The German national ice hockey team has returned to the Olympic ice after eight years of defeat. In the first preliminary round match in Pyeongchang, coach Marco Sturm’s team was defeated by the six-time medalist Finland 2:5 (1:2,0:2,1:1).
The black series against the two-time world champion thus continued: For 34 years now, the German Ice Hockey Federation’s selection has not won against Finland at the Olympics.
Munich’s Brooks Macek (9th) and Berlin’s Frank Hördler (42nd) scored the German goals. For the Finns, who had won precious metal at five of the last six Olympic tournaments, Sami Lepistö (4th), Mika Pyörälä (16th), Eeli Tolvanen (38th), Lasse Kukkonen (39th) and Jonas Kemppainen (53th) met. Second opponent in Group C will be Sweden (21.10 hrs OZ/13.10 hrs CET) world champion Sweden on Friday. At the end of the preliminary round, the German team will meet Norway on Sunday (12.10 a. m. OZ/4.10 CET).
The first appearance on the big stage since Vancouver 2010 started out badly. After a completely superfluous foul by the Nuremberg player Yasin Ehliz behind the opponent’s goal, the Finns took advantage of the first majority of the early leading goal. Goalkeeper Danny from the birch was at Lepistös shot into the corner powerless. Sturm had given preference to the goalie of the German champion Red Bull Munich and said:”He makes a very good impression, he brings calmness in,”said the national coach.
But the 32-year-old, one of 20 Olympic debutants on the ice, was just as nervous as his colleagues. Only with the equalisation did the tension ease a little. After a clever pass from long-time NHL defender Christian Ehrhoff, Macek outnumbered him with the first German goal shot of the game. But it was the experienced Ehrhoff, of all people, who conceded the second goal when he played a false pass in his own third, Pyörälä poked the puck over the line.
In the middle section, the German team increased and pushed for equalization. The Wolfsburg-based Gerrit Fauser missed the best chance (30th). After Sturm’s team had failed to take advantage of two overcounted situations, the Finns struck in powerplay. The 1:4 81 seconds later the game was decided.
Only in the stands were goalkeeper Dennis Endras, the only player in the squad alongside former NHL pros Ehrhoff and Marcel Goc with Olympic experience, his Mannheim club-mate Sinan Akdag and the Munich Frank Mauer. Only 22 players from the 25-member line-up may be used per game.
The DEB selection had missed the winter games in Sochi four years ago. DEB President Franz Reindl has called for “You will get a completely different platform here, you have to take advantage of this opportunity”. Under national coach Sturm, who had extended his contract until 2022 shortly before the Olympic Games, there was a clear upward trend: In the last two years the German team reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup.