2024-05-06 20:44:40
Germany‘s last test before the Ice Hockey World Cup, which starts in a few days, was a success. However, the team first had to go into extra time against France.
Thanks to the Berlin “Master Bears”, the German vice world champions passed the dress rehearsal four days before the Ice Hockey World Cup. For the first time with five Eisbären players and the NHL debutant Maksymilian Szuber, the team of national coach Harold Kreis defeated France with great effort after extra time with 4:3 (1:0, 2:2, 0:1, 1:0) and recorded in third victory in the eighth preparatory game.
Eisbären striker Frederik Tiffels, last year’s semi-final hero, immediately made a good 1-0 lead (10th minute). His club colleague Leo Pföderl (34th and 37th) scored the other goals in front of 2,975 spectators in Weißwasser in the regular 60 minutes for the selection of the German Ice Hockey Federation (DEB), which will go into the World Cup in the same formation. Anthony Rech (31st and 41st) and Valentin Claireaux (35th) scored for the French. Dominik Kahun (63′) scored the winning goal in extra time.
Two days after the sobering 3:5 against the twelfth place in the World Cup in Wolfsburg, Berlin defenders Kai Wissmann and Jonas Müller gave the defense more stability. Szuber, on the other hand, made a mistake alongside captain Moritz Müller, who was wearing the DEB jersey for the 204th time, to make it 3-3.
That’s how the game went
Goalkeeper Mathias Niederberger had little to do and kept a clean sheet until he made way for Philipp Grubauer halfway through the game. The NHL goalie immediately received the equalizer and had significantly more work. He didn’t look good at 2-2. On offense, NHL striker John-Jason Peterka in particular missed many chances.
Yasin Ehliz, 2018 Olympic silver medalist, who played his 100th international match, celebrated an anniversary. Eisbären champion Serge Aubin made his comeback as assistant coach on the boards. The Canadian had already assisted the German team at the 2015 Germany Cup – back then as head coach in Hamburg.
On Sunday morning, Kreis had already reduced the squad to 25 players and sent home, among others, runner-up world champions Justin Schütz, DEL top scorer, and Leon Hüttl. On Tuesday the DEB team will travel by bus to Ostrava, where they will move into the second largest cabin in the arena of former champions HC Vitkovice.
The preliminary round against Slovakia begins on Friday (from 4:20 p.m. in the live ticker on t-online). Other opponents in Group B are the USA, Sweden, Latvia, Kazakhstan, Poland and France again.