From 32 teams, to the final 16. The Champions Hockey League Playoffs begin on Tuesday night, and for Adler Mannheim of Germany, they have a tough test ahead as they look to stop Frölunda Gothenburg's title defence at the first hurdle.

Comparing the two sides from the Group Stage, it's set to be a tight contest with two teams performing at a very similar level, with similar traits to their performances.

Mannheim finished second in Group C to secure their place in the Playoffs, scoring 21 times in the Group Stage, with goal scoring shared among the team, led by both Nigel Dawes and Ruslan Iskhakov with three each.

In net, the team split time between both Felix Brüchmann and Dennis Endras, who both performed well and that depth between the pipes will need to be on full display against Frölunda on Tuesday night.

For Frölunda, they'll be out to once again prove themselves as the premier outfit in Europe, looking for a good start in the Playoffs as they set their sites on lifting the European Trophy for a fifth time.

As expected, Ryan Lasch has been off to a flying start, the CHL's all-time points leader ended the Group Stage with eight points in six games, seven of those points coming from assists. Goalscoring has been similar for Frölunda who like their opponents, scored 21 times with Michael Špaček and Patrik Carlsson scoring three each, while Jens Olsson has been the go to guy on defence with five points to his name.

Matthew Tomkins has been a bright spark in net for the title defenders, while they also have turned to Niklas Rubin on occassion, and when he's had time in the crease, he's performed just as well, meaning that both these sides have reliable goaltenders to call on to try and win the defensive battle ahead.