2.11.2012 | Derek OBrien, Valerián Lukačko

Derby Day: LEV Praha faces Slovan Bratislava for the 1st time

For many HC LEV fans, Saturday´s game against Slovan Bratislava has been the most anticipated game all season. For the first time in what should develop into a long-lasting rivalry, the two KHL teams from the capitals of the Czech and Slovak republics will go head-to-head against each other.

Slovan Bratislava
Club Founded:	1921
Head Coach:	Rostislav Čada
Highest Achievements:	8x champion of the Slovak Extraliga, 1978-79 Czechoslovakian champion
Internet:	hcslovan.sk
Notable Players:	Miroslav Šatan, Ľubomír Višňovský, Andrej Sekera, Michal Vondrka

HC Slovan Bratislava:

Slovan Bratislava is one of Europe´s best known hockey teams. Established in 1921, they played for almost 70 years in the top Czechoslovakian league, and were often the only Slovakian team in the top league. They won their only title in 1978-79, led by the Šťastný brothers: Marián, Peter and Anton. From 1992 until 2012 they played in the Slovak Extraliga, winning the championship eight times in 20 years. In their final game they won their eighth title, winning the final series 4-3 over Košice before joining the KHL this season.

After 21 games in their maiden KHL season, they sit in 7th place in the Western Conference with 31 points. The club´s leading scorer is Czech Michal Vondrka with 15 points, which provides one of many of the game´s interesting storylines -- he will be a teammate of Lev players Jakub Krejčík and Jiří Novotný at next week´s Karjala Cup. Another is Slovan´s Tomáš Mikúš facing older brother Juraj. Other names on the visiting team that might be familiar internationally include Miroslav Šatan, Mario Bližňák and defencemen Ľubomír Višňovský and Andrej Sekera. Ex-Lev defenceman Michal Sersen is expected to join the team soon, too, but probably not in time for Saturday´s game. Another player of note is 17-year-old Marko Daňo, a highly-rated prospect for the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. In goal, Jaroslav Janus has played all but two games, and he will start in all likelihood on Saturday.

HC LEV:

After breaking their eight-game losing streak with an inspired 5-2 victory over Khabarovsk on Wednesday, HC LEV went toe-to-toe with Novosibirsk the following day for 50 minutes of a tough hockey game, but then faded late and lost 5-3. The defeat spoiled the debut of Jakub Štepánek in goal, and puts the team in a situation where they desperately want to win on Saturday to go into the following international break on a high note.

On a high note, the line of Tomáš Surový, Juraj Mikúš and Marcel Hossa has played very well the last few games, especially on the power play. In the last four games, the trio has combined for 10 points (5 of which have been Surový) and they´ve been especially potent on the power play. As they are all Slovaks, it will be interesting to see what kind of performance they bring against Slovan. Hossa, Mikús the forward and defenceman Juraj Mikuš will play in next week´s Deutschland Cup with several players with this Slovan team. Lev alternate captain Ľuboš Bartečko is also Slovak, and the biggest Slovak of all in the game, both literally and figuratively, is Lev defenceman Zdeno Chára.

The Game:

The game is the first of four this season that will be played between these two teams and the only one at Tipsport Arena -- the next time they play in Prague will be January 15 at O2 Arena. They will also play December 8 and February 3 in Bratislava.

It should also not be overlooked that up for grabs are three important points in the KHL Western Conference standings -- Slovan has a three-point lead on Lev, so the Lions can tie them with a regulation win. Saturday´s game begins at 5pm CET and will be televised in Central Europe on Sport1. Live online play-by-play will be available in English at Eurolivescores.com.

Last 5 Games
LEV – Novosibirsk 3:5 LEV – Khabarovsk 5:2 LEV – Novokuznetsk 2:3 ot LEV– CSKA 2:3 CSKA – LEV 3:0	Slovan – Novosibirsk 6:2 Slovan – Khabarovsk 4:2 Slovan – Novokuznetsk 2:4 Slovan – CSKA 2:3 Cherepovets – Slovan 0:6
Last Game Lineups
Štěpánek – Oystrick, Němec, Škoula, Porseland, Chára, Krejčík, Mikuš – Christensen, Vrána, Klepiš – Surový, Mikúš, Hossa – Bartečko, Novotný, Řepík – Sekáč, Svoboda, Birner – Cingel.	Janus - Višňovský, Štajnoch, Sigalet, Sekera, Boumedienne, Švarný, Luža - Hudáček, Bližňák, Šatan - Vondrka, Lipiansky, Miklík - Ölvecký, Šťastný, Daňo - Mikúš, Bakoš, Kytnár, Kukumberg.
Top Scorers
1. Klepiš 18 (10+8) 2. Surový 11 (7+4) 3. Němec 11 (3+8)	1. Vondrka 15 (6+9) 2. Šatan 13 (7+6) 3. Bližňák 12 (4+8)
Goalies
Pöpperle 19 – 2.32 – 91.4 % MacIntyre 2 – 2.93 – 89.1 % Štěpánek 1 – 5.36 – 83.3 %	Janus 19 – 2.42 – 92.1 % Konrád 1 – 2.01 – 88.9 % Hostikka 1 – 4.02 – 83.3 %