HC Davos wins 31st title against ZSC Lions

It looked all too easy in the end. A shutout by Davos’ goaltender Leonardo Genoni in the 5^th game of the best of seven series gave Davos their 31^st title in club history and the 3^rd win against the ZSC Lions in a final of the National League A. In 2005 Davos won in the exact same style, giving up the first game to the Lions but then winning 4 in a row.

Over 49 minutes were played in the Hallenstadion of Zurich and the script of the game couldn’t have been written any better when the leader and senior of Davos, Reto von Arx capitalised on a rebound in front of Lukas Flüeler to score the game winning goal. Noah Schneeberger from far and Marc Wieser with a deflection had created the chance but weren’t successful until von Arx stood on the right spot to shove the puck over the line. Dick Axelsson in the 57^th and Paschoud with 5 seconds left on the clock secured the win and championship for Davos.

At the start of the season, many predicted Davos to make the playoffs by chance. Too many changes, older players that were past their best moment and young, inexperienced players that needed guidance were the reason. But you should never count out Davos as long as Arno del Curto stands behind the bench. In 9 final appearances he won 6 national titles, not including the Spengler Cup. As usual, he’ll take his well deserved vacation and decide how to proceed on his return.

Felicien Du Bois was one of the reasons Davos had a stable defense. While playing for the Kloten Flyers previously, he missed to win a title in 2 final appearances but succeeded at his 3^rd attempt.

The Lions on the other hand just weren’t able to step up in the final games. As winners of the regular season many saw them as the clear title candidate. They themselves had proclaimed to win the title for a second time in a row. In Zurich, just a title is good enough and exactly that will keep the team focused for the coming years. The Lions organisation has a reservoir of young talents other clubs can just dream of, the future of for the ZSC Lions looks bright. As for Marc Crawford, it’s unclear what will happen. His contract has a clause that allows him to leave the Lions organisation before June 16^th if he joins an NHL Club.

The Championship trophy, by the way, didn’t live too long. Exactly 34 minutes after being handed over to Andres Ambühl, one of the Davos staff members dropped and went to pieces. Not for the first time, nota bene.

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