SonderjyskE 2-4 Nottingham Panthers (Continental Cup Group E) 17.11.19

Nottingham Panthers are through to the finals of the IIHF Continental Cup in January after beating the already qualified Sonderjyske in their final group game in Denmark.

Kevin Carr and Adam Deutsch returned to starting positions for the Panthers with netminder Carr quick to keep out their Danish hosts within the opening minutes before Betteridge went close himself for Nottingham only to be denied by Galbraith.

The former team-mate of Brett Perlini however could do nothing to stop Panthers taking the lead as he forced the puck home in less than three minutes.

That lead was tested however as Jullian Talbot was sent to the box for tripping but even when down to four Herr rattled the iron before Carr was forced into action himself to make a strong save.

With Panthers back to full strength Herr forced Galbraith into a good blocker save before the Danes netminder deflected a DeSantis effort out of play and as Nottingham attacked a scramble around the Sonderkjyske net forced them to ice the puck.

A further power play went unscathed and the scores remained 1-0 going into the second when Nottingham were penalised themselves after Danny Fick delivered a strong hit along the boards.

Back to full strength however it wasn’t long before Panthers found themselves 2-0 up when Jullian Talbot smashed in a one-time after good work from Brett Bulmer and two became three when Jon Rheault placed past Galbraith.

Panthers momentarily went four on three during a powerplay that saw Jason DeSantis get on the scoresheet ripping a wrist shot high into the goal with the netminder replaced soon after as the hosts found themselves four down.

Sonderjyske did respond with just over a minute remaining of the second period when Phil Lane’s shot deflected over Carr and it became a little nervy for the Panthers in the third quarter when Lund netted to reduce the deficit to two but a strong defensive display saw the side over the line and in winning the game the Panthers won the group and will go into the January finals weekend looking to win the Continental Cup for the second time in four years.

A brilliant weekend for the Panthers who’ll now be looking forward to another opportunity to create history for British Ice Hockey by once again winning in Europe dare we dream?

*Main image @panthersihc Nottingham celebrate against Sonderjyske in Denmark.