Ice Hockey World Championship
Home game against Switzerland: Familiar environment for DEB professionals
The German ice hockey team relies on a special home advantage. Photo
© Oana Jaroslav/CTK/dpa
The German national ice hockey team sees the venue for the World Cup quarter-finals as an advantage. The ice also plays a role.
The German ice hockey professionals are playing against them in the quarter-finals Switzerland as the venue plays a role. “We stay in our dressing room. We have our usual environment with the hall and our procedures after two weeks,” explained NHL professional JJ Peterka. As in the preliminary round, the runner-up world champion (4.20 p.m./ProSieben and Magentasport) will meet the Swiss in Ostrava, Czech Republic.
Actually, the selection of the German Ice Hockey Federation (DEB) should have competed as third in Group B against the Swiss as second in Group A in Prague. The hosts, the Czech Republic, have the right to play at home in Prague, but only came third behind group winners Canada and Switzerland. Therefore, the “Nati” has to travel to Ostrava, 280 kilometers away as the crow flies.
The quality of the ice in the arena can also play a role. Nico Sturm already complained about the condition of the ground in the preliminary round. However, that shouldn’t be a hindrance for his team against the strong Swiss. “It’s a disadvantage for the team that’s playing the game. It’s frustrating when there’s so much snow on the ice and the disc jumps when you have the majority,” explained the NHL profile and emphasized: “We’ll have less of the puck .”
For the final weekend on Saturday and Sunday, the German team would have to travel to Prague. “That’s where we want to go. That’s our goal,” said striker Dominik Kahun.