It starts: On Friday at 21:30 p.m. German time, the German women's national ice hockey team starts the 2017 IIHF Women's Ice Hockey World Championship in Plymouth, USA.
The first opponent of women's national coach Benjamin Hinterstocker's team is Sweden, against whom they have already met three times this season. The German selection was able to score five out of nine possible points. It went to a penalty shootout twice, with the team winning 2-0 DEB-Selection in early January in Füssen, the final decision in favor of the Germans was only made with an empty-net goal. "All three games were characterized by very high intensity with many playful elements on both sides," said Benjamin Hinterstocker.
In the second preliminary round match, the German women will face the Czech Republic on Saturday (kick-off at 18 p.m.). They have only met the Eastern Europeans once this season. At the beginning of November, the DEB-Selection as part of the Halloween Cup in Memmingen against the young and very active team with a narrow 1:2.
The last opponent in the preliminary round is Switzerland on Monday (also 18 p.m.), against whom there was also a 0-2 defeat in the Halloween Cup in Füssen. The decisive goal came in the final minute with an empty net goal.
Women’s national coach Benjamin Hinterstocker: “I think our preliminary group is very balanced. All four teams play a very success-oriented, internationally competitive ice hockey, which can be described as playful, intensive and aggressive. The results from the games so far this season show that every team can be successful here. I consider Sweden to be the strongest team based on how the season has gone.”
The top two in the German preliminary group advance to the quarter-finals, while places three and four have to go to the relegation round in a best-of-three format.
Further information about the tournament can be found here here.