Former NHL star signs until 2017 / Reindl: “Internationally renowned personality”
The former captain of the German national ice hockey team will be the new general manager and head coach DEB-Selection. The Presidium of the German Ice Hockey Federation agreed on this (DEB) at his regular meeting on Friday in the Munich DEB-Headquarters in coordination with the German Ice Hockey League (DEL).
In this newly created position, Sturm is responsible for all measures and all international operations of the national team and leads the team as national coach. The 36-year-old, who pursued a coaching career after ending his impressive playing career in the USA and has the necessary licenses, played 54 international matches (14 goals) and took part in four World Cups and three Olympic Games. With 1006 games in the NHL, he is the German player with the most appearances in the North American professional league. In 2014, the native of Dingolfing ended his career in the DEL with the Kölner Haien after a total of 149 DEL games. Other stations were: EV Landshut as the ERC Ingolstadt.
“We are delighted to have found a very young, internationally renowned personality in Marco Sturm. He comes from our own ranks, knows the system of the national teams, and even played with the U18s at the 1995 World Cup in Berlin won the silver medal and is very close to the players. We hope that his signing will provide an important, emotional boost for our national team,” explains DEB-President Franz Reindl and adds, “Marco will put together his own coaching staff and, in particular, involve renowned DEL coaches.”
“I am very proud that the DEB has given me this great responsibility and I am really looking forward to the challenging, exciting task and approaching it with high motivation. Ultimately, we want to move German ice hockey forward together,” says Sturm. He will initially receive a two-year contract focusing on the 2016 World Cup in Russia, Olympic qualification in September 2016 in Latvia and the 2017 home World Cup in Cologne/Paris, which will be extended until 2018 if the Olympic qualification is successful.