As part of the 35th day of Ligue Magnus, the Eagles of Nice traveled to the Chamonix ice rink. After a long and tightly contested match, the Niçois were defeated (3-2) during overtime.
A direct confrontation for the playoffs, that’s how one could summarize the match awaiting the Niçois this Friday evening. A few days after the defeat at home against Grenoble, the Eagles of Nice were back on the ice. The Niçois were facing Chamonix. The Pioneers occupy the 8th place in the championship, the last spot qualifying for the playoffs at the end of the season, just one point ahead of the Eagles. The match was therefore crucial in Nice’s season.
The start of the match was balanced between the two teams. Both teams were cautious, offering no great spectacle. No goals were scored in this first period. Everything was still to play for both teams in this match.
No goals in the first half-hour
The teammates of Norbert Abramov were struggling in attack. It was finally Chamonix that opened the scoring, thanks to Clément Masson, concluding a quick and effective counter-attack in the 29th minute (1-0). It took until the middle of the match to finally see a goal. But the Niçois quickly came back to level. Marc-André Levesque won his one-on-one in the 37th minute (1-1).
Everything was going to be decided in the final act. The Eagles took the lead for the first time in the match in the 50th minute thanks to Ondrej Kopta (1-2). Chamonix equalized five minutes from the end of the match, thanks to a powerful shot from Jari Sailio (2-2). Overtime was required to break the deadlock between the two teams. It was ultimately Chamonix that won the match thanks to a double from Clément Masson (3-2). The Eagles eventually lost this match, which remained undecided for a long time.
The next match is on Sunday, January 28, at the Jean Bouin ice rink for the Eagles. The Niçois will host Briançon as part of the 36th day of Ligue Magnus. Kick-off is at 8 PM.
