Dab.Docler Successfully Defends Title

MOL League Championship Series (Part 2)

icehockey.hu

@Zavodszky

Once everything was settled after a hard fought battle in which home ice advantage was non existent after game one the Dunaújváros Acébikák (Dab.Docler) were crowned champions of the 2012-13 MOL League. This was the second time that DAB has won the MOL League and is the first team in the short history of the league to successfully defend their title from the previous year. In a best out of seven series that DAB ended up winning 4-2 with only the first match going to the home team. 

The first two matches were covered in the previous article on icehockey.hu, that were split by the two teams, after the series moved to Csíkszereda the away team DAB took back the series lead 2-1 after a 4-3 win in over time. Unlike the first two matches game three had a rather high scoring first period, DAB took the lead 1:20 into the match when Jozef Mihalik set up Imre Peterdi for the even strength goal, the home team answered back two minutes later on a goal by Vaclav Novak. Just past the 10 minute mark the Transylvanian club took their first lead of the match when Attila Góga was able to beat DAB keeper Peter Sevela and put the puck in the back of the net. The home team was not able to get out of the period with the lead, with about five minutes left in the first Nikandrosz Galanisz and Dávid Szappanos teamed up to even everything at 2 all with Szappanos getting the goal and Galanisz the helper. After an exciting first period the next goal in the match did not happen until the 44.50 mark of the third, DAB attempted to put the game away when Galanisz and Szappanos switched roles Galanisz getting the goal and Szappanos the assist this time around. Csíkszereda was not ready to call it a game yet, when the two goal scorers teamed up to even the game at three all when Góga registered his second of the match and Novak getting the assist. Unfortunitly for the home club they could not score again and 3:44 into extra time Attila Pavuk beat Stanislav Kozuch for the game winner. Góga, Novak, Szappanos and Galanisz all finished with one goal and one assist a piece.

Unlike game three, game four had most of the excitement in the third period. Dab.Docler came out guns blazing and showing that they are ready to pull away, less then a minute into the match Pavuk and Szappanos set up Galanisz for the early goal. Neither team was able to take advantage of multiple power plays on each side until the 45:55 mark when István Nagy and Jan Fadrny took advantage of the extra attacker and pulled Csíkszereda even with Fadrny getting the goal. Less then five minutes later Csíkszereda jumped on the man advantage again, this time Tihamér Becze set up Jaroslav Kmit for the go ahead goal. Not to be out done DAB scored their own power play goal less then two minutes later when Lajos Tőkési took a pass from Mihalik and beat Kozuch to put DAB even at 2-2. Just like in game three the home team lost in overtime when Mihalik registered his second assist of the game with Peterdi putting the pass in the back of the net for the game winner. Mihalik was the leading scorer with his two assists.

After game five a clear pattern had developed during the series with excluding the first match the rest were won by the visiting team and all of them being won only by one goal, with three of them being in overtime. With the series now back in Hungary DAB was looking to win the series on home ice and to raise the trophy in front of their great fans. DAB was well on their way to do this, Tamás Gröschl set up Artyom Vaszjunyin who put the puck in the back of the cage at the 12:10 mark. DAB was thirty minutes away from being crowned champions when Huba-Ferenc Bors scored to even everything up at one, Fadrny and Becze had the assits. The match remained scoreless for the rest of the sixty minutes; almost an extra period of overtime was played, at the 77.07 mark Fadrny decided to postpone the celebration for the Hungarian team by scoring a goal off of a pass from Ervin Moldován and winning the game 2-1. Fadrny was the leading scorer with a goal and an assist.

Just to stay with the road team winning every game except for the first one DAB decided that it was time for the to close out the series and bring home the trophy. They did this with a relatively simple formula, lean on the players that brought you this far with a couple other players helping out and you goalie getting a shutout. Sevela did just that by keeping Csíszereda off of the scoring sheet on their home ice. The first goal did not come until the almost four minutes into the second period; Pavuk took a pass from Szappanos and was able to beat Kozuch to go up 1-0. At the half way point of the match Viktor Papp doubles DAB’s lead, Zsolt Azari and Gröschl closed the book on Csíkszereda by scoring at the 57:27 and 58:21 respectively and this way insuring the match and the title for the Hungarian team.

There are some rumors that Dab.Docler is having an eye not only at the Austrian 2nd division but possibly making a jump to the EBEL, but that is a story for another time. Check back in the coming months to see if it comes to fruition.

Here is a look at the MOL League awards as well as the all-star team which was voted on my the writers.

Best Goalie: Patrik Polc-Brassó
Best Defenseman: Victor Lindgren-Dab.Docler
Best Forward: Nikandrosz Galanisz-Dab.Docler
MVP:Nikandrosz Galanisz-Dab.Docler

All-Star Team (voted on my the writers)
Goalie: Peter Sevela-Dab.Docler
Defensemen: Attila Góga-Csíkszereda; Dániel Kiss-Dab.Docler
Forwards: Josh Bonar-Brassó; Nikandrosz Galanisz-Dab.Docler; Dávid Szappanos-Dab.Docler