Shortly before the playoffs, the most important time of every ice hockey season, start, eight teams from the two DEB-Oberliga still have to go through a final qualifying round. The four teams that win these pre-playoffs can then compete in the round of 16 against the top teams of the other Oberliga.
While last night in the Oberliga Nord and South the two main round champions from Tilburg and Heilbronn are honored, there is no respite for some other teams. The teams that are seeded in the pre-playoffs are the Oberliga Nord as the Oberliga Süd occupy positions seven to ten in the main round. The seventh-place team plays against the tenth-place team and the eighth-place team plays against the ninth-place team in a best-of-three within their top league. The winners of the respective series earn a place in the round of 16. All pre-playoff matches are streamed by SpradeTV.
Füchse Duisburg save themselves at the last second in the pre-playoffs
In the north, the Hammer Eisbären on the Füchse Duisburg, who only made it into the pre-playoffs at the last minute. Hamm goes into the playoffs with confidence because after a weaker phase in January and early February they found their form again in time and were able to win the last four main round matches. The Füchse, on the other hand, have a record of 2:2 from the last four matches, but they clearly beat the Saale Bulls Halle 5:1 in the decisive game. Rostock also got back into good form shortly before the pre-playoffs. The Piranhas even managed to record their highest success of the entire season in the league on the second to last matchday when they gave the Herner EV Miners no chance with a 13:0 win. Their rivals, the Saale Bulls Halle, ended the main round with four defeats.
Exciting duels also in the south
In the south, the EV Lindau Islanders well prepared, they triumphed in eight of the last nine games. Only against the ECDC Memmingen Indians They had to admit defeat during this period. Lindau missed out on direct entry into the playoffs, just like the Hammer Eisbären in the north by just two points. The situation is completely different for the opponent EC Peiting, who suffered six consecutive defeats in the final stretch of the season and are two points ahead of the eleventh-placed EHF Passau Black Hawks into the top ten. EV Füssen also goes into the pre-playoffs with a series of four lost matches, while SC Riessersee at least takes a balanced record of three wins and three losses from the final phase of the main round.
Goal: Round of 16
A maximum of three dates are scheduled for the pre-playoffs, with two wins qualifying for the round of 16. The teams from the Oberliga Nord and the Oberliga Süd so that the winners of the pre-playoffs from the north play against the two best teams from the south and the winners of the pre-playoffs from the south meet the two best representatives from the north. In the north, the Tilburg Trappers and the Hannover Scorpions took the first two places, in the south this was achieved by the Heilbronner Falken and Bietigheim Steelers.
Pre-Playoffs dates
Sunday February 23th
18:30 p.m. Hammer Eisbären - Füchse Duisburg
19:00 Rostock Piranhas – Saale Bulls Halle
18:30 p.m. EV Lindau Islanders – EC Peiting
18:00 p.m. SC Riessersee – EV Füssen
Tuesday February 25
19:30 p.m. Füchse Duisburg - Hammer Eisbären
19:00 Saale Bulls Halle – Rostock Piranhas
19:30 p.m. EC Peiting - EV Lindau Islanders
19:30 p.m. EV Füssen – SC Riessersee
Friday February 28th (if a third game is necessary)
20:00 p.m. Hammer Eisbären - Füchse Duisburg
20:00 Rostock Piranhas – Saale Bulls Halle
19:30 p.m. EV Lindau Islanders – EC Peiting
20:00 p.m. SC Riessersee – EV Füssen
Sunday March 02th
start of the round of 16 playoffs