Marcel Goc is captain / Ullmann and Kink assistants / David Wolf is out
Here we go: Almost exactly a month before the opening game against France at the 2016 IIHF World Championship in St. Petersburg (May 7th), the German national ice hockey team is starting the hot phase of preparation today with the first of a total of nine test games. As part of the Euro Hockey Challenge, national coach Marco Sturm's team will face hosts the Czech Republic in Usti nad Labem today (18 p.m.). Next Friday (April 8.4th, 18 p.m.) there will be a second comparison at the same location.
Sturm is offering two debutants today. Both from the Düsseldorfer EG: Both Mathias Niederberger in goal and his teammate Marcel Brandt will be playing for the first time. While Niederberger, who was a back-up for the German team last season but has not played so far, is between the posts for the first time, Brandt will be making his debut alongside Daniel Pietta and Jerome Flaake. Goalkeeper Timo Pielmeier will initially be on the bench.
Originally, Brandt was supposed to be deployed in defense alongside his Düsseldorf teammate Bernhard Ebner, but due to the short-term absence of David Wolf (hand injury), attacker Brandt returns to his usual position in the offensive. Kai Hospelt will also be missing. The man from Mannheim had previously had to cancel his participation in phase 1 of the preparation at short notice for personal reasons, but is expected back next week. Accordingly, there are two goalkeepers, seven defenders and twelve strikers in the German selection today.
“I expect a fast and well-prepared opponent,” said Sturm before the duel with the hosts: “The Czechs should be well prepared, after all, they have been on the ice a week longer than us.” Sturm had his team on since their arrival practiced on the ice three times last Monday. There was also dry training for stabilization: “It was initially about getting the boys, who hadn’t been on the ice for a while after the playoff exit, used to the pace and the strain again.”
The captaincy question has been clarified, at least for the two games against the Czech Republic. National team returnee Marcel Goc leads the team. Hardly surprising, after all, the striker is the one who looks Adler Mannheim not only has 699 games in the best league in the world, but has now been an integral part of the national team for a whopping 16 years.
On November 8, 2000, the then 17-year-old attacker made his debut in a friendly match against Canada in Landshut (1:4). Goc's assistants are Marcus Kink and Christoph Ullmann (both Adler Mannheim).
This is how they want to play: Niederberger (Pielmeier); N. Goc, Reul; Ullmann, M. Goc, Höfflin – Akdag, Müller; Krämmer, Schütz, Macek – Ebner, Kohl; Brandt, Pietta, Flaake – Brückner; Buchwieser, Danner, Kink.