Goalie duel in ice hockey: Leonardo Genoni (SC Bern) against Jonas Hiller (EHC Biel).
Leonardo Genoni was the man most in demand when SCB hosted a media round on Tuesday. The 29-year-old sat on a folding chair for an hour and a half and provided information. No wonder: Genoni is the strongest goaltender in the league, has the best save percentage (93.62 percent) and the lowest goals-against average (2.11 per match). "If we have a lull, Leo simply keeps things tight at the back. He played a huge part in the qualifying win," says captain Martin Plüss.
A smooth season? Not for Genoni. "I needed some time to get used to it, I had to find out how the players react to certain situations. In the first 15 games, we got caught out from time to time," says Genoni. "Not everything went smoothly later on either. We were lucky, Arcobello was able to score out of nowhere."
After a weak game in October, it wasn't Genoni but goalie coach Reto Schürch who came under criticism. And ever since it became clear that Schürch would be leaving the SCB at the end of the season, there have been voices claiming that Genoni had bullied him away. This annoys the three-time champion.
"Not everything worked out right away."
"I didn't flee from a problem in Davos in the summer. I wanted to take on a new challenge, prove myself again, take a step." Schürch would have given him new input. "Not everything worked right away. I won't let a junior do something that I can't do. I want to get better, and Schürch helped me with that."
Jonas Hiller also had to adapt again after nine years in the NHL. The 35-year-old has played 21 more games so far than he did in his entire last year with Calgary. "I first had to get used to the rhythm again," he says. You didn't notice much of it. Hiller led Biel to the playoffs.
The Appenzell native and Genoni hardly know each other. Hiller won the title with Davos in 2007, then moved overseas - and made way for Genoni.
SC BERN - EHC BIEL
9.3.17, Postfinance Arena Bern
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