The German national team is taking the first medal at the Olympic Games in Pyeongchang in 42 years. The team of national coach Marco Sturm won the quarter-finals surprisingly after an outstanding performance against world champion Sweden with 4:3 (2:0,0:0,1:3,1:0) after extra time. After 90 seconds in overtime, Patrick Reimer’s goal from Nuremberg put them in the top four for the first time since 1976.
In Innsbruck, the selection of the German Ice Hockey Association (DEB) had won a sensational bronze medal. Opponent in the semi-final on Friday is Canada.
Christian Ehrhoff (14th) from Cologne, Marcel Noebels (15th) from Berlin, and Dominik Kahun (49th) from Munich had scored the remaining goals for the German team in the Kwandong Hockey Centre, which were scored in the 15th minute. Olympic duel celebrated the first victory against Tre Kronor.
Anton Lander (47th), Patrik Hersley (50th) and Mikael Wikstrand (52nd) met for the two-time Olympic gold medallist, who competed in Cologne last year with only five players from the World Cup triumph.
Sturm continued his series of successes: Since taking up his post as national coach in 2015, the DEB selection has reached the quarter-finals of the World Championships twice – and can now write ice hockey history.
Sweden’s former world star Peter Forsberg, Olympic gold medallist with the Tre Kronor in 1994 and 2006, had already praised the German team before the first bully.
“If they play a good defense, they have a chance. It could get tight,”said the two-time Stanley Cup winner at Eurosport, highlighting midfielder Kahun in particular:”Germany has some good players, I like Kahun,” who had hit the post and crossbar at the unlucky 0-1 in the preliminary round.
The German defence was called for immediately, the world champion built up extreme pressure, and for several minutes the DEB selection did not come from his own third.
But the defensive held, goalkeeper Danny from the birch trees became safer by the minute. But it took until the eleventh minute before Ehrhoff scored his first goal – the Swedes had already scored 13 times on the German goal.
It was also Ehrhoff who scored the surprising lead with a Schlenzer in overwhelming numbers. Only 29 seconds later, Noebels increased to 2-0 – and the entire game was turned upside down. Only now did the DEB team have more time in the opposing third of the match to make the match more balanced.
“We passed the first ten minutes. Then we came into the match better, we had a lot of good actions, which helps us, of course,”said Ehrhoff after the first period with ZDF.
The Swedes responded with furious attacks, shooting from all positions, but mostly missed the target. In the second section, too, it took some time before the DEB selection could be released. The Sturm team was fortunate enough to get a shot through the post of the Swedes (39th).
24 shots fended off from the birch trees until he had to admit defeat for the first time: Lander shortened his shot later. But only two minutes later Kahun restored the old distance with a nice single action.
But Hersley and Wikstrand made up for it within two minutes. On the second roof, the DEB selection came under increasing pressure, it seemed to be more and more pumped out, but fought terrifically.