The 2018-19 Champions Hockey League tournament is building to a climax with three teams vying for favouritism at the quarter-final stage, but it is Karpat of Finland who are rated the likeliest winners with the second legs of the quarter-finals still to be played.

Semi-finalists in the inaugural tournament back in 2014, Karpat has not reached the last four in the three succeeding seasons, but BigBetBookmakers.com is currently predicting that they will win the 2018-19 Champions Hockey League. BigBetBookmakers.com have drawn on the betting odds available from top ice hockey sportsbooks and using the principle of implied probability, they have concluded that the Finnish side is the current favourite, just ahead of Frollunda HC.

If Karpat are to justify that favouritism, they will have to overturn a first leg deficit with RBS Salzburg, who won 3-2 on Tuesday to take a narrow advantage into next week’s second leg. After topping Group G, Salzburg brushed aside Dragons de Rouen in their Round Of 16 game, and then edged out Karpat thanks to a frenetic four-goal third period, that was capped by a dramatic late goal from John Hughes, scored with just 23 seconds left on the clock.

But despite losing by a single goal, Karpat played well in Austria, dominating the game for long periods, and were arguably unlucky to lose the game. Their home record should also give them plenty of confidence for the second leg, as they won their three home games in Group F by an aggregate score of 16-5. The reigning Finnish champions are also in strong form domestically, leading the way in the Liiga and are five points clear of their nearest rivals.

If Karpat do slip up on the way, then Frollunda HC could be best-placed to take advantage. Last season was the first Champions Hockey League tournament in which Frollunda failed to make the final, going out in the Round of Sixteen, but they look in a strong position to at least reach the semi-finals this time round, holding a 4-1 lead over Czech Republic team Kometa Brno. Assuming that Frollunda progress to the semi-finals, the two-time Champions will meet either fellow Swedish contender, Skelleftea or another Czech team, HC Plzen.

Frollunda can also boast two of the tournament’s top-three scorers in American Ryan Lasch and Canadian Chay Genoway, who have contributed 29 points between them, and the high-powered Swedes will provide dangerous opposition if they meet Karpat in the final. And one thing we can be sure of is that neither of last year’s finalists will be involved in this season’s showpiece finale. Both reigning champions JYP and Swedish rivals Vaxjo Lakers, who played out a tight 2-0 final game last season were eliminated at the Group stage this time round, finishing third in their respective sections.

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