Red Bull Salzburg said thanks to Austrian international goaltender Lukas Herzog after their 5-2 Champions Hockey League win against Cardiff Devils at Ice Arena Wales.
Captain Jake Morissette and his Devils blitzed Salzburg for almost two periods, could easily have won the group clash and stayed a big recovery from 4-0 down. They were denied by the acrobatic, instinctive and sometimes fortunate work of Herzog.
“Our goalie had to be our best player if we were going to win against Devils and, thankfully, achieved that,” said Salzburg’s Canadian centre John Hughes.
Devils head coach Andrew Lord spoke immediately after the game ended, saying: “It’s incredibly frustrating.
“We ran into penalty trouble early on, after only 10 seconds of the first shift, and put ourselves in a hole.We did not learn the lessons from last season.
“Once we settled into our game plan, adapted to the style and different pace we were fine. We took charge of the game and then their goalie was fantastic. He stood on his head.
“All credit to Salzburg, who have a great hockey team. It was fun to play them and I love their up tempo style.”
Greg Poss, Salzburg’s Canadian coach, agreed with Lord’s verdict, saying: “It was a 50-50 game and the difference was that our goalie played really well.
“Cardiff have a good team and we were fortunate to finish on some of our chances. If they had taken some of the chances they created we could have lost.
“I know how difficult it is to win in Cardiff and the key was our good start.”
Devils now turn to Saturday’s Champions League home clash with Swiss visitors SC Bern, while Salzburg take on Vaxjo Lakers away.
Bern opened their group fixtures with a 2-1 win against Lakers in Sweden.
There were plenty of positives for Devils from their clash with Salzburg and the way they fought back from 4-0 down less than halfway through the game was thrilling.
Layne Ulmer and Mike Hedden scored goals which had Salzburg hanging on – and Devils went close time and again before the visitors snatched their fifth goal near the end.
Charles Linglet and Justin Faryna returned to action for Devils after recovering from injuries, while Lord opted not to risk Welsh winger Matthew Myers in this game.
Tickets for Saturday’s CHL fixture against SC Bern on Saturday are on sale now ONLINE HERE or by calling 0800 0842 666 or in person at Arena reception.
Cardiff’s Champions League result and group fixtures:
Thursday 30: Cardiff Devils 2, Red Bull Salzburg 5
September
Saturday 1: Cardiff Devils v SC Bern (7.15pm, Champions League)
Thursday 6: Red Bull Salzburg v Cardiff Devils (7.30pm, Champions League)
Saturday 8: SC Bern v Cardiff Devils (7.45pm, Champions League)
October
Tuesday 9: Vaxjo Lakers v Cardiff Devils (6.30pm, Champions League)
Tuesday 16: Cardiff Devils v Vaxjo Lakers (7.30pm, Champions League)