BRATISLAVA, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) -- Kosice remains on top of the Slovak premier ice hockey league Tipsport Liga after defeating the surprisingly successful newcomer Michalovce 3-0 on Tuesday in the eighth round.
In a battle of two teams from the eastern region of Slovakia, their first ever, Kosice got the upper hand in the second period of the match, scoring three goals in succession and snapping the visitors' three-game winning streak.
Bratislava's top scorer Tomas Zigo opened the score in a battle of two capital cities and led his team to a clear 3-0 victory over Budapest, one of the two Hungarian clubs playing in Slovakia's top ice hockey league. Slovan Bratislava's fifth win out of eight puts them in the second spot in the rankings, trailing Kosice by three points.
Last season's champion from Banska Bystrica is slowly getting back into the hunt for the leading position, winning 3-1 against Trencin in overtime and moving up to third place in the rankings. The Finnish-born winger Joona Jaaskelainen scored the game-winner on a great individual effort.
Bottom-ranked Liptovsky Mikulas ground out their second victory of the season, turning the home match against Poprad around after being down by two in the first period, triumphing 4-3 thanks to four goals in a row.
Liptovsky Mikulas managed to end their troublesome three-game losing streak thanks to the brothers Richard and Robert Huna, one of them assisting in each of the four goals.
Detva managed to tip the scales, as well. The team from the heart of Slovakia was trailing in the first period against Miskolc, the other Hungarian team, but three goals in succession brought home their third victory in a row, 3-1.
The only away triumph of the eighth round of Tipsport Liga was achieved by Zvolen, defeating Nove Zamky on their ice 4-2. The home team tied things up in the middle period, but the guests took over once again in the final.
After the crushing 9-0 defeat in the last round by Kosice, Nitra's coach Andrej Kmec decided to resign his position. Nitra, ranked 12th, is now looking for a replacement.
