The ZSC Lions of Zurich are champions of Switzerland for the 10th time following a seven-game National League finals victory over Lausanne HC. Through the first six games, the home team won each game and that pattern followed suit in game seven, a 2-0 victory.
In a cautiously played seventh game, the first period was scoreless and the second period nearly was as well, before an action-packed final minute centered largely around Zurich right winger Jesper Frödén and Lausanne goaltender Connor Hughes. First, it was Finn Juho Lammikko finding his Swedish linemate streaking to the net, and the former Boston Bruin and Seattle Kraken re-directed it through Hughes’ pads with 44 seconds remaining in the period.
Before the second period expired, however, Frödén again went to the net front and this time put a nice deflection on an airborne shot from defenseman Dean Kukan with three ticks on the clock. However, Lausanne coach Geoff Ward challenged the play for goaltender interference against Zurich forward Derek Grant. The challenge was upheld and Zurich’s second goal came off the clock.
However, Zurich continued to attack in the third period and with 13:03 remaining in regulation time, Lammikko recorded his second point of the game, carrying the puck into the Lausanne zone, beating a defender to the outside and beating Hughes with a shot along the ice.
That was all the offence Zurich would need, however, as 42 shots produced but two goals, with Hughes otherwise brilliant in the game. At the other end, Zurich’s Czech goaltender Šimon Hrubec stopped all 26 shots he faced for the shutout.
One item of note for the game is that Denis Malgin – Zurich’s leading scorer in both the regular season and the playoffs – was hit by Lausanne’s Michael Raffl late in the first period and sustained a knee injury, according to SwissHockeyNews.ch. Malgin apparently tried to play early in the second period but wasn’t seen again after the 25th minute. It is thus far unknown how this will affect Malgin’s status for the upcoming IIHF World Championship.