Bruleurs de Loups edges past GKS

Bruleurs de Loups battled to a shoot-out victory over GKS Katowice on day two of the 2025 IIHF Continental Cup Final. Aurelian Dair’s decisive attempt on John Murray snapped a 2-2 tie and sets up a trophy showdown on Sunday.

Now the equation is simple. When Bruleurs de Loups faces Cardiff on Sunday, any kind of win for either team will secure the Continental Cup. For both clubs, it would be the first time lifting this trophy.

Dair settled the shoot-out in the second round of sudden death. After his successful attempt, Benjamin Sokay had a chance to keep GSK in the game but fired wide of Matija Pintaric’s net.

After losing its opening game, GKS knew that it needed to win in regulation – and by a good margin. The Poles’ only hope of staying in contention for the trophy lay in a possible three-way tie should they defeat Bruleurs de Loups before a French victory over Cardiff in Sunday’s final game. Even then, Katowice also had to claw back a three-goal deficit from its opening night loss.

That inspired GKS to a lively start, but Grenoble’s Slovenian international goalie Pintaric prevented any early goals. Instead, it was Bruluers de Loups who took the lead in the eighth minute. Guillaume Leclerc saw his initial effort padded away, but the Polish defence failed to track Adel Koudri as he got the paintwork and prodded the loose puck past Murray.

Late in the first the teams exchanged scoring changes. Patryk Wronka drew a double save from Pintaric at one end, before Damien Fleury tested Murray in a one-on-one. Moments later, Dair thought he had a second goal for BDL after a turnover in GKS territory. Although two players ended up in the net, the video review ruled that Murray got enough behind the puck to keep it from crossing the line.

Buoyed by that reprieve, Katowice came out in the second period and produced its best 20 minutes of hockey in Cardiff. Pressing and harrying Grenoble at every opportunity, the Poles had Brouleurs de Loups at full stretch and got their reward. Santeri Koponen, a Finnish defender who was on the GKS team in last year’s final, tied the game after 26 minutes with a point shot. Moments later, Wronka broke clear of the defence and with Pierre Crinon out of position, the only option was a foul. Crinon saved a likely goal but plunged his team into penalty trouble.

Two penalties in a row had Bruleurs trapped in their zone and that pressure saw Grzegorz Pasiut put GKS ahead midway through the session. Per…