Bílí Tygři Liberec needed a win on Tuesday to keep their Playoff hopes alive. 2017/18's Semi-Finalists had a mixed bag to start their Group C campaign, which included a loss against the Belfast Giants. However, the White Tigers are still in with a chance, and Marek Schwarz was their hero on Game Day 5 against Augsburger Panther.
“It’s a big relief and I’m happy!” exclaimed Schwarz after the crucial road win. “It was too bad that we conceded the late goal, as it could have been over after 60 minutes and we would have got the extra point. However, we needed two points and we got them, so it’s all good!”
Schwarz, in his second stint with the White Tigers, was simply sensational, making 40 saves in regulation and overtime, before stopping all four of Augsburg’s shootout attempts.
It was a back and forth game in Augsburg, in what has turned out to be an incredibly tight Group C. Augsburger Panther and Bílí Tygři Liberec will now face off in the Czech Republic on Game Day 6 in what is a do-or-die game for either team.
Despite keeping his team in it at times, Schwarz was quick to praise his teammates.
“It really was a team performance tonight. If it wasn’t for the guys in front of me, we wouldn’t have got there, they deserve the praise”.
Speaking of his shootout performance, in which he didn’t give Augsburger Panther’s players any sniff of scoring, Schwarz said, “I tried to wait as long as possible to see what they would come up with. And it went well for me in all cases, one of them even lost the puck. We scored early so I wasn’t under so much pressure in the following rounds and that made it a bit easier for me”.
Liberec will have the momentum going into Game Day 6, knowing that they can get the win at home. Couple that with a blistering start to their regular season, the White Tigers have really found their form at the right time.
Part of this success has come from a tightening up of things at the back. Liberec’s defence has really shone in recent games.
“We needed to improve on the blue line”, said Schwarz. “Now we’re not allowing as many goals, so I hope we can stick to that for some time. It’s important to play games when we don’t concede too many goals. Going to the games, it’s good to know we can rely on not allowing to many goals”.
Liberec face Augsburger Panther on Game Day 6. Faceoff is at 18:30 CEST on 16 October.