Successful defense of the title Deutschland Cup 2022 in Krefeld: National coach Toni Söderholm's team secured tournament victory for the second time in a row. He succeeded DEB-Selection today's third win in the third game. There was a 3-0 win against Slovakia at the end of the tournament. Goal scorers for the DEB-Selections were Tim Wohlgemuth (7th), Tobias Eder (31st) and Tim Fleischer (60th). The DEB-Selection looks back on five eventful and successful years Deutschland Cup 2022 in Krefeld and would like to thank everyone involved, helpers and local partners for the excellent cooperation.
As expected, the squad for the final tournament game against Slovakia was changed compared to the previous day. In goal, Mirko Pantkowski received his first tournament appearance, while Marcus Weber took over the captaincy from Marc Michaelis, who was sidelined this time. The ranks were also slightly changed in defense and in attack. The two defenders Marco Nowak and Janik Möser had already left Krefeld injured.
The German team started the game focused and with a lot of energy. The neutral zone was quickly bridged and the first good chances were created. The first goal came in the power play: Tim Wohlgemuth (7th) was happy about his first international goal. Even after that, the German team continued to push. It was only towards the end of the period that the Slovaks got into the game better. But the German backline around goalie Mirko Pantkowski kept an overview in this phase.
The special teams also made the difference in the second section: After a nice pass combination, Tobias Eder (31st) was able to extend the lead with the advantage. Shortly beforehand, the German backline was doing the hard work when the Slovaks had two more players on the ice. But the strong Mirko Pantkowski and his front men were able to clear up all the tricky situations with great effort.
The Slovaks turned things up again in the last 20 minutes. Once again it was the German goalkeeper Mirko Pantkowski who strengthened the team around national coach Toni Söderholm. Although Slovakia took out their back man in the last few minutes, they were unable to turn the game around. Tim Fleischer scored in the empty goal in the last minute of the final game and completed the victory and defense of the German men's national team's title.
National coach Toni Söderholm: “It was a bit chaotic today, but at the end of the day, when you're tired and mistakes happen, you always hope that the goalkeeper has your back. That's exactly what the Pante did today and a young German team found a way to win an ice hockey game and tournament. I'm very, very proud of what the players showed and achieved. It’s a deserved tournament win.”
Defender Marcus Weber: “We decided to play hard for 60 minutes every game, run a lot and help each other. We did that really well over three 60-minute periods and deservedly won three games. It was a huge honor for me, whether as captain or assistant. That was simply unbelievable. I'm already one of the older ones in the club, so it wasn't a completely new role. I tried to help the others, especially the younger ones. But the boys are all in great shape and can play really great hockey, so it was pretty easy.”
Striker Tobias Eder: “The days with the national team here were wonderful. Everyone worked hard from day one. We improved every day and did our best. I think that's why we deserved to keep the cup here in Germany.
The DEB-Selection looks back on five successful and eventful years Deutschland Cup 2022 in Krefeld and would like to thank everyone involved and partners for the excellent cooperation. Also with everyone Fans and sports enthusiasts who were at the games in Krefeld would like to thank him DEB expressly. Next year, the traditional tournament will be held at a new location.