IIHF Continental Cup 2008
The IIHF Continental Cup 2007/ 08 was the eleventh edition of the discharged by the International Ice Hockey Federation IIHF competition. On September 19, 2007 to January 6, 2008 discharged participated in this tournament 17 teams from 17 countries. The final round was held in the Latvian capital Riga from 4th to 6th January 2008.
Two final round participants were set, the host HK Riga 2000 and Ak Bars Kazan of Russia, as a representative of the highest ranked country after the IIHF World Ranking 2007, which was reported for the tournament. The other two finalists were determined in three qualifying rounds.
- 2.1 Group F
- 3.1 Winning Team
Qualification
First round
The matches of the first round were held until September 16, 2007 at Miercurea Ciuc Romania of 14. It was played in only one group, the winners qualified for the second round. As already qualified for the second round Ukrainian team HK ATEK Kiev had gone into bankruptcy, was subsequently invited the group for the second game of the second round.
Group A
Miercurea Ciuc The host SC sovereign reached the next round with three wins. Subsequently also moved the runner KHL Mladost Zagreb, which reached five points, the second qualifying round.
Second Round
The second round of the Continental Cup was played in three groups of 12 to 14 October 2007. The matches of Group B were held in Aalborg, Denmark, the Group C matches in the Dutch city of Tilburg and the Group D games in Nowy Targ.
The winner of Group A, Miercurea Ciuc SC, qualified to participate in the group D. Since the set actually Ukrainian team HK ATEK Kiev had gone into bankruptcy, moved the Croatian team KHL Mladost Zagreb second in Group A after and played in group C.
Group B
In group B, the host AaB Ishockey prevailed after three wins. They left the Austrian champions EC Red Bull Salzburg behind.
A total of 3,100 spectators attended the six tournament games.
Group C
The tournament in Tilburg could also decide the host, the Tilburg Trappers, for themselves. Already with the first victory over the Hungarian representative Dunaújvárosi Acélbikák they secured the top position, they no longer charges in the tournament. The KHL Mladost Zagreb qualifier brought it to only one counter.
Group D
Through a victory of the Kazakh representative Kaszink Torpedo Ust- Kamenogorsk in direct comparison the defending HK Junost Minsk retired in the second round. The tournament in Nowy Targ was also the only one in the second round, which could not win the hosting team.
A total of 3,060 spectators attended the six tournament games.
Third Round
The third round of the Continental Cup was held between 18 November 2007 at Grenoble, France, from 16.
Group E
While Kaszink - Torpedo Ust- Kamenogorsk qualified confidently with three wins for the final round, AaB Ishockey could surprise the host Brûleurs de Loups de Grenoble in the final tournament game beat in the shootout and thus also reached the Super Final in Riga. The Tilburg Trappers could not intervene in the decision and failed as a group last.
A total of 13,712 spectators attended the six tournament games.
Super Final
The Super Final was held from January 6, 2008 in Riga, Latvia on 4. Set were the HK Riga 2000 as host and the second in the Russian championship Ak Bars Kazan. Kazan was last year's winner of the IIHF European Champions Cup and was able to prevail in the final tournament. In addition, qualified were the first two teams in the third round. These were firstly, the Kazakh champion Kaszink - Torpedo Ust- Kamenogorsk and on the other the Danish champions AaB Ishockey.
After the duels on the first day, the HK Riga 2000 and Ak Bars Kazan placed on the table top. On the following day, the favored team placed solely from Kazan to the top, because Riga defeated the Kazakh team of Öskemen. Thus Kazan needed in the final game against Riga only a point to win a European Cup again after 2007. This eventually succeeded by a 6-2 victory over Riga, which - even as the remaining teams - graduating the tournament with three points.
A total of 7,400 spectators attended the six tournament games.
Group F
Awards
Player Trophies
The awards were given as part of the final tournament, the U.S. goalie Robert Esche from the tournament champion Ak Bars Kazan, the defender Ilya Nikulin also from Kazan and the Czech striker Tomas Chlubna by the Latvian club HK Riga 2000.
Chlubna secured with four tournament matches, the top scorer of the tournament. His teammate Ģirts Ankipāns and Kazan Sergei Zinoviev ended in Scorer and original standings with five, respectively four points each tournament together on the first rank. The best fishing quota among the goalkeepers had before Rigas Edgars Lūsiņš, who saved 91.04 percent of the shots on his goal.
Winning team
Goalkeepers: Robert Esche, Mika Noronen
Defender: Vyacheslav Burawtschikow, Ray Giroux, Alexei Jemelin, Ilya Nikulin, Grigory Panin, Andrei Perwyschin, Andrei Zubarev, Mikhail Tjuljapkin
Attacker: Nikita Alexeyev, Denis Arkhipov, Petr Čajánek, Jukka Hentunen, Dmitri Kasionow, Alexei Morozov, Oleg Petrov, Danis Saripow, Grigori Schafigulin, Mikhail Zhukov, Sergei Zinoviev, Alexander Stepanov
Head Coach: Sinetula Bilyaletdinov