Defeated last week in Neuilly-sur-Marne (8-4), Nice Hockey hosts Tours this Saturday (7:15 PM) to rebound. Still well anchored in the Top 3, the Eagles have only six games left in the regular season to achieve their goal set at the beginning of the year. The match against the Remparts will also be an opportunity to erase a first-leg game with a colorful scenario.
Five weeks to give it their all. The match in Toulouse on February 28 will mark the end of the regular season for Division 1 (the second national tier). Currently, Nice Hockey’s record is good, even very good. After 18 rounds, Stan Sutor’s men stand in 3rd place with 13 wins and 5 losses. Ahead, the Anglet-Bordeaux duo seems poised for the top two spots, barring a final slip.
From now on, every match will be a final for the Nice team aiming for the Top 4, an objective set back in July. The reception of Tours is one of them. As Alexandre Duyck, the club’s manager, says on the Eagles’ official site: “No more room for error.” Indeed, after the heavy defeat in Neuilly (8-4), the Eagles need to win everything and show that they have the makings of a serious contender for the Division 1 final and possibly for promotion to the Magnus League. Against the Tours Remparts, the Nice team will aim for their eighth consecutive victory at their Jean-Bouin stadium. They will likely have to do without Karri Koivu, the club’s top scorer, who is still suffering from an ankle sprain. However, the top point scorers (Vladimir Kubus and Samuel Aquin) will be present to set the Tours defense ablaze.
On the Tours side, the momentum is rather negative despite a quality last match resulting in a 4-2 defeat against Anglet, the leader of D1. Indeed, in the last five matches, the Remparts have only won one.
The Eagles surely still remember the first-leg match lost 6-5 after leading 3-0. Their task is to erase this bad memory and start a new winning streak. The last home game was a spectacular show (winning 7-3 against Courbevoie). There is no doubt the audience is eager for more.
Photo credit and more information at news.nicehockey.fr
