Another Final for the U20 Elit

On Saturday, April 1, and Sunday, April 2, the U20 Elit team of Hockey Club Lugano will play at the Fleurier rink (Canton Neuchâtel) in the two games that will decide the national title for the category.

After finishing second in the regular season and defeating Kloten in the quarterfinals (3-1 in the series) and the Young Tigers of Langnau in the semifinals (3-2 in the series), the boys coached by Paolo Morini and Gianluca Prato reach the final act for the second consecutive year. Last year, Zug won the Best of Five series after three games that were all decided in overtime.

This result highlights the continuity of the excellent work carried out by the Bianconeri Youth Section, considering also the bronze medal won by the U20 Elit at the end of the 2020/21 season and the cancellation of the semifinals and final of the playoffs in the 2019/20 season due to the pandemic, when Lugano also finished second in the regular season.

Their opponents in the final will be the GCK Lions of Zurich, who enter the final unbeaten in the playoffs, having eliminated Zug in the semifinals, who had literally dominated the regular season.

"The GCK Lions have proven to be a very competitive team in the playoffs," said head coach Paolo Morini, "because they were able to bring back several players who had played in the Swiss League during the season. However, we are also competitive. Every game starts at 0-0, and I believe the two teams are evenly matched."

So, "Good luck" to the young Bianconeri. The final in Fleurier will see the first game on Saturday at 4:30 PM and the second game on Sunday at 3:45 PM. Each team can field four "overage" players up to the age of 22.