- Mattinen struck Mannheim's winning shootout goal
- Mannheim qualify for CHL Playoffs
- Powerplay efficiency high for both sides
After a relentless goal-trading contest, Adler Mannheim finally sealed a dramatic 5-4 win in the shootout over a tough and resilient GKS Tychy side. The +2 points mean the Germans are sure to play in the upcoming Champions Hockey League Playoffs, while their Polish opponents will still have to fight for their spot on Game Day 6.
Mannheim set the tone early, striking first to open the scoring thanks to forward Brooks Macek – scoring his first of the competition. Mannheim then extended their lead a minute later through Tom Kühnhackl. That goal sparked a fierce response from Tychy, Bartłomiej Jeziorski capitalized on a chance, he slipped past, took it up the center and scored their first of the evening, cutting Mannheim’s lead in half.
Right at the start of the second period, things started getting tough for Mannheim as Tychy equalized through Leevi Viitala. From then on the game turned into a back-and-forth affair. The Germans went on to score their third, as Luke Esposito buried it right on the doorstep, giving Mannheim the lead once again, but Alan Łyszczarczyk scored Tychy's second equalizer on the powerplay, locking the score in place for the remainder of the middle frame.
The final frame picked up where the second-period action left off in a continuing back-and-fourth battle. Nicolas Mattinen, set up by a fellow goal-scorer Esposito, reclaimed the lead for Mannheim, but a that lead vanished in the blink of an eye as Tychy struck immediately to wipe it out, sending the game into OT. Neither team could break the deadlock in a scoreless OT, resulting in a shootout, where it was ultimately Mattinen who netted the shootout winning goal - his second of the night, sealing the hard-fought 5-4 victory for Mannheim.