Last year, Genève-Servette won the Champions Hockey League final at home, 3-2 over Skellefteå AIK. This year, it will again be a team from Switzerland hosting a team from Sweden. Färjestad BK from Karlstad, Sweden and the ZSC Lions from Zurich, Switzerland each entered the return legs of their semifinals on Tuesday with comfortable leads on aggregate, and were able to close out Sparta Prague and Genève-Servette, respectively.

Färjestad Karlstad (SWE) 4 – Sparta Prague (CZE) 2
Färjestad advances on aggregate score 10-4.

After losing by four goals last week at home, Sparta needed the first goal in this one but Färjestad got it and never allowed the aggregate lead to fall below four. Tied 1-1 after one period, Färjestad opened up a two-goal lead in the second period, Sparta got one back in the last minute of the second, and then Marián Studenič, who had four points last week, put the final nail in the coffin in the third.

Joel Kellman led Färjestad offensively this game with a goal and an assist.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZQM_hOOjJo[/embed]

ZSC Lions Zurich (SUI) 3 – Genève-Servette (SUI) 3
Zurich advances on aggregate score 9-4

Like Färjestad, Zurich entered the return leg with a big aggregate lead on home ice and never trailed in the game. Following a scoreless first period, Montreal Canadiens prospect Vinzenz Rohrer opened the scoring early in the second period and former Hab and current CHL scoring leader Sven Andrighetto made it 2-0. Twice Zurich went up by two and twice Genève-Servette closed the gap, tying it on a power-play goal by Josh Jooris with 6:14 to play.

The only thing thing that was really in play, however, was which of the two finalists would earn the right to host the game. Färjestad’s win on Tuesday meant the Lions needed only a tie in this game to keep the superior overall record, and that’s what they got.

Although the first three playoff rounds were two-game, total-goal series, the final will be a single game, played on Tuesday, Feb. 18 at Zurich’s Swiss Life Arena.