EC VSV

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EC VSV
EC VSV
Greatest successes
Club information
history EC Villacher Sportverein (since 1923)
EC BIC VSV (1992–1993)
EC Villas VSV (1990s)
EC Heraklith VSV (1999–2005)
EC Pasut VSV (2005–2007)
EC REKORD-Fenster VSV (2010–2012)
EC VSV ( 2012–2018)
EC Panaceo VSV (2018–2020)
EC VSV (since 2020)
Location Villach , Austria
Nickname The Eagles
Parent club EC Villacher sports club
Club colors blue White
league Erste Bank Ice Hockey League
Venue Villach town hall
capacity approx. 4,500 seats (including 2,100 seats)
executive Director Andreas Napokoj
Head coach Dan Ceman
captain Jamie Fraser
Season 2019/20 6th place (main round)
1st place (qualifying round)

The ice hockey club Villacher Sportverein ( EC VSV for short ) is an Austrian ice hockey team from Villach in the state of Carinthia , which plays in the Erste Bank ice hockey league . The home games are played in the Villach town hall (approx. 4,500 seats). The VSV has won the Austrian championship title 6 times ( 1981 , 1992 , 1993 , 1999 , 2002 , 2006 ) . The Villach club colors are blue and white, the logo shows an eagle, to which the Villachers also owe the nickname The Eagles .

history

Promotion to the Bundesliga and first successes

By winning the second division championship in the 1976/77 season , the EC VSV exercised its right to promotion to the top division and remained there to this day, making the club the second oldest participant in the Bundesliga after the EC KAC. Although the team was last in their first season under coach Karol Havasi (which is why he did not see the end of the season and was replaced by player- coach Ryan D'Arcy at the insistence of the players ), but some of their own young players, especially Leo Sivec , already performed well here. The second season brought the fifth place, the main problem was the vacant coaching post, which was initially filled by Adelbert St. John and towards the end of the season by the injured Bart Crashley .

First time master

After missing the championship round at the third attempt, the 1980/81 season finally brought the first successes. Thanks to the junior training under Hermann Knoll and an increased integration of the young players (with Sivec the oldest local was just 23 years old at the time), the EC VSV fought their way up to second place in the basic round and finally won the championship round just before the Viennese EV decide for yourself. In the following year, however, Sivec missed most of the season due to an injury, and physical problems did the rest. Both the basic round and the championship round ended on an unsatisfactory fifth place.

Sivec remained true to the injury misfortune in the 1982/83 season . In addition, legionnaire Douglas Palazzari did not meet expectations and was replaced by goalkeeper Marcel Sakac , who should support the ailing defense. Except for the consistent incorporation of further youth players, the season did not bring any success. This paid off especially in the following year, when six players from the EC VSV were called up to the Austrian national ice hockey team by coach Rudolf Killias . The team's problem remained the lack of consistency in the following years, although there were always excellent local players. It was not until the 1991/92 season that the EC VSV succeeded in winning the championship again, although no game was given in the playoffs. The team was able to repeat this performance a year later.

The nineties

In the course of the last decade of the last century, the EC VSV was able to build on the previous successes with good placements, but the big hit did not succeed. At a time when VEU Feldkirch was dominating events in Austrian ice hockey, EC VSV was eliminated several times against local rivals EC KAC in the playoffs. It was not until the 1998/99 season that the Villachers were able to prevail again against Klagenfurt in the final and book the fourth championship title.

After the turn of the millennium

However, the tide turned again in the millennium season and the following year. The EC VSV had to admit defeat to the KAC twice in a row (1: 4 and 2: 4 wins). In the 2001/02 season , the two teams met in the semi-finals, where this time the VSV prevailed and finally secured the fifth championship title in the final against the EHC Linz . This season also marked the premiere of goalkeeper Gert Prohaska in the dress of the EC VSV. Prohaska left the EC KAC for lack of prospects and has been one of the team's great pillars ever since.

In the 2002/03 season , the team also made it to the final, but this time lost to the Linzers and had to be satisfied with the runner-up title again a year later against the EC KAC.

