What Just Happened?

[Ninetyfourgoalie 168]

Well, the Express never had a chance.  Despite winning the European Conference and earning a first round bye, their performance in round two was nothing short of abysmal.  Not even managing to win a game, Cologne's inexperience was obvious as being swept doesn't even come close to describing the absolute dominance the Riga Reign exerted over them.

 

The Express only ever held a lead in game three, where they gave up a 1-0 lead held for over two periods late in the game before losing in overtime.  Overall, the Reign outscored the Express by a 15-6 margin, nearly tripling their goal total.  Perhaps even more shocking, though, are the shot totals.  Riga had a total of 186 shots, averaging over 46 shots per game.  Cologne, on the other hand, only took 72 shots on net, averaging a brutal 18 shots per game, well less than half of what Riga was able to accomplish.  Overall, the Express are, without a doubt, a team with enormous potential but this clearly was not the year for them as the Reign will look to take home the cup.