Champions Hockey League comes to Cardiff this week

The Devils host Mountfield HK on Friday Night and Graz 99ers on Sunday afternoon in their first 2 games of CHL action.

First up is Mountfield HK on Friday at 7:30pm at Viola Arena.  Mountfield are making their fourth straight CHL appearance after another top 4 finish in the Czech Extraliga.  They will be bolstered by the arrival of former NHL netminder Marek Mazanec who spent last season with the New York Rangers farm team the Hartford Wolfpack.

Key returnees from last season are defenceman Petr Zamorsky who led Mountfeld in points with 38 (10 goals, 28 assists) in 50 games and Tomas Vincour who led the team in goals with 21 in 44 games. Vincour has 95 NHL games under his belt before he returned to the Czech Republic to play in his home country.

Then on Sunday at 4pm, the Devils host Austrian side Graz 99ers who will make their first ever CHL appearance after winning the Austrian EBEL League’s regular season.  Last year’s leading scorer Colton Yellow Horn returns after an impressive 24 goals and 34 assists for 58 points in 51 games in 2018-19.

A big off-season acquisition for the Austrian side is Swedish netminder Cristopher Nihlstorp who has moved to Graz from Malmo in the Swedish Elite League where he has spent the past 5 seasons after a brief stint in the NHL.

Tickets for both games can be purchased through the Devils website cardiffdevils.com or by calling 0800 0842 666.

Photo: Dave Williams