The 2004/05 season started quite mixed, and very quickly became clear that coach Blair McDonald to succeed Greg Holst not a happy choice had been. After an 8:11 home defeat against the then newcomer to the league and bottom of the table, EC Red Bull Salzburg , he was prematurely released from his contract and Holst was brought back. Furthermore, the moment was seized and the team strengthened after the failure of the NHL season 2004/05 with the following NHL players: Ethan Moreau ( Edmonton Oilers ), Jason Krog ( Mighty Ducks of Anaheim ), Eric Weinrich ( St. Louis Blues ), Reinhard Divis (St. Louis Blues). Although the performances stabilized and after a long period of uncertainty brought a narrowly won playoff place (thanks to the better direct relationship, the EC VSV finished fourth despite the equality of points before the EC Graz 99ers ), but in the semifinals the season ended with three defeats against the later master Vienna Capitals .

Sixth championship title and record Derby winner

The players of the EC VSV celebrate the championship title 2005/06.

For the 2005/06 season , some key players were replaced, Greg Holst remained in the coaching office. After the EC VSV had dominated the regular season together with the Red Bulls Salzburg, the two clubs met in the final as expected. Here the VSV won their sixth and so far last championship title with 4: 2 wins.

The outstanding figure of the EC VSV in the 2005/06 championship season was above all Dany Bousquet , who also led the league's scorers and points lists with 47 goals and 86 points. The biggest success of the season was surely the decisive goal in the 6th final game against Red Bulls Salzburg , with which he could decide the game and thus the championship in favor of the VSV in the 78th minute of the game. Goalkeeper Gert Prohaska clearly took first place in the goalkeeper rating with a catch rate of 92.85%.

Championship celebration after the 2005/06 season at Villacher Rathausplatz.

On February 20, 2007, the longest winning streak that had ever existed in the Carinthian ice hockey derby ended . The EC VSV won 17 games in a row between February 18, 2005 and January 21, 2007 . This means that the EC KAC did not win against the Villach ice hockey club for almost two years.

On March 15, the play-off semi-finals against the third-placed Black Wings Linz team started with a home game for Villach. The EC VSV won the series (best of five) 3-0 (7: 4, 4: 3n.P., 4: 3) and met RedBulls Salzburg in the final. The series (best of seven) went 4: 1 (0: 2, 4: 3 n.P., 3: 6, 0: 3, 2: 4) to the Red Bulls from Salzburg.

2007 to 2015

The 2007/08 season of Erste Bank's ice hockey league was a mixed bag for the traditional Carinthian club. As the only team of the league association, they contested the course of the season without replacing players and were also able to successfully integrate several young players trained in Villach into the team. The sporting successes were limited to reaching the quarter-finals, where the 2007/08 season ended with a 3-0 away defeat against the later Austrian EBEL championship winner EC Red Bull Salzburg to the great applause of around 1000 away fans. Long-time Villach successful coach Greg Holst announced his departure from Villach before the last play-off game. He was succeeded by Larry Huras . Some of the top performers from previous seasons were also replaced, although the club's financial situation, which was not easy, did not allow any pioneering new signings. The season ended prematurely with the end in the quarterfinals.

For the 2009/10 season took Johan Strömwall as coach. Once again, some players were swapped, and thanks to good summer training, the team also started with five wins and led the table at the beginning of the championship. With the continuation of the regular round, however, the EC VSV fell back into the middle field. In particular, the transfer card players often lacked the necessary class, which, however, could be compensated for by the local cracks over long distances. The fifth place after the basic round was a remarkable success, as the team had little room for personnel improvements due to the comparatively small budget. The end of the season came again in the quarter-finals, when the EC VSV lost with 1: 4 wins against the EHC Linz.

The 2010/11 season was similar , when the club made another good start to the championship. Towards the end of the regular season, however, there was a drop in performance, which finally culminated in the release of coach Strömwall in February 2011. His former assistant coach, the long-time VSV player Michael Stewart took over the position and led the team after a smooth 4-1 win over EHC Linz in the quarter-finals to the semi-finals, where they were defeated by local rivals EC KAC. The playoffs also brought the last appearance of Gert Prohaska in the goal of Villacher, who announced his career end after a full decade with VSV. In the summer of 2011, many members of their own offspring, such as Michael Raffl or Andreas Kristler, left the club, which made extensive changes to the squad necessary.

