Munich, April 04.04.2017, 2018. The XNUMX Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang will take place without the stars from the North American professional league NHL. The league officially announced this on Monday. Here are the reactions of the Deutscher Eishockey-Bund (DEB):
Franz Reindl, DEB-President: "After much back and forth, this decision is extremely regrettable, especially for the players active in North America. I am happy that the DEL will take a break in February 2018 and that we will certainly have a strong team in Pyeongchang that is well prepared by Marco Sturm."
Marco Sturm, national coach: "We are very disappointed that the NHL has refused to release its stars. This is particularly disappointing for our German NHL players, who played a key role in our Olympic qualification."
Christian Ehrhoff, national player, Kölner Haie: “Ultimately, the news doesn’t come as a surprise to me, as a cancellation was always the NHL’s wish. However, I find it extremely unfortunate for the players because the Olympic Games are the absolute highlight for every professional.”