Four final round spots will be up for grabs for the eight teams competing in Round 3 of the 2025 IIHF Continental Cup, taking place from 15 to 17 November 2024.

Slovak debutants Vlci Zilina host Group E, while Aalborg Pirates of Denmark organizes Group F. The third-round participants include a previous winner (HC Arlan) and two finalists from last season (Cardiff Devils and GKS Katowice).

The top two teams from each group, played in a round-robin format, advance to the 2025 Continental Cup Final, scheduled for 16 to 19 January 2025.

Here is what to keep an eye out for during Round 3:

Group E

• HC Arlan (KAZ) 
• Cardiff Devils (GBR)
• Vlci Zilina (SVK)
• Rittner Buam (ITA)

Venue: Zimny stadion, Zilina, Slovakia

HC Arlan arrives from Kokshetau in northern Kazakhstan, aiming to extend its winning streak in this competition. Undefeated in all six of its games in 2019, HC Arlan made history as the first Continental Cup champ ever from the Central Asian republic.

Kazakh teams have been making waves in the Continental Cup recently, including Nomad Astana´s impressive victory last January. HC Arlan, the reigning Kazakh national champion. currently sits third in the domestic league. Former national team player Vladimir Markelov takes the reins in his first stint as head coach.

Having steered Cardiff Devils past this hurdle of the competition in two consecutive seasons, head coach Peter Russell is eyeing a third tilt in the Continental Cup Final and an improvement on two third-place finishes. Andrew MacWilliam, who played 12 games for the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2014-15, brings that NHL experience to the blue line. Up front, the Canadian duo of Zach O´Brien and Josh MacDonald both hit the ground running. In a team laden with potential Transatlantic match-winners, 36-year-old forward Joey Martin is the all-time leading scorer amongst imports in Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) history.

Host team Vlci Zilina is gearing up for their Continental Cup debut with momentum on their side. Under the guidance of head coach Milan Bartovic, Zilina fought through four games in just five days to defend their Slovak Cup title on home ice this month. National champions in 2006, Zilina returned to the Slovak top flight this season following a five-year hiatus.

Key players for the Wolves include Canadian netminder Connor LaCouvee and blueliner Daniel Gachulinec, who skated for Slovakia twice at the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship this decade. For scoring, look out for Nick Jones, Robert Varga, and Polish national team forward Kamil Walega.

Defending Alps Hockey League champion Rittner Buam advanced from the previous round of the Continental Cup last month with a perfect record on home ice. On two occasions (2017 and 2018,  the South Tyroleans progressed to earn a place at the final round of the competition.

Alan Lobis, 20, enjoyed a fine start to the season along with two recent recruits, Diego Cuglietta and Ethan Szypula. And Eric Hjorth, a 2019 fourth-round pick of the Columbus Bule Jackets, has morphed into a colossus on the blue line. It's the 23-year-old Swede's first full Rittner Buam season.

Group F

• Aalborg Pirates (DEN)   
• GKS Katowice (POL) 
• Bruleurs de Loups (FRA)
• CSM Corona Brasov (ROU)

Venue: Gigantium Isarena, Aalborg, Denmark

Aalborg has competed twice at this stage of the Continental Cup and on both occasions progressed to the final round. Coach Santeri Heiskanen´s team looks to get back to its winning ways this weekend following a recent string of defeats in the Danish league. The beating heart of the team is local boy Julian Jakobsen, who represented Denmark at 12 Worlds and the 2022 Winter Olympic Games. Fellow Jutlander George Sorensen is solid in the Pirates´ net, while Nikolaj Carstensen represented Denmark at the Deutschland Cup last weekend.

Caoch Jacek Plachta´s GKS Katowice has clicked into gear as the in-form team in Poland. The return of Patryk Wronka to rejoin forces with Bartosz Fraszko and Grzegorz Pasiut is a cause for excitement for the club´s passionate fans. Mateusz Michalski and Kacper Macias skated for the Polish national team during the recent international break. The team from Upper Silesia has twice previously skated in the Continental Cup final round (2019 and 2024).

Grenoble's Bruleurs de Loups are eyeing redemption following last season´s disappointing display at this stage of the Continental Cup. The club currently sits atop Ligue Magnus, and blueliners Kyle Hardy and Alexis Binner are leading the team in scoring. Head coach Per Hanberg´s expertise might come in handy this weekend. The Swede coached the two previous seasons in Denmark and last year guided Herning Blue Fox through this stage of the Continental Cup to finish second overall.

Snatched up from a domestic rival, recent signings Yevgeni Skachkov and David Levin were on fire as Corona Brasov roared back twice in dramatic fashion to advance in the Continental Cup last month. A Romanian team most recently scaled these heights during the 2011 Continental Cup. Competing in both the Hungarian/Romanian league and the domestic championship, the Transylvanians will adhere to the more stringent import regulations of the Romanian league at the Continental Cup. Therefore, expect head coach Dave MacQueen to alter his lineup between games and ice three lines in Aalborg this weekend.