- Adam Tambellini scores Rögle's first goal in the CHL
- Bad day in the office for Zug goalie Leonardo Genoni
- Rögle shoot five past Zug on CHL debut
What a way to start the season! Swedes Rögle Ängelholm beat Swiss giants EV Zug on their CHL debut, slotting five goals into the away team’s net and putting on a confident show on home ice.
Both sides wasted no time testing out their opponent – once the puck hit the ice, it was game time. Rögle and Zug exchanged blows and hits for 15 minutes before Adam Tambellini broke the deadlock with a lovely one-timer that caught Zug goalie Leonardo Genoni off guard.
With Rögle now in the lead, Zug launched an offensive comeback playing high up the ice for the remainder of the first period. The extra pressure eventually forced Anton Bengtsson from the Swedish side to take a two-minute tripping penalty that spilled over into the second period.
It looked like Zug weren’t going to utilise the man advantage but with just seconds of the powerplay left, Zug’s new signing Anton Lander fired a rocket into the Rögle net tying the score at 1-1 as he earned his first CHL point.
The Swedes responded three minutes later when Tony Sund scored from close range to return the home side’s one goal advantage. Midway through the second period, Zug’s Dominik Schlumpf and Rögle’s Marco Kasper got into a scuffle behind the away net that ended with a two plus two fighting penalty for both parties.
Zug seemed to be second best for most of the tie but as they came out for the third period, who knew that they were about to turn the game on its head. They upped the intensity and this paid off quickly because three and a half minutes later, the Swiss side were up 3-2, scoring two quick goals in a single minute.
Rögle Head Coach Cam Abbott was heard pushing his side on, saying “we’ll get this one back,” and right he was – moments later, unmarked Rögle forward Dennis Everberg tied the game once again.
With just eight minutes left on the clock, Rögle added their game-winning fourth goal which earned them the hard-fought win on their CHL debut.
Their fifth and final goal was an empty-net reward for all the hard work the team put in and extra salt in the wound for a disappointed Zug.