The most important change at VSV 2012/13 took place in the coaching position, where the Finn Hannu Järvenpää was committed by league rival Olimpija Ljubljana. The VSV reached fourth place in the main round with Derek Ryan and John Hughes as the second and third strongest scorer in the league and Jean-Philippe Lamoureux as one of the best goalkeepers in the EBEL, but failed in the play-off quarter-finals against EHC Linz.

Before the 2013/14 season , Michael Forney and Brock McBride , among others , were signed. Again, the VSV managed the direct play-off entry as the sixth-placed team in the main round, with Derek Ryan and John Hughes again establishing themselves as the top scorer in the league. The Vienna Capitals were defeated 4-1 in the quarter-finals, before the Villachers lost 3-1 in the semifinals against the later league winner Bolzano. The end of the season brought with it an extensive squad restructuring. So John Hughes was fired because of repeated disciplinary missteps. Other players also left the club, such as Scott Hotham, Derek Ryan and Markus Peintner. John Lammers , François Fortier and Geoff Waugh , among others , were hired to replace the departures .

In the 2014/15 season , the VSV reached third place in the main round, with Jean-Philippe Lamoureux distinguished himself as the strongest goalkeeper in the league. In the quarter-finals, Favorite Salzburg prevailed after five games and 4-1 wins against EC VSV, although two of the matches were only decided in extra time. The fourth game in the series broke the previous record for the longest game in league history; it was only decided in the third overtime at the time mark of 111: 39 minutes by a goal by John Hughes, who is now playing for Salzburg.

2015-2017

After a very meager point yield at the start of the 2015/16 season and a 4-1 defeat against bottom group Ljubljana, the club's management reacted with a change of coach and brought back Greg Holst in November 2015 after seven years. Under Holst the performance of Villach stabilized and there were nine wins in a row between December 15th and January 3rd. Since only seventh place could be fought in the main round, the Villachers had to go into the qualifying round. They were able to confidently win this with eight wins and two defeats. In the quarter-finals, the Villachers met the Vienna Capitals, with the VSV winning the series 4-1 and three games were only decided in overtime. Dustin Johner scored the decisive goal in the overtime of the fifth game for a place in the semi-finals. There the Villach met the reigning champions Salzburg, the latter won the series 4-2.

Before the start of the 2016/17 season, many of the young self-made players could be contracted, while goalkeeper Jean-Philippe Lamoureux switched to the Vienna Capitals and was replaced by Olivier Roy . Top scorer Žiga Pance signed with arch rivals KAC, top scorer Rick Schofield with EHC Linz. Sam Labrecque , Kevin Wehrs , Evan McGrath , Corey Locke and Jan Urbas were announced as new signings . In August 2016, the GmbH required for professional ice hockey was founded, to which a controlling and advisory body from friends of Villach ice hockey was provided. Since then, the sole managing director of the new "EC VSV GmbH" has been Giuseppe Mion , and General Manager Stefan Widitsch becomes an authorized signatory. The SAAM remains as an association, the club is practically the owner of the GmbH; Mion continues to act as chairman, and cashier Reinhard Grüner will continue to take care of the finances.

From November 2016 replaced Olivier Latendresse and Jérémie Blain disposals Brock McBride and Mikko Jokela . Philipp Pinter , who was already working as a commentator, was also signed for 14 games for a short time after the Villach team's injuries had widened and up to eight players were temporarily missing from the squad. The Villacher finished the main round in seventh place in the table behind the EC KAC and therefore had to go into the qualifying round. In January 2017, René Swette was signed to replace Olivier Roy after he injured his groin in the first qualifying game. As in the previous season, Villach started the qualification with the full six bonus points, but suffered six defeats from the first eight games and thus missed the play-offs, which last happened in the 2011/12 season.

Reconstruction and multiple coaching changes (since 2017)

After the early retirement in the preseason, Giuseppe Mion announced “big changes”, so that a large part of the foreign and also some domestic players did not receive a new contract offer, and captain Eric Hunter ended his career. The two top scorers of the 2016/17 season, Jan Urbas and Corey Locke, left the club due to better offers from the competition.

