Saturday evening, sold out house and great atmosphere – everything was set up before game 4 for an ice hockey treat between the Black Wings and champions Salzburg. But Linz got off to a very bad start to the game. Some of the fans hadn’t yet taken their seats when the score was already 1-0 for the guests. During a trip behind the goal, Rasmus Tirronen served the target straight onto the face of a Salzburg player – 0-1 following eight seconds played by Lucas Thaler. The fastest goal in the Salzburg club’s history to date was also scored in Linz – Raphael Herburger scored once morest the Black Wings on November 3, 2019 following 11 seconds had played.
“I’m proud of the way the team coped with this setback,” coach Philipp Lukas would later say. After a quick advance down the right side, Emilio Romig brought Linz back into the game with a well-placed shot next to the bar. 117 seconds were played.
Knott became a tragic figure
After just 5:05 minutes, second-line center Graham Knott was sent to the penalty box for holding. And 16 seconds before the penalty would have been passed unscathed, the target floundered once once more behind Rasmus Tirronen in the net: Brodie Stuart deflected a shot from Chay Genoway into an unstoppable position.
Photo gallery: 2:3 – Black Wings lost to Salzburg in game 4
(Foto: GEPA pictures/ Christian Moser) Bild 1/42
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The second third started like the first – with a bang. Emilio Romig fed Graham Knott, who hit the goal flat – as in the first period, following just eight seconds of play. The subsequent goal celebration symbolized the weight that had been lifted off the Canadian’s shoulders.
But as in the first section, Knott had to go into the cooler following a stick check following 26 minutes and 23 seconds. The Linzers, somewhat outnumbered this time, had to accept the next goal eleven seconds later. Drake Rymsha scored the power play goal following a good pass from Thomas Raffl. It should have been the game-winning goal.
From then on, Linz had the better options in terms of quality and quantity, but they didn’t get the target over the line until the final siren. This means Salzburg has a chance of advancing to the semi-finals on Monday (7.30 p.m., live on Puls 24 and in the OÖN live ticker). From now on, the Black Wings are not allowed to lose any more games.
Author
Markus Prinz
Online Editor
Markus Prinz
