Berlin and the Fischtown Pinguins have qualified early for the playoff quarter-finals of the German Ice Hockey League (DEL).
The league leaders lost to ERC Ingolstadt 2:3 (0:0, 1:2, 1:0, 0:0, 0:1) after a penalty shootout. Zach Boychuk and Julian Melchiori scored for the capital city team, but the one point was enough to secure a place in the top six of the table with five main round games remaining.
Bremerhaven also secured direct playoff entry early with help from the Grizzlys Wolfsburg after winning 3:2 (1:0, 1:0, 1:2) in the northern duel.
The 14,200 spectators in the once again sold-out arena at Berlin’s Ostbahnhof saw a balanced opening third, in which both teams had periods of pressure but failed to take advantage of their chances. After the first break, the Ingolstadt team became much more efficient: Wojciech Stachowiak took the lead, and Mirko Höfflin extended Upper Bavaria’s lead a little later. But the home team were not deterred. After the guests lost the puck in their own defensive zone, Boychuk reacted quickly and scored his 22nd goal of the season.
In the final period, the Berliners struggled for a long time against the consistently defending guests before Melchiori forced extra time with a long-range shot. Because the Berliners missed some clear opportunities in overtime, Brandon Kozun was able to decide the game in favor of the Ingolstadt team in a penalty shootout.