Kölner Haie skated to a 5-2 regulation win at Red Bull Salzburg, seizing control with two goals in the 17th minute and never trailing after that. Patrick Russell had a hand in three of the five goals, while Marcel Noebels struck twice on the night.
Köln opened the scoring at 17:00 when Russell and then Noebels converted to make it 0-2 after the first period. Salzburg cut the deficit through Peter Schneider at 24 and Mario Huber at 38, but Gregor MacLeod at 30 and Louis-Marc Aubry at 40 rebuilt the cushion to 2-4 through 40 minutes. Noebels added his second at 44 to settle it in the third.
Russell finished with a goal and two assists, setting up Noebels' opener and MacLeod's middle-period marker. The five-goal road output carried Köln to the points in a game where Salzburg twice pulled within one but never found an equalizer.