Twenty-eight years that HC Ajoie had not met HC Davos in an official game. Not sure that the Grisons will keep a bright memory of this reunion.
The Ajoulots inflicted a real snub on them in the final of the Swiss Cup. Two years after sinking with Arno Del Curto in the final against Rapperswil-Jona, the Davosiens sunk after a complete failure. “We would like to apologize to our supporters,” said coach Christian Wohlwend soberly. However, before the game, Raeto Raffainer, the club’s sporting director, insisted that the club really wanted to win this trophy. The players contradicted him on the ice.
On the other hand, the euphoria disputed him in disbelief. “Honestly, I never imagined that,” said Jordane Hauert, captain of the valiant Ajoulots. “I had watched their last few games quite a bit. I knew it would be really difficult against them. It still skates opposite. “
The Jurassians have forged their success thanks to their five goals in numerical superiority. Was power play the subject of special preparation? ” No. We are quite efficient with one more man in the Championship but even more in the Swiss Cup. There is no secret. We spin the puck, shoot and … it works. “
For his part, Gary Sheehan was talking about the biggest game of his career. “I couldn’t talk too much about it before so as not to bring bad luck. The former Geneva-Servette and La Chaux-de-Fonds coach achieved a resounding feat that only the GSHC (1959) and Rapperswil-Jona (2018) achieved: winning the Cup at the head of a second-team division. “In front of this magnificent audience, it’s so glorious. “
“Of course, 5 against 5 was difficult. But we held on. Our power play worked well because it was well executed but I would also like to put our game in inferiority. We went to seek victory with self-denial. “
Regarding the insolent success of power play, Sheehan clarified all the same: “We had to act much faster. In the Swiss League, you have three seconds to arm your shot. None of this here. No doubt also that we have studied their game more than they did ours. But I didn’t ask them … “
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