ERC Ingolstadt took an early lead by four goals at the start of the DEL playoffs against EHC Munich – but still had to tremble in the end.
The play-offs started this year with a derby: fourth place in the main round, EHC Red Bull Munich, against fifth place, ERC Ingolstadt. A series that, according to Fabio Wagner, should be “on equal terms” and “a big fight,” said the Munich native at “Magenta Sport.” After all, the second-best defense in the league meets the second-best offense. The first round of the Bavarian duel seemed to be safely in Ingolstadt’s hands for a long time, but Munich caught up in the final third with a score of 5:6 (0:1, 2:3, 3:2).
First Ingolstadt goal in the SAP Garden
Initially, the Munich team started in a structured manner. But Myles Powell took advantage of Ingolstadt’s second counterattack after five minutes to make it 0-1. Ingolstadt’s first goal of the season came in Munich, of all places, in the quarter-finals of the play-offs.
Derby under power
The Schanzer, who have the strongest home team in the league after Cologne, showed efficiency away from home and hardly allowed anything to be done defensively, although Munich kept getting going with the momentum of the last few weeks. After several arguments on the ice, the forces were released again in a pack formation just in time for the siren.
Barber leads Panther run
The second third started with a real offensive run by the Ingolstadt team. A minute and a half had been played when Riley Barber struck on the power play. With the 0:2, the American scored his 33rd goal of the season and the tenth with the advantage. The second most dangerous DEL attacker gave EHC keeper Antoine Bibeau no chance.
Goals conceded for Munich
57 seconds later Ingolstadt increased the lead to 0:3. Peter Abbandonato initiated the attack, Leon Hüttl had plenty of space and Abbandonato himself converted the rebound. When Barber increased the lead to 0:4 in the 26th minute, the puck slipped through Bibeau’s legs. Munich’s defense, which was actually so stable, conceded four goals at home in less than half an hour.
McKenna and Ferguson bring hope
But Jeremy McKenna provided a sign of life in the 29th minute. Fully in the style of Munich’s offensive principle: scoring goals is distributed among many shoulders. Ryan Murphy brought a cleared target back into focus, Wagner shot from a distance, McKenna followed the shot and pushed the puck into the goal from the air to make it 1:4.
Suddenly there was some of the pressure that Munich had had in the last three main round duels they had won against Ingolstadt. Shortly before the break, Brady Ferguson took advantage of the chaos in front of Ingolstadt’s goal and reduced the score to 2:4 (40′).
Ingolstadt has the answer
The EHC started the final third with this deficit, but the Panthers consistently managed to keep the home team out of the dangerous zone. In the 46th minute, Markus Eisenschmid invited the Schanzer to a counterattack, which Alex Breton converted to 2:5 after a cross pass from Daniel Schmölz. Afterwards, the Panther defense remained stable, emotions ran hot again and the clock was ticking against the home team. Johannes Krauss immediately countered the 3:5 by Tobias Rieder (56th) to make it 3:6.
Munich makes it exciting again
With six against four and without a goalie, Brady Ferguson made it 4:6 with 1:16 minutes left. Shortly before the end, Ville Pokka made it 5:6.
In the first game of the best-of-seven series, Ingolstadt’s offense delivered impressively away from home and always had an answer ready. Munich’s home strength flashed, but was undermined by the opponent’s efficiency.
