The second round of the IIHF Continental Cup 2027 gets underway Friday. Two former champions – Rouen Dragons and Nomad Astana – are among the eight teams battling for places in January’s grand final. Three teams from the two groups will qualify for that showcase.
IIHF Continental Cup 2027 Second Round, Group C, Rouen, France
Two of last year’s finalists travel to Normandy, where they will be joined by host club Rouen Dragons and Britain’s Belfast Giants.
GKS Katowice has dominated in Poland in recent seasons and is gunning for a fourth successive IIHF Continental Cup final appearance. Current scoring leaders Patryk Krezolek (16+8) and Patryk Wronka (4+19) are among the six Katowice players who represented Poland at the 2024 World Championship. In domestic competition, Katowice is second in the Polish championship with 11 wins from 19 games. Jacek Plachta’s team is on a six-game hot streak since falling to league leader GKS Tychy on Oct. 18.
Host club Rouen won this competition in 2012 and 2016. The Dragons are currently top of Ligue Magnus and have lost just once on home ice this season. There’s huge international experience on the team: Florian Chakiashvili, Antony Rech and Nicolas Ritz were all part of the French Olympic team back in February, and that trio accounts for many of the 212 World Championship games on the roster. American winger Ryan Lausch, 39, represented his country at the 2012 IIHF Worlds. He’s no stranger to success in European club tournaments, having won the Champions League three times (2016, 2019, 2020) with Frolunda and twice being named MVP.
Belfast Giants also have an Olympian in their ranks: Jason Fram played for China in 2022 and signed for the Giants at the end of October. Forwards Scott Conway and David Goodwin are fan favourites, and both are in the all-time top five scorers for the club. GB internationals Ciaran Long and goalie Jackson Whistle have also been part of the roster in Northern Ireland for multiple seasons. There’s longevity behind the bench, too, where Adam Keefe took charge in 2017. Prior to that he played seven seasons on the team, five as captain and two as player-coach. In his time with the club, the Giants have won seven Elite League titles and swept the treble of British honours in 2023.
After qualifying from the first round, Latvia’s HK Mogo rounds out the quartet. Last season, the Riga-based club made it all the way to the final; this time it needed an overtime win over Sokil Kyiv to reach this stage. Veteran forward Gints Meija scored that goal, and he’s just one familiar name on a roster that includes three more Olympians in Kaspars Daugavins, Kristaps Sotnieks and Ronalds Kenins. The Latvians have the know-how to break into the top three and advance to a second IIHF Continental Cup finals.
Schedule:
Nov. 13: Belfast Giants vs HK Mogo (1500); GKS Katowice vs Rouen Dragons (2000)
Nov. 14: GKS vs Mogo (1500); Rouen vs Belfast (2000)
Nov. 15: Belfast vs GKS (1300); Mogo vs Rouen (1800)
IIHF Continental Cup 2027 Second Round, Group D, Asiago, Italy
2024 champion Nomad Astana returns to the IIHF Continental Cup in Asiago. Denmark’s Herlev Eagles and first-round qualifier Corona Brasov from Romania complete the line-up in Group D.
There are seven players from Nomad’s 2024 champion roster still at the club. Five of them sit at the top of the team’s scoring for this season – Daniil Tsybin (11+11), defender Kirill Nikitin (4+14), Abay Mangisbayev (8+9), Oleg Boiko (6+11) and Nikolai Shulga (3+13). However, recent form is a worry. After going 17 games without losing in regulation, Nomad lost its last three by an aggregate score of 3-15, losing top spot in the Kazakh league to Torpedo Ust-Kamenogorsk. There’s a familiar name on the coaching staff, where Roman Starchenko, a veteran of 18 IIHF World Championship campaigns, five as captain and 10 in the top division, is an assistant coach after hanging up his skates at the end of last season.
Herlev Eagles are starting their first ever IIHF Continental Cup campaign after the club’s best result in Denmark’s Metal Ligaen last term. They finished second in the regular season and reached the playoff final before losing to Herning Blue Fox. That success was powered by 62 points in 42 regular season games for Victor Cubars, backed up by 40-point hauls for Oliver True and Matthias Asperup. All three remain at the club this season, but top-scoring import Brock Bremer moved on, as did first choice goalie Emil Zetterquist. In addition, head coach Martin Gudmundsson returned to his native Sweden after three seasons with the Eagles, taking up an assistant role at Linkoping. Another Swede, Johan Akerman, took over behind the bench. His team is currently mid-table, but enjoyed an overtime win over last year’s runaway champion in its previous game.
Host club Asiago has reached several IIHF Continental Cup finals, including on its previous appearance in the competition in 2023. The Italians are currently second to Slovenia’s Jesenice in the cross-border Alps Hockey League, where Ethan Szypula is second in overall scoring with 25 (12+13) points in just 14 games. The 29-year-old also has IIHF Continental Cup experience from his time with Rittner Buam, where he had eight points in six games in the 2025 edition. Veteran international Tommaso Traversa, 36, has represented the Azzurri at three top level World Championships and is a multiple Italian champion. At the other end of their careers, several juniors have an active role – perhaps not surprising given head coach John Parco’s long-term roles in Italy’s development program. His son Alessandro is one of the teen prospects, while defender Rosario Tolomelli and forwards Giacomo Marcazzan, Lorenzo Ferretti, Fallou Mbow and Andrea Rigoni have all made 12 or more appearances this season.
Corona Brasov completes the quartet. The Romanians came through IIHF Continental Cup, Group B thanks to a 4-2 win over Erste Liga rival BJAC Budapest in the deciding game. David Levin and Jeremy Walsh formed an effective partnership in the first round, combining for a total of 14 points. Levin got nine of them to lead the tournament scoring so far.
Schedule:
Nov.13: Herlev Eagles vs Corona Brasov (1630); Asiago vs Nomad Astana (2000)
Nov. 14: Nomad vs Brasov (1630); Herlev vs Asiago (2000)
Nov. 15: Nomad vs Herlev (1630); Brasov vs Asiago (2000)