Cracovia Hockey Crashes Out of Continental Cup

Cracovia’s ice hockey squad came in to the semi-final round of the IIHF Continental cup in Rouen, France with confidence, and working well in front of a stunning performance by goalie Rafał Radziszewski, they opened the festivities by defeating the hosts in overtime 2-1.

On day two, however, they hit the wall against the Coventry Blaze, who wore down the Polish vice-champions with precision passing. Cracovia, hampered by foul trouble, steadily lost ground against the English champs to end the match down 5-1. On day three, the Krakow squad faced the whipping boy of the group, Latvian Metalurgs Liepajas, but looked dominant through the first two periods, heading to the dressing room ahead 7-2. The third period was less fortuitous, and the Latvians rallied to win back three goals. The fixture ended 7-5.

The French hosts, Les Dragons de Rouen, went on to beat Coventry and will proceed to the final round in Minsk. Cracovia’s five points earned them an unsatisfying third place.