It's been a huge season for Swiss club Genève-Servette. Playing in the Champions Hockey League for the first time since the 2015/16 season off the back of winning their very first Swiss title, people were expecting a lot from the club - and they haven't disappointed!
Genève have slayed some big teams, scored some important goals, turned around results and won all-or-nothing games along their journey to the biggest game of the 2023/24 season, but their path hasn't always been an easy one - join us for a look back at their Road to the Final!
"We don't look back, we just look forward"Tanner Richard, Genève-Servette
Genève's pan-European season started with a duo of away games in Austria and Slovakia, against HC Innsbruck and HC Košice respectively, and their big return looked set to turn out perfectly - until it didn't.
The Swiss visitors put not one but two into Innsbruck's net within the first three minutes of their Game Day 1 clash, Innsbruck's first-ever CHL game, but a three-goal second and two-goal third from the home team turned this game upside down and left Genève wondering how it all went so wrong...
First win of the season
Just a few days later the Swiss champions lined up in Košice's Steel Arena ready to face one of the lowest-ranked teams in the Champions Hockey League. A goalless first period made way for a four-goal middle frame that knotted the score at 2-2 as Genève struggled to break their opponents and get the game flowing.
Josh Jooris salvaged the three points and the first win of the season with his third-period game-winner but overall it was hardly a display worthy of a reigning champion from one of Europe's elite leagues.
Back on home ice
The points started rolling in when Genève turned up the heat on home ice, first smashing HC Bolzano 6-1 followed by a brutal 9-1 bruising of the Rouen Dragons on Game Day 4 to round out their four-game September portion of games in Europe's elite club ice hockey competition with a respectable 3/4 wins - something not many would have believed following their first game against Innsbruck!
Game Day 5 saw the Swiss team welcome Czech Extraliga regular season winners Dynamo Pardubice to the Patinoire des Vernets for a tense game boasting 60 shots on goal between the two teams. A goalless opening frame led to the deadlock being broken by a Henrik Haapala powerplay goal in the second.
The floodgates opened in the final 20 minutes when Pardubice equalised, then took a short-lived lead before Genève made it a 2-2 game and took the tie to overtime.
THAT Sami Vatanen pass...
And that's when 32-year-old ex-NHLer Sami Vatanen produced the goods by setting up Daniel Winnik with a spectacular cross-ice pass within the first few seconds of three-on-three play. Just amazing.
Genève rounded out the Regular Season with a loss to Lukko Rauma on the road, ultimately securing them a solid 7th place in the Regular Season Standings, matching them with Red Bull Munich for the Round of 16 in set to take place in mid-November.
Two rounds, two reigning champions
The R16 First Game against reigning DEL champions Red Bull Munich saw the struggling Swiss visitors trailing 3-1 with just over seven minutes of game time left. In the end, Genève left Germany a goal down in their aggregate-scoring series.
Come the all-or-nothing Return Game in Switzerland, it was a similar story - Munich scored in the first, Genève equalised in the second but they still weren't going through when the third period started. Up stepped Josh Jooris and Tanner Richard who sent the Swiss fans into a frenzy when they scored two unanswered goals back to back to win the game and secure a place in the Quarter-Finals.
It was a smoother ride against reigning SHL champions the Växjö Lakers - Genève beat them 4-1 at home then controlled a 2-3 defeat in Sweden's Vida Arena to move on to the Semi-Finals where they would face a formidable and familiar opponent...
We meet again
Heading into the Semi-Finals, Lukko Rauma were the team to beat as the highest-ranked team left in the race for the European Trophy. They also beat the Swiss team back on Game Day 6 of the Regular Season. The First Game of this tense match-up was played in Switzerland and ended in a 2-2 deadlock, setting the stage for a winner-takes-all Return Game in Finland.
That game? CHL Playoffs hockey at its best. In somewhat familiar fashion, Lukko went 2-0 up in the first period (now where have I heard about that before...), Genève tied the game 2-2 in the second thanks to a brace of Valtteri Filppula and Sami Vatanen goals - both assisted by a phenomenal Teemu Hartikainen - then the visitors went on to score a third-period game-winner to book them a place in the Final.
The goal scorer? Who else than Triple Gold Club member Filppula.
First Swiss club in a CHL Final
Ever since the competition's inaugural 2014/15 season, no Swiss team have ever made it to the Final - until Genève.
They're now just one step away from adding European Club Champions to their impressive list of achievements and with the Final being hosted in their home arena, they have everything in place for an unforgettable night.
That's if they manage to overcome Skellefteå AIK...
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