World Cup preparation
First victory for the new national ice hockey coach Kreis
Germany’s ice hockey men were allowed to celebrate a win against Austria. photo
© Armin Weigel/dpa
Waiting for the first sense of achievement as national ice hockey coach has come to an end for Harold Kreis. A strong initial phase is enough for his team in the preparation for the World Cup against Austria.
The new national ice hockey coach Harold Kreis was able to celebrate his first victory with the national team in the third game.
The selection of the German Ice Hockey Federation won the test game in Deggendorf against Austria 2-0 (2-0, 0-0, 0-0). The national team had lost the first two preparatory games before the World Cup last week by 6-2 and 5-1 against the Czech Republic.
Dominik Bokk from the Frankfurter Löwen in the majority after 71 seconds and Parker Tuomie from the Straubing Tigers with a strong individual action (6th minute) scored the goals for the DEB selection. Captain Moritz Müller from the Kölner Haien and ex-NHL player Dominik Kahun from SC Bern were in the squad for the first time in preparation for the World Cup.
Early hits level path to victory
“I’m expecting a committed game,” Kreis had said before the game at MagentaSport. The expectations of the 64-year-old German-Canadian were met, at least in the early stages. The national team rewarded themselves with two early goals in front of 2666 spectators. In the second third, the world number 15. from Austria more of the game, but goalkeeper Maximilian Franzreb from the Fischtown Pinguins Bremerhaven didn’t concede a goal. In the last part of the game, Germany controlled the encounter.
Both teams were missing a few top performers about three weeks before the start of the World Cup in Finland and Latvia. NHL player Nico Sturm from the San Jose Sharks was not yet part of the DEB selection. In the next test again against Austria on Saturday in Landshut (5 p.m. / MagentaSport), the 27-year-old striker could appear for Germany for the first time – and even make his debut for the senior national team. “Nico hasn’t played an international match yet. He’s really looking forward to it,” Kreis remarked.
NHL forward John-Jason Peterka of the Buffalo Sabers has also confirmed his participation in the World Cup. Whether other North American professionals will join the squad remains to be seen. There are still four friendlies before the start of the World Cup on May 12 against Sweden. Apart from Austria, Slovakia (April 28th and 29th) and the USA (May 9th) are the other opponents.