Let the Reinbacher Watch commence.
In a game with a lot of attention in Montreal, GCK Lions defeated EHC Olten 5-4, taking their Swiss League semifinal series by four games to three. The Lions advance to face HC La Chaux-de-Fonds in the finals.
Although the Swiss League playoffs is still ongoing, EHC Olten’s elimination marks the departure of the last team eligible for promotion this season. GCK Lions are the affiliates of top-flight ZSC Lions, and so the two teams cannot play in the same division. HC La Chaux-de-Fonds did not apply to be promoted.
As a result, neither the relegation play-out between the 13th and 14th-place teams in the top-tier National League, nor the play-in between the loser of the play-out series and the Swiss League champions will take place.
In other words, 13th-place EHC Kloten’s season is over, and the team will no longer play its scheduled best-of-seven series against 14th-place HC Ajoie.
The conclusion of EHC Kloten’s 2023-24 campaign means that Montreal Canadiens’ 2023 first-round selection David Reinbacher is free from his loan-stint with the team. The 19-year-old defender is now available to play for either the Montreal Canadiens (having signed a three-year entry-level contract on July 5, 2023) or the Laval Rocket.
Reinbacher’s most likely destination is Laval, since joining the Canadiens would make him ineligible for subsequent demotion to the AHL club for the post-season. The Rocket themselves alluded to this possibility shortly after EHC Olten’s elimination was confirmed.
Reinbacher completes his 2023-24 EHC Kloten season with 11 points (one goal and ten assists) in 35 games. He (and the rest of his team) last played on March 3, a 4-0 defeat to HC Ambri-Piotta.
