Lugano suffer more Kloten blues

Swiss ice hockey league leaders Lugano appear to be a cut above every other side in the country right now - with one exception. On Saturday the Ticinese side were beaten by Kloten for the second time in a row.

Lugano’s 3-1 defeat was only their second loss in 15 games. Their first was the 3-2 defeat in their home match against Kloten.

The canton Zurich side always looked good for a win on Saturday. Having taken a 3-0 lead through Keller, Convery and Bielmann, Kloten were only pegged back by a late Lugano consolation goal.

Thanks to the Zurich Lion’s involvement in the Continental Cup, Lugano remain league leaders, level on 49 points with the defending champions. However Lugano still have three games in hand on Zurich.

Davos are the nearest challengers to the big two, although the Spengler Cup holders are still nine points adrift after a dramatic 2-1 win in Chur. Despite playing the second-bottom club in the league, Davos needed a goal in the very last second of the match to ensure their first win in five attempts.

Chur are getting used to being on the wrong side of exciting finales. Incredibly Saturday’s match was the third game in a row in which the team have conceded a vital goal in the last second of play.

Fribourg had much more cause to celebrate on Saturday as they climbed into the play-off places with a 6-1 win over fourth-placed Zug. Rapperswil also put some space between themselves and the bottom four with a 5-0 thrashing of Langnau.

Ambri did themselves little favour in the night’s other match, managing just a 2-2 draw at home to the league’s bottom side, La Chaux-de-Fonds. The single point earned left Pierre Pagé’s side third bottom in the table, level on points with Langnau and Fribourg.

swissinfo with agencies