By signing David Kickert and extending his contract with Lukas Herzog, the VSV started the 2017/18 season with a purely Austrian team of goalkeepers. In the attack, the VSV strengthened with Kyle Beach and Nikolas Petrik , brother of the VSV striker Benjamin Petrik. Other newcomers in attack were Jordan Hickmott and Andrew Sarauer , who moved from Fehérvár. On December 3, 2017, head coach Greg Holst was given leave of absence due to poor performance after the defeat against HC Innsbruck . Co-trainer Markus Peintner took over as coach .

For the 2018/19 season Gerhard Unterluggauer was signed as head coach, Markus Peintner acted again as assistant coach. In addition, Panaceo, a company from Villach, was given a new name sponsor. After the unsuccessful 2018/19 season, a large part of the squad was swapped. Gerhard Unterluggauer and Markus Peintner were sacked as coaches, Jyrki Aho was signed as the new head coach and as assistant coach Sakari Lindfors .

After a good start to the 2019/20 season, the team's performance deteriorated towards the end of the regular season, which is why the board dismissed head coach Jyrki Aho. His successor was Rob Daum , with whom the team reached first place in the qualifying round. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Austria , the season ended after three play-off match days. In addition, the existing sponsorship contract with Panaceo was no longer extended, the association is again called EC VSV.

player

Squad for the 2019/20 season

Status: 2020

No. Nat. player Item Date of birth in the team since place of birth
CanadaCanada Tyler Beskorowany G April 28, 1990 2020 Sudbury , Ontario , Canada
31 AustriaAustria Alexander Schmidt G February 26, 2000 2018 Villach , Austria
19th AustriaAustria Stefan Bacher D. 4th July 1989 2008 Vienna , Austria
44 CanadaCanada Jamie Fraser D. 17th November 1985 2018 Sarnia , Ontario , Canada
United StatesUnited States Matt Mangene D. March 12, 1989 2020 Manorville , New York , USA
9 Flag of Canada and Germany.svg Kevin Schmidt D. February 14, 1986 2019 Markham , Ontario , Canada
AustriaAustria Martin Urbanek D. May 8, 2002 2020 Villach , Austria
AustriaAustria Raphael Wolf D. December 29, 1995 2020 Salzburg , Austria
Flag of Austria and Germany.svg Sebastian Zauner D. 4th October 1994 2020 Berchtesgaden , Germany
62 DenmarkDenmark Patrick Bjorkstrand C. July 1, 1992 2019 Herning , Denmark
20th AustriaAustria Nico Brunner F. 17th September 1992 2012 Villach , Austria
13 CanadaCanada Chris Collins C. April 18, 1992 2019 Calgary , Alberta , Canada
CanadaCanada Sahir Gill C. April 21, 1992 2020 Terrace , British Columbia , Canada
Flag of Austria and Germany.svg Julian Kornelli F. 5th August 1997 2020 Munich , Germany
CanadaCanada Scott Kosmachuk RW January 24, 1994 2020 Richmond Hill , Ontario , Canada
AustriaAustria Philipp Kreuzer RW April 1, 1995 2020 Villach , Austria
42 AustriaAustria Benjamin Lanzinger RW January 25, 2000 2016 Villach , Austria
78 AustriaAustria Felix Maxa C. November 14, 1997 2017 Vienna , Austria
36 United StatesUnited States Jerry Pollastrone LW March 10, 1986 2018 Revere , Massachusetts , USA
61 AustriaAustria Patrick Spannring LW November 6, 1990 2018 Dornbirn , Austria
33 AustriaAustria Martin Ulmer RW April 26, 1988 2019 Dornbirn , Austria
AustriaAustria Daniel Wachter RW April 1, 1997 2020 Villach , Austria
11 AustriaAustria Christof Wappis RW August 18, 1997 2019 Villach , Austria


U20 team

The U20 team (club-internal EC VSV U20 ) has been playing in the Austrian U20 league since 2003 ( EBYSL since 2012 ). She is nine times Austrian U20 champion (1981–1983, 1994–1995, 2007–2008, 2011–2012, 2017–2018), her head coach is Hans Winkler.

