With 3 teams sitting in the top 10 according to the CHL All-Time Statistics, it is no surprise that Swiss hockey has been a staple in the Champions Hockey League since its formation in 2014. Between 2014 and 2017 the CHL hosted six Swiss teams and over the past six seasons there have never been fewer than four qualified clubs from the National League in the competition. Many teams have shown promise over the years, but few have come close to realizing ultimate success. Of the ten teams that have represented Switzerland in the CHL, here is our shortlist of the most successful.
ZSC Lions Zurich
Regular season winners and CHL veterans ZSC Lions Zurich are suiting up for their sixth CHL appearance in the 2020/21 season. With five seasons worth of CHL experience, the Lions are no strangers to playing against other top European teams. The 2016/17 season saw them skate to their best record of 7-1-2 as they settled for third place in the league standings tied with fellow Swiss clubs SC Bern and Fribourg-Gottéron. They managed to make it to the Quarter-Finals but lost to the Växjö Lakers by a single goal. In the following season, the Lions made it to the Quarter-Finals again but this time they were bested by Czech side Bílí Tygři Liberec.
Despite their Quarter-Finals appearances and wealth of experience playing against Europe’s elite, the Lions have not had many opportunities to play hockey into late December. Still, the club are ranked seventh in the All-Time CHL rankings. Speaking of the number seven – it seems to have become the team’s lucky number, as the ZSC Lions Zurich are ranked seventh in wins (21 in total), seventh in points (77 points in total), seventh in goals scored (129), and seventh in goals scored per game (3.23) in the CHL All-Time leaderboards.
Being amongst the top ten in several categories complements the Lions’ claim as the top Swiss team, though their inability to go beyond the Quarter-Finals is a blemish on their overall record, it is one that could easily be erased in the 2020/21 season.
Being a top seed alongside the likes of two of the top Swedish teams, the Frölunda Indians and Luleå Hockey, could also help their cause in the quest for a CHL title.
SC Bern
The capital city of Switzerland is where our next club is from. Sitting in tenth position on the CHL All-Time Leaderboard, SC Bern have competed in five of the previous six CHL seasons. This Swiss squad may not have the sparkling numbers other teams in these “Best of’s” have, but over their CHL career Bern have managed to rank within the top ten in a number of categories including total points (68), matches played (46), and goals scored (118). The team also boasts the highest average attendance in the CHL with 8,148 spectators ; this could explain why their participation in Europe’s most prestigious hockey league has been so consistent.
From a season-by-season perspective, 2016/17 was Bern’s best. That campaign they posted a win percentage of 60% with a 6-3-1 record – their best ever. That same year they advanced to the Quarter-Finals but were eliminated by eventual finalists Sparta Prague. Bern made it to the Quarter-Finals again in 2017/18, but were unable to advance past a tenth game as they fell to the Växjö Lakers who also ended up making the Final that year. Two seasons and two Quarter-Final appearances have propelled Bern into the upper echelons of Swiss hockey, yet their short seasons and recent setbacks – last season they posted a 3-5 record – have been a trademark of their time in the CHL. Is their inability to go the distance a factor or are their stats enough to make them one of your top teams?
EV Zug
As regular season runners-up, EV Zug will be suiting up for a record seventh CHL appearance this year. Zug are the only Swiss club to hold this distinction – since entering the league in its inaugural season Zug have never missed a season. Over the past three seasons they've made it to the Round of 16 every time and this past season they skated all the way to the Quarter-Finals but lost to eventual CHL Finalists Mountfield HK.
The 2018/19 season saw them climb the leaderboards as they amassed the second-highest point total in the league. However, their tries for the title have been repeatedly thwarted as they have had trouble overcoming challengers in the later rounds. This trend has continued with Zug throughout their CHL career: they cannot seem to find their feet early on. Despite their lack of proven success, the club’s constant CHL presence is something worth noting. Could this year be lucky number seven for Zug as they look to showcase their skill on Europe’s biggest stage?
Honourable mention: HC Davos
HC Davos have not participated in the CHL since the 2017/18 season. With just seven points, they finished last out of all of the Swiss teams that year but if we rewind the clocks back to the 2015/16 season, Davos’ debut in the league, we see a team that made an incredible run to the Semi-Finals. Over 12 games that year, Davos engineered an impressive 7-2-3 record, good enough for a 58.33% win percentage.
That year they faced Skellefteå AIK in the Quarter-Finals where they won their return game in convincing fashion with an aggregate score of 5-2. Davos then faced a formidable challenger – the Frölunda Indians, in the Semi-Finals and that’s where their Cinderella story stopped. Yet, their introduction to the CHL is a memorable one for the club and the reason they share contention as one of the best teams to represent Switzerland in the CHL.
Thanks to a third-place finish in the Regular Season this season, Davos will be entering their fourth CHL season in 2020/21 and they have a chance to prove that they belong amongst the best of the best.
Weighing the achievements and upsets of each, which club, in your opinion, checks all the boxes as the best Swiss team in CHL history? Or is there another team you think deserves to be considered? The 2020/21 season is shaping up to be the most exciting yet as the ZSC Lions Zurich, EV Zug and HC Davos along with regular season fourth and fifth-placed finishers Genève-Servette and EHC Biel-Bienne prepare to battle Europe’s best and pave their way into the CHL history books as Champions.