Former Smurfs sting their old team

Athens 4, Berlin 3 – Bobby Butler scored the winning goal for Athens with 3:36 to play and from then on, goalie Jaroslav Halak kept the Smurfs from tying the game. But the real damage to the Smurfs came from their old buddies. Alexander Edler, a Gods defenseman who was traded from Berlin after six…

Minsk stops Eagles, but Lucic halted too

Minsk 3, Bratislava 2 – The Minsk Hussars stopped Bratislava’s run and regained first place overall, but it wasn’t easy. After Minsk scored twice in the first period, the Eagles clawed back to tie the game in the third. Nicklas Backstrom scored the Hussars’ second powerplay goal with 6:39 remaining and backup goalie Anton Khudobin…

Dano leads in turnover ratio stat

If a quick look at league statistics can be trusted, Marko Dano, 22,  is definitely pulling his weight in Copenhagen as a second-line right wing. Dano leads the league in turnover ratio, having taken away 34 pucks and given up only 14 for a ratio of +20 through 22 games played. At the other end of…

Vasilevskiy helps Prague win in Lisbon

Prague 4, Lisbon 3 (OT) – Young goalie Andrey Vasilevskiy bounced back from a dismal day on Monday with a wonderful one on Tuesday, earning his Prague Sparta team two points in Lisbon. The loss was only the second regulation-time home loss this season for Lisbon HC. The only team without a regulation-time home loss so…

Bratislava, Ruff in first place .. for now

Bratislava 3, Bern 1 – The Bratislava Eagles have surprised even themselves by taking over first place overall in the EURO following their ninth consecutive win. The streak didn’t include many pushovers, as Bratislava skated past some top teams in Lisbon (twice), Belfast, Paris and Berlin. On Wednesday, they will have the toughest of tests:…

Helsinki edges Minsk, despite penalties

Helsinki 4, Minsk 3 – With the score tied 3-3 and 11 minutes to go against the defending Cup champs, the Helsinki Jokerit turned up the aggressiveness meter in an attempt to give the home fans a win. But they overdid it, taking three penalties in a row, the last two overlapping and giving Minsk…

Crosby starting to click for Edinburgh

Edinburgh 5, Helsinki 2– The Capitals gave up a 2-0 lead and saw Helsinki tie the game, but they then scored three times in the final 10 minutes to win it. Luka Gracnar of Edinburgh saved 28 of 30 shots and Rickard Wallin scored a pair of goals. After a very slow start to the…

St. Petersburg breaks losing streak

St. Petersburg 6, Helsinki 4 – Both teams committed 8 penalties, but the Krasnyye Zvezdy did better with their special teams and that was the difference in the game. Helsinki led 4-2 early in the second period and it looked like St. Petersburg was on their way to a 10th straight loss, but they were…

Second Hall of Fame ballot listed

A second class of nominee candidates has been announced for the EURO Hockey League Hall of Fame Two seasons ago, three players and a “builder” were the first four people voted into the Hall of Fame. Nicklas Lidstrom, Teemu Selanne and Zdeno Chara have taken their eternal places in the league’s Hall of Fame in Austria. Chuck…

Bogosian’s groin spear costs him

Smurf forward Ryan Callahan and Stockholm defenseman Zach Bogosian, both natives of New York state, had a little disagreement on Saturday as the teams were battling in the third period of their game in Sweden. The two pushed each other in front of the Eagle net after Brayden Holtby covered the puck to get a…