Master teams

Dany Bousquet with championship trophy and medal. To the left: Trainer Greg Holst
Master team of the 1980/81 season
goal Kurt Müller (GER), Arno Cuder , Gerhard Thomasser
defender Jeff Geiger , Fritz Hirschegger , Engelbert Linder , Giuseppe Mion , Martin Platzer , Peter Szybisty , Klaus Sivec
striker Ewald Brandstätter , Christian Dolinar , Siegfried Kert , André Peloffy (FRA / CAN), Helmut Petrik , Mario Petschniker , Peter Raffl , Gerald Rauchwald , Kruno Sekulic , Leo Sivec , Bud Stefanski (CAN), Ralf Sternig , Silvio Szybisty , Norbert Taschwer , Walter Wiedmaier
Trainer Bart Crashley
Master team of the 1991/92 season
goal Gus Morschauser (CAN), Gerhard Thomasser
defender Jeff Geiger , Herbert Hohenberger , Engelbert Linder , Giuseppe Mion , Emanuel Viveiros , Günther Kilzer ,
striker Christian Dolinar , Peter Floriantschitz , Kim Issel (CAN), Manfred Mühr , Günther Lanzinger , Wolfgang Kromp , Edward Lebler Peter Raffl , Helmut Petrik , Robert Wachter , Ken Strong , Alfie Turcotte (USA), Peter Rossbacher
Trainer Bart Crashley
Champion team of the 1992/93 season
goal Gus Morschauser (CAN), Gerhard Thomasser
defender Jeff Geiger , Herbert Hohenberger , Engelbert Linder , Giuseppe Mion , Emanuel Viveiros , Gerhard Unterluggauer , Günther Kilzer
striker Peter Floriantschitz , Kim Issel (CAN), Manfred Mühr , Günther Lanzinger , Wolfgang Kromp , Helmut Petrik Peter Raffl , Gerald Rauchwald , Gerald Ressmann , Ken Strong , Alfie Turcotte (USA), Andreas Köstl
Trainer Ron Kennedy
Master team of the 1998/99 season
goal Mike O'Neill (CAN), Gerhard Thomasser
defender Gord Donnelly (CAN), Herbert Hohenberger , Engelbert Linder , Brad Schlegel (CAN), Tom Searle , Gerhard Unterluggauer ,
striker Chris Baxter (CAN), Gino Cavallini (CAN), Roland Kowalczyk , Günther Lanzinger , Wolfgang Kromp , Eric Murano (CAN), Marty Murray (CAN), Marco Pewal , Martin Pewal , Ray Podloski , Andreas Pušnik , Jean-Yves Roy ( CAN), Kent Salfi , Roland Schurian
Trainer Ron Kennedy
Master team of the 2001/02 season
goal Gert Prohaska , Markus Kerschbaumer
defender Tom Searle , Mike Stewart , Mario Berger , Rene Wild , Robert Steinwender , Martin Oraže , Patrick Albl , Michael Mana , Stephan Hochenberger Herbert Hohenberger
striker Andreas Pušnik , Wolfgang Kromp , Kent Salfi , Günther Lanzinger , Roland Kaspitz , Stefan Wiedmaier , Rod Hinks (CAN), Winfried Rac , Martin Pewal , Peter Floriantschitz , Nikolas Petrik , Sandro Winkler , Philipp Pinter , Martin Leitner
Trainer Ron Kennedy
Master team of the 2005/06 season
goal Gert Prohaska , Patrick Machreich
defender Darrel Scoville (CAN), Mike Stewart , Paul Ullrich , David Slivnik , Alexander Neubauer , Martin Oraže , Mickey Elick (CAN), Thomas Pfeffer , Herbert Hohenberger
striker Thomas Raffl , Roland Kaspitz , Stefan Herzog , Daniel Nageler , Marc Brown (CAN), Nikolas Petrik , Günther Lanzinger , Daniel Gauthier (CAN), Wolfgang Kromp , Christoph Sivec , Stephané Roy (CAN, replaced Daniel Gauthier in the playoff), Markus Peintner , Markus Schlacher , Dany Bousquet (CAN), Andreas Judex
Trainer Greg Holst

