Tornado Luxembourg Open 2026/27 Ice Hockey Season with Victory

On Saturday 3 October 2026, Tornado Luxembourg opened their 2026/27 French Ice Hockey Championship Division 2 campaign with a 2-0 home victory over HOGLY La Roche-sur-Yon in front of a packed Kockelscheuer Ice Rink.

The visitors had won Tornado’s group during the previous regular season, with the Luxembourg side losing both of their encounters against HOGLY.

“I think we changed 35, 40%. So it's quite a lot,” Tornado head coach Christer Eriksson told Chronicle.lu after the game. He explained that the changes were largely part of a generational transition rather than being driven by performances, adding that the team had focused particularly on strengthening its attack after struggling for productivity last season, while seeking to maintain its defensive strength.

HOGLY applied pressure on the hosts’ goal from the opening minutes. Tornado goalkeeper Clément Ginier made three saves in the space of around twenty seconds shortly after the six-minute mark to keep the game scoreless.

Tornado responded on the counterattack, sending Félix Sigouin through one-on-one, but the forward failed to beat HOGLY goalkeeper Alexis Neau. The visitors continued to threaten, with Ginier making further saves in the thirteenth and fifteenth minutes.

Tornado received their first power-play opportunity when Maxime Leroux was handed a two-minute penalty midway through the opening period, but the hosts failed to capitalise on the numerical advantage. Rowan Miller then went through one-on-one in the seventeenth minute, only for Neau to deny him.

Maxime Leroux received another two-minute penalty with less than two minutes remaining in the period, giving Tornado a second power play. This time, the hosts took advantage. After establishing themselves in the attacking zone, Rowan Miller found the net with 27 seconds remaining, assisted by Félix Sigouin and Jan Shikera, to score Tornado’s first goal of the new championship season and give his side a 1-0 lead at the first intermission.

Christer Eriksson also highlighted the contribution of Tornado’s new attacking players, including Canadians Miller and Sigouin and Finnish forward Shikera. “We have a trio there who is very productive, playing well, but it's also excellent guys,” he told Chronicle.lu. The coach added that the new arrivals had integrated well into a dressing room in which, as he put it, “everybody work from the best player, oldest player to the youngest player.”

Both teams started the second period actively and created opportunities in the opening minute, with the two goaltenders keeping the score unchanged. Tornado then enjoyed a spell of pressure, with Nolan Eriksson firing over from close range before captain Colm Cannon tested Neau from distance.

Ginier made another save at the other end before Tornado went shorthanded for the first time when Sigouin received a two-minute penalty. The visitors registered two shots during the power play, both stopped by Ginier, while a Tornado defender blocked another attempt.

The teams briefly played four-on-four after HOGLY’s Aleksei Ishmametev received a two-minute penalty, before Sigouin returned to the ice. Tornado subsequently gained a short power-play opportunity but failed to create a clear chance.

The hosts went shorthanded again in the 34th minute after Tristan Tagliapietra received a two-minute penalty for charging, but Tornado successfully killed off another HOGLY power play. Ginier then stopped two further efforts from medium range late in the period.

The closing seconds of the second period brought another incident. Sigouin received a game misconduct, while HOGLY’s Gaëtan Magne received a two-minute penalty for tripping.

Christer Eriksson said discipline was one of his main messages to the team during the second intermission. “I say we need to be more disciplined. We had it in the second period. We have two penalties stupid,” he said, adding that the infringements “could cost us the game.” The coach also urged his players to take the initiative: “I said to the player all the time, I want action and not reaction. Do things. Even if you do it wrong, do it because if you do wrong, we can correct it. If you don't do nothing, we cannot even correct. And hockey is quick.”

Tornado doubled their advantage just 41 seconds into the third period. The hosts regained possession and Miller moved the puck to Shikera, who finished the move to make it 2-0, with Miller and Justus Haavanlammi credited with the assists.

Despite the two-goal advantage, Tornado spent three minutes shorthanded early in the final period but successfully defended their lead. Clément Ginier continued to provide security at the other end and produced another save around the eighth minute of the period.

Shikera had an opportunity to score his second goal with around three and a half minutes remaining when he went through one-on-one, but Neau denied him. Ginier responded with another save shortly afterwards as HOGLY continued to search for a way back into the game.

The visitors pulled their goalkeeper for an extra skater during the final minute, but Tornado protected their lead to complete a 2-0 victory and begin their new Division 2 campaign with a win and a shutout.

Clément Ginier completed the 60 minutes without conceding and received Tornado Luxembourg’s MVP award. Christer Eriksson praised the goalkeeper, who had endured a more difficult outing in the team’s cup defeat against Strasbourg: “He showed today that he's a great goalie.”

The coach also singled out seventeen-year-old Luxembourg player Leopold Toft, who made his senior debut in the match. “Today we had Leopold Toft, which is a 17 years old guy from here, played his first senior game tonight and he did it very well,” Eriksson said.

HOGLY captain Hugo Laporte received the visitors’ MVP award.

Reflecting on the result, Eriksson described the victory as a strong start, particularly after Tornado had lost both meetings with HOGLY last season. He also highlighted his side’s defensive performance, the work rate of the team and the support from the home crowd.

Tornado Luxembourg will next travel to Paris to face Français Volants on Saturday 10 October 2026. Eriksson expects a difficult test against a side which, he noted, recruited a number of players from a higher division during the off-season. Tornado will then return to Kockelscheuer to host Orléans on Saturday 17 October 2026.