After winning the first two games of the series one each in Fehérvár and in Vienna, the Capitals did the same as they pulled even after two games as well winning once in each arena.
Fehérvár AV19-UPC Vienna Capitals 4-2
Like most of the series this game started out as a battle, Alba Volán struck first as Attila Németh redirected a shot from Attila Orbán from the blueline. Since the start of the middle section of the season not only has Rob Pallin been able to run four lines regularly but the fourth line has also been scoring as well. The battle continued on throughout the rest of the first period as the officials let the Capitals play a physical style. It looked as if Fehérvár was still in the locker room when Vienna scored in the first minute of play by the way of Florian Iberer, five minutes later Andrea Nödl scored after a Volán defensive mistake to give Vienna their first lead of the series. Matthew Zaba stood tall in the net as Székesfehérvár was not able to tie up the game. In the final minute of the period Peter MacArthur was able score a powerplay goal to put the Capitals up by two. István Bartalis fired a rocket past Zaba to get Fehérvár back within one but it just wasn't enough, Pallin pulled Christian Engstrand for the extra attacked but Vienna scored the empty netter for the 4-2 win and their first win in the series.
Rob Pallin-”Guys weren't ready to play, they were too lackadaisical, we made some mistakes that they capitalized on, they didn't do anything special”
Frank Banham-”Its the playoffs and you gotta stay focused on every shift on every period, we lost our focus in the second period and the momentum shifted, on the positive side we played hard in the third and hopefully we can take that onto the next game and hopefully we can close out the series on Monday.”
UPC Vienna Capitals-Fehérvár AV19 2-1 OT
After the game three loss in Fehérvár the general consensus was that Alba Volán played great for two out of the three periods and if they could carry over what they were like the third period into game four they could be up 3-1. The Fehérvár fans were great as they cheered from start to finish and could be heard clearly on the bench as well. Volán started out great, just as in the first three games they scored the opening goal. Ladislav Sikorcin skated down the right wing and fired a wrist shot that Zaba missed judged and the pucked ended up in the top corner of the net. Vienna had their own chances and on one of the them MacArthur redirected a shot that some how made it through Engstand’s pads, after the first twenty minutes the game was 1-1.
Compared to the first three games the refs were not calling as many penalties, there was none in the first period and only three in the second. Neither team was able to use their power play opportunities and the game remained locked at one through the second and third period. With just under six minutes left in the game it looked as if the Capitals scored but the whistle was blown before the puck crossed the line, and the teams were headed for overtime.
Not that much time was needed in the extra period as Vienna scored just under two minutes into the extra session on a long shot by Patrick Peter. The two teams will be back on the ice on Monday for game five in Fehérvár.
Rob Pallin- “We had a 3 on 2 and gave the puck up on the blue line, its a game of cm, after the second game where id knew it will be a long series, every period is cruse and you have to win every period.”
Game 1: Fehérvár AV19-UPC Vienna Capitals 4-3
Game 2: UPC Vienna Capitals-Fehérvár AV19 1-4
Game 3: Fehérvár AV19-UPC Vienna Capitals 2-4
Game 4: UPC Vienna Capitals- Fehérvár AV19 2-1 (OT)
Game 5: Monday March 16th at 19:15 at Fehérvár (if needed)
Game 6: Wednesday March 18th at 19:15 at Vienna (if needed)
Game 7: Friday march 20th at 19:15 at Fehérvár (if needed)
Photo: Attila Soós