France under scrutiny
In the quarterfinal qualifying round of the Olympic ice hockey tournament, the German men's ice hockey team will face France on Tuesday at 12:10 pm in the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena. The winner will play Slovakia in the quarterfinals the following Wednesday.
Tournament progress: France with three defeats
The French team finished the preliminary round of Group A without any points. They started with a 0-4 loss to Switzerland, followed by a 3-6 defeat against the Czech Republic. Their run ended with a resounding 2-10 loss to top favorites Canada. Forward Louis Boudon is their leading scorer so far with two goals and one assist.
Olympics and World Championships: direct comparison
Germany and France will face each other for the first time at the Olympic Games on Tuesday. However, they have met eight times at World Championships. Germany has won six of those matches, while France has taken two. Germany won the most recent encounter at the 2024 World Championship in the Czech Republic, securing a 6-3 victory in their final group stage match. Wojciech Stachowiak scored twice in that game.
Olympics and World Cup: France at tournaments
France is competing in its eleventh Olympic Games; its best result was a fifth-place finish in 1928. The French have been regular participants in World Championships in recent years. However, at the last World Championships in 2025 in Denmark and Sweden, France, along with Kazakhstan, was relegated to Division IA.
Olympic and World Championship medals: 0
Current IIHF world ranking: 14
Roster: Only one NHL player
Unlike most other nations, head coach Yorick Treille can only rely on one NHL player. His name is Alexandre Texier, currently playing for the Montreal Canadiens. However, Pierre-Édouard Bellemare (currently with HC Ajoie) also brings a wealth of experience with 785 games in the world's best league. Stéphane Da Costa (Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg) is a prolific scorer from the KHL, and Anthony Rech (formerly with, among others, the KHL) also contributes his experience. Grizzlys Wolfsburg) and Charles Bertrand (formerly ERC Ingolstadt) have already proven their class in the PENNY DEL.
So far, all three teams have started in goal: Antoine Keller (HC Ajoie), Martin Neckar (EHC Chur) and Julian Junca (HK Dukla Trenčín). Goalies The squad is available for selection. It is therefore still undecided who will start against Germany.