After finishing in the Group Stage of the 2022/23 Champions Hockey League season, the Rapperswil-Jona Lakers are back to test the new format of the pan-European competition where they will face six different teams instead of just three. Their first challengers? The strongest team in Czechia - Oceláři Třinec.

The Czech side have won four domestic titles in a row, often turning mediocre regular seasons into outstanding playoff runs ending with them lifting the championship trophy. They are seen domestically as the perfect playoff team but have somewhat struggled on the European stage, having missed out on the playoffs in five of their seven seasons in the CHL. 

The Oceláři, as they are called back home, have a strong line-up of attacking and defensive players who are committed to the club long-term. Among them is Olympic bronze medalist Libor Hudáček who scored four points for the club in the CHL last season and 43 in the Czech Extraliga regular season and playoffs. 

Martin Růžička is also still on the team - the elite forward also scored four points in the last CHL season but scored an astonishing 69 points for Třinec on their quest for the title. 

Solid goaltending has also been a staple of Třinec's game. Marek Mazanec, who near enough single-handedly guided Mountfield HK all the way to the CHL Final back in 2020 with a 94.25 Save %, spent most of the season in net and was as solid as a rock - he's also on the club's CHL roster for 2023/24.

This team has everything, now they just need to get into the groove and dominate Europe! 

But hold up - what about Rapperswil-Jona? They've got a lot going for them as well. For starters, they've improved from last season, moving up one spot on the National League regular season table to third. 

And they have high hopes, with Head Coach Stefan Hedlund saying this ahead of the season start: "We're going to try to win every game."

He also commented on Třinec as a team that is "one of the top teams in Europe" and sees that his side will have to focus on controlling their very skilled forwards, naming Růžička specifically.

This will for sure be a really interesting game for superstar Roman Červenka. At the tender age of 37, the Czech international still has the world at his feet, finishing the 2021/22 and 2022/23 National League season as the league's top scorer. At the previous IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship, he was also the tournament's top scorer.

This will be only the third time in four seasons that Červenka faces a team from his home country.