An explosive third period from HK Nitra wound up propelling them 5-1 past Rögle Ängelholm as the Slovakians were given an opportunity and took full advantage of it en route to their third victory of the 2026/27 Champions Hockey League campaign and final big to squeeze into the Champions Hockey League Playoffs.

First period action saw Rögle generate a fair number of chances, including two high-danger opportunities, compared to their Slovakian counterparts, but both backstops were perfect through the first twenty to keep the score level at 0-0. 

Second period play got underway with much of the same: the Swedes dictated the pace and kept Nitra on their heels. But nine and half minutes in, it was the hosts gaining the lead when Robby Jackson lit the lamp after receiving a lead feed from Matej Paulovič. Jackson skated down the near side and lifted it past the glove to give his club the first advantage of the night.

Tides turned drastically in the third when Nitra went on an extended powerplay and cashed in three times.  Brett David Pollock scored the first when he slid one into a yawning cage and then Tomáš Hrnka tallied two - one was a snap in that beat a diving Calle Clang and the second was another conversion down low to make it 4-1 in favour of the hosts.

Rögle's Nils Bartholdsson gave the Swedes some life when his net-front play got one past Matthew Jurusik, but that would be the Swedes' only marker of the night as Tomáš Chrenko went on to solidify his club's advantage once again with an empty-netter at 56:19.