Ābols scores and assists as Swiss league season nears, Mamčics helps Karlovy Vary win in Czechia

Latvian hockey players featured in recent club games in Switzerland and Czechia ahead of their respective league season openers. Forward Ābols, who recently returned from the NHL, scored a goal and added an assist in a match against a Swiss top-division team — his first such goal at that level. He had previously scored on August 11, but that came against lower-tier opponent Olten.

In Czechia, defenseman Roberts Mamčics set up Karlovy Vary's first goal as the team won 3:2 in a shootout against Prague's Sparta. Forward Haralds Egle, who played for the winning side, and Sparta's Mārtiņš Dzierkals both finished the game without points.

Young Latvian player Fēlikss Gavars played on the fourth line for Mlada Boleslav, which lost 1:2 to Kladno.

Season openers ahead

Both the Swiss and Czech top leagues begin their new seasons on Tuesday. In the opening round, Rudolfs Balcers' Zurich Lions will host Ābols' Bern club at home. The two teams will also meet a day earlier at the same venue in a pre-season exhibition match.