Significant former players

(Team membership and position in brackets)

Rick Cunningham is considered the prototype of the classic offensive defender in Villach today and scored 24 goals in 38 games in his debut season.
Michael Grabner started at the age of 15 in the VSV U20 team and was already used in the combat team at 16. In 2004 he left Austria to gain a foothold in North America. What he succeeded - today Grabner is under contract in the world's best ice hockey league, the NHL .
Kim Issel and his team became champions twice in three years in Villach and scored a total of 120 goals in almost 150 games. Today he works as a policeman in his hometown Regina .
The NHL veteran came to Villach during the 2004/05 lockout and scored 20 points in 19 games as well as 73 penalty minutes.
The Canadian goalie, nicknamed Speedy, was one of the legionnaires who played the longest in Villach and was able to enter the scorers' list in a derby against the EC KAC in 1991.
Like his colleague Ethan Moreau, Jason Krog came to Villach because of the lockout and became one of the top scorers in the league.
At the end of his career, Lanzinger was one of the longest serving and most experienced players in the Austrian league. He spent his entire career at EC VSV and was able to celebrate a total of five championship titles with the club before he ended his active career in spring 2010.
Like Günther Lanzinger, Wolfgang Kromp spent his entire career at EC VSV and ended his active career together with it in 2010. In over 900 games, the striker scored almost 700 points for his club.
Prohaska came to Villach in 2001 from local rivals EC KAC and remained the club's goalkeeper for ten years before announcing his retirement in 2011. With consistently good performances, he led the EC VSV to two championship titles and played for the national team several times during this time.
The native Canadian, who also received Austrian citizenship, spent a total of nine seasons at EC VSV before ending his active career in 2010, and was one of the key players in the Villacher Adler during this time. In the 2010/11 season he worked as a coach for Villach.
Ken Strong is still one of Villach's crowd favorites and one of the most successful strikers in the Austrian ice hockey league.

Participation of players in the All-Star-Game

season player
2006/07 Gert Prohaska , Mike Stewart , Roland Kaspitz , Markus Peintner , Mickey Elick , Darrel Scoville , Dany Bousquet
2007/08 Gert Prohaska , Martin Oraže , Roland Kaspitz , Markus Peintner
2008/09 Gert Prohaska , Mickey Elick , Roland Kaspitz , Thomas Raffl

Player records

The player records are based on the statistics since the first Bundesliga season 1977/78. All preliminary round and playoff games are included.

season

Gates
space player Gates season
1. Dennis Houle 62 1982/83
2. Jackson Penney 60 1994/95
3. Ken Strong 52 1991/92
3. Richard Grenier 52 1983/84
5. Dany Bousquet 47 2005/06
5. André Peloffy 47 1980/81
5. Mike Hobin 47 1978/79

total

Gates
space player Gates
1. Wolfgang Kromp 334
2. Peter Raffl 333
3. Ken Strong 299
4th Günther Lanzinger 283
5. Leopold Sivec 251

Trainer

time nation Trainer Remarks
1977/78 Karol Havasi
1978/79 CAN-AUT Adelbert St. John
1979/80 CanadaCanada
AustriaAustria
Bart Crashley
Gerhard Felfernig
1980 / 81-1981 / 82 CanadaCanada Bart Crashley 1 championship title
1982/83 AustriaAustria Hermann Knoll
1983/84 CanadaCanada
AustriaAustria
Rick Cunningham
Hermann Knoll
1984/85 CzechoslovakiaCzechoslovakia Rudolf Sindelar
1985/86 AustriaAustria Hermann Knoll
1986/87 CanadaCanada Richard Grenier
1987 / 88-1991 / 92 CanadaCanada Bart Crashley 1 championship title
1992 / 93-1993 / 94 CanadaCanada Ron Kennedy 1 championship title
1994 / 95-1996 / 97 CanadaCanada Ron Ivany
1997/98 CanadaCanada Bud Stefanski
1998 / 99-2001 / 02 CanadaCanada Ron Kennedy 2 championship titles , 2 times runner-up
2002/03–2003/04 CanadaCanada Greg Holst 2 × runner-up
2004 CanadaCanada Blair MacDonald early discharge
2005–2007 / 08 CanadaCanada Greg Holst 1 championship title , 1 × runner-up
2008/09 CanadaCanada Larry Huras 1 × quarter-final out
2009 – February 2011 SwedenSweden Johan Strömwall 1 × quarter-final out
February 2011–2012 CAN-AUT Michael Stewart
April 2012 - Nov. 2015 FinlandFinland Hannu Järvenpää
Nov 2015 - Dec 2017 CanadaCanada Greg Holst
Dec 2017 AustriaAustria Markus Peintner Interim trainer
2019 – Feb. 2020 FinlandFinland Jyrki Aho
since Feb. 2020 CanadaCanada Rob Daum

