Her first appearance at Deutschland Cup can hardly wait for the German national ice hockey team. “You can feel the joy, the boys radiate it. It’s just unbelievable how committed they are,” said U18 national coach Steffen Ziesche before the duel DEB-Selection with the top team Beijing on Thursday evening (19.45 p.m. / Magenta Sport and Sport1), in which the “young wild ones” (Yannic Seidenberg) from head coach Tobias Abstreiter want to make life as difficult as possible for the national team.
Finally competition mode again for them DEB-Teams after long months of waiting and although under completely different conditions than usual, the Deutschland Cup 2020 in Krefeld’s Yayla Arena. “We want to use the games sensibly, breathe new life into ice hockey and do our best to ensure that we can continue in everyday life where we started here,” emphasized the Berlinhe Marcel Noebels, and added: “Every game that is currently being played in ice hockey is positive.”
National coach Toni Söderholm himself would have been happy to be there to coach his team on the boards a year after the last A international match, but a positive corona test prevented this. The 42-year-old will follow the duel with the top team Beijing from Munich - as well as the encounters between the German teams against Latvia on Friday and Saturday and the final on Sunday. For Söderholm, contact with Krefeld is almost permanent. “We have a very close exchange and work completely according to Toni’s instructions,” said Ziesche, who will lead the team together with Bremerhaven coach Thomas Popiesch. Former Finnish international Ville Peltonen is also there as an external consultant.
The Top Team Beijing was also put together with a view to the U20 World Championship in Edmonton, Canada at the end of the year. This is intended to give players from the U20 team a chance to prove themselves and to be put through their paces under competitive conditions. In addition, promising players from the national team are strengthening the squad. "The fact that we now have the opportunity to field two competitive teams is also a sign to Europe that a lot of good things have happened in German ice hockey," Söderholm said in the run-up to the tournament.
Im DEB-Team celebrates defenseman Leon Gawanke, currently from the Winnipeg Jets Eisbären Berlin loan, his international debut. The BerlinHe had made great strides in his first season in North America and had made a name for himself. “I’m happy that it worked out and that I now have the chance to show what I can do at a higher level,” he said. The strong offensive right-handed shooter is expecting a top Beijing team at the start with “talented and motivated guys, all of whom I know.” But veteran and Olympic silver hero Seidenberg doesn’t want to give up an inch of ice: “They want to beat us, but for us it’s about ours Finding rhythm quickly and showing that we still belong here. It will definitely be an interesting game with a high pace.”
Photos: City-Press