BOLZANO. HCB Alto Adige Alperia officially announces that they have reached an agreement for the renewal of the attacker’s contract Pascal Brunner for the 2024/25 season. For the 22 year old from Merano it will be the second consecutive in the red and white jersey.
Brunner had made his debut, on loan from Merano, already during the 2022/23 season, then earning a permanent place in the team the following year. On 27 January 2024, in the home match against Vienna, he scored his first goal in the ICEHL, which was also followed by his first goal in the playoffs, on 24 March in game 3 of the semi-finals in Salzburg.
“The first year in Bolzano helped me a lot for my sporting and personal growth – explains Brunner – I learned a lot also thanks to my teammates: during the next season I aim to have even more ice and make the most of all the opportunities , to give an increasingly important hand to the team. We have a clear goal in mind and we will do everything to achieve it.”
Pascal Brunner is family tradition: his father Markus was one of the protagonists of Italian hockey between the 90s and 2000s, also in Bolzano in the 1992-93 and 1995-96 seasons, the year in which he won the Scudetto. The grandfather, Hansjörg, was president of Merano for many years and under his guidance the 1986 and 1999 Scudetti also arrived. He passed away in September 2020 and the preseason tournament that Merano has been organizing since 2021 and to which the Foxes have always participated so far (the next one is scheduled for 6 to 8 September).
Brunner began skating in his native Merano, but moved to Switzerland as a child. He plays from U15 to U20 in Davos, and then moves to Bern’s U20: after three years, in the 2021/22 season, he makes his debut in the Swiss League with the EHC Visp shirt. He then decided to return to Merano, making his debut in the Alps Hockey League: in 31 games he scored 25 points, the result of 13 goals and 12 assists, making him the most prolific Italian striker in the team in terms of goals scored. In the meantime, the first 13 appearances with Bolzano, the first friendlies with the Italian national team (2 goals) and at the end of the season the call to the First Division World Cup in Nottingham, where he scored his first official goal in blue. Also in the last season he played 5 games with Merano (4 goals, 2 assists).
