Narrow defeat against Sweden
DEB team missed sensation at the start of the World Cup
05/12/2023, 9:40 p.m
As a professional Harold Kreis lost his first World Cup game against Sweden in 1979 – now he also loses his first World Cup game as German national coach against the Scandinavians. The DEB team are committed but miss the goal. The next task will be even harder.
At the World Cup premiere of Harold Kreis behind the gang, the German national ice hockey players missed a surprise and gave the new national coach a déjà vu. The team led by Stanley Cup winner Nico Sturm and young NHL star Moritz Seider lost their opening game against Sweden after a strong start 0-1 (0-0, 0-0, 0-1). 44 years ago he also started his first world championship as a player with a defeat against the Tre Kronor.
“The team not only started well, we played well for 60 minutes. We made it difficult for the Swedes,” praised Kreis. “In a game like this, the special teams make the difference,” said John-Jason Peterka at Sport1.
The selection of the German Ice Hockey Federation (DEB), who suffered their seventh World Cup defeat in a row against the eleven-time world champion, was the better team in front of 9179 spectators in Tampere in the first third, but did not use their chances. Oscar Lindberg scored for the Swedes in the power play (42nd). The next heavy chunk is already waiting on Saturday (7.20 p.m. / Sport1, MagentaSport and in the live ticker on ntv.de): The second opponent in preliminary round group A is the defending champion and host Finland.
At the end of 2022, the 64-year-old circle succeeded Toni Söderholm, who led the German team to the World Cup semi-finals two years ago. His playing career in the DEB shirt began in 1979 with a 7-3 loss to Sweden.
Peterka misses the opening goal for Germany
Seider and AHL defender Kai Wissmann, who joined the team just a few days ago, were already on the ice. Defender Leon Gawanke, also eliminated in the AHL playoffs, is expected at the weekend. Berlin’s Manuel Wiederer and Munich’s Filip Varejcka were not registered yet, they watched from the stands as the young team with six World Cup newcomers got off to a very courageous and aggressive start. In attack, however, the lack of many goalscorers was noticeable.
Daniel Fischbuch and Fabio Wagner missed the early lead when they had a double chance (2′). NHL rookie John-Jason Peterka showed his technical skills in a remarkable solo, but there was no conclusion (12th). The 21-year-old formed the front row with Swiss legionnaire Dominik Kahun and Frederik Tiffels. Sturm led the more defensive second formation with Samuel Soramies and Alexander Ehl.
The Swedes, who competed with eight NHL professionals, initially had some problems getting access to the game. After the first third there were 9:4 shots for the outsider, Kreis could be satisfied with his first World Cup run as boss. In the run-up to the World Cup, the 187-time national player had received more than a dozen rejections from regular players and top performers, which he found “very hard to get used to”. Shortly before the departure for Tampere, however, the situation relaxed because Seider, like the two AHL pros Wissmann and Gawanke, accepted and thus significantly strengthened the defense.
In the second third, Sweden had better chances, Munich’s champion goalkeeper Mathias Niederberger got more to do and saved several times in dire need. On the other side Peterka had the 1:0 on the racket (31st). Two seconds before an unnecessary penalty from Fischbuch would have expired, Lindberg deflected a Jonatan Berggren shot past Niederberger.