Others

Fan culture

The EC VSV has three registered fan clubs: the Villacher Adler and Absolut Villach fan clubs and, since March 14, 2014, the new “Blau-Weiß Villach” fan club. However, there are also several unofficial groups outside of Villach, such as the Danube Eagle in the federal capital Vienna .

Youth work

The EC VSV is known within Austria for traditionally good training of youth players. The various youth teams have already won several championship titles in the leagues of their respective age groups. The U-20 achieved their last title in 2008 with a successful final series against local rivals EC KAC. Many players from the Villach squad school are now under contract with other Austrian clubs or abroad.

With Michael Grabner , a former youth players of EC VSV has now risen to professionals in North America, scoring above for three seasons in the Western Hockey League . Thomas Raffl also moved to Luleå HF in the Swedish Elitserien . Michael Raffl has now also made the leap from Leksand (Sweden) to the NHL. He is currently working for the Philadelphia Flyers and has a permanent position on the team.

The Carinthian ice hockey derby

A decade-long rivalry has existed between the fans of the EC VSV and those of the Klagenfurt Bundesliga club EC KAC since the former rose to the top division in 1977. These derbies are regularly sold out and are special highlights of the season for fans of both camps. There is also a homepage managed by an ice hockey fan, the “Carinthian Derby Site”, on which the data of all previous games is collected and in the form of statistics are made accessible. This homepage is also one of the most detailed reference works for the Austrian ice hockey league. The last clash in the playoffs between the two teams took place in the 2003/04 season, when the EC KAC won the 28th championship title in the last game after extra time.

The games of both clubs have been regularly accompanied by the radio station Radio Kärnten for decades , where the games are reported live as part of the “Carinthian Ice Hockey Magazine”. Quiz games and elections are organized around the live broadcasts, during which the audience chooses the best player from both teams from the current season.

Venue

The home of the EC VSV is the Villach town hall , which can accommodate 4,500 spectators.

Average audience

Audience statistics
season Home games spectator Spectators per game
2003/2004 season 27 79,450 2,943
2004/2005 season 25th 74,050 2,962
2005/2006 season 31 113.508 3,662
2006/2007 season 32 132,250 4.133
2007/2008 season 25th 100,490 4.019
2008/2009 season 30th 113,800 3,793
2009/2010 season 29 108,700 3,748
2010/2011 season 32 116,900 3,653
2011/2012 season 24 82.128 3,422
2012/2013 season 30th 115,620 3,854
2013/2014 season 31 113,615 3,665
Season 2014/2015 29 101,471 3,499

Individual evidence

  1. ^ After defeat: VSV separates from trainer Greg Holst. In: kleinezeitung.at. December 4, 2017, accessed February 12, 2020 .
  2. EBEL: VSV brought Finn Jyrki Aho as the new head coach. kurier.at , April 16, 2019, accessed on April 17, 2019 .
  3. Rob Daum new EC-VSV trainer. In: ORF Carinthia. February 5, 2020, accessed February 5, 2020 .
  4. VSV trainer Strömwall declares resignation , report on hockeyfans.at from February 10, 2010
  5. http://www.kaerntnerderby.info/
  6. ^ Homepage of the ÖEHV ( Memento from January 31, 2009 in the Internet Archive )

Web links

Commons : EC VSV Villach  - Collection of images, videos and audio files