“Feel the Pulse” is the motto of the 88th Ice Hockey World Championship in Herning (Denmark) and Stockholm (Sweden). So pulse feels with the German national team before the opening game against promoted Hungary (Saturday, 4.20 p.m.). Be sure to have serious journalists right from the start: Who, for the sake of heaven, now makes the music in the cabin? So far, Colin Ugbekile and Moritz Müller shared the job as a loose room DJs, but now? One, the Iserlohner Ugbekile, was not appointed to this World Cup by national coach Harold Kreis; The other, the Cologne “Mo” Müller, who has felt since laying of the foundation of the cathedral, but at least since 2013, has not missed a World Cup this time. A shoulder injury from the DEL playoffs. “Mo did not want to admit it at first that it was struck,” said Kreis from a “detailed conversation” with the long -standing captain. But then the 38-year-old admitted that he was not fit enough to be able to meet the claims to the German World Cup team in 2025.
Back to the initial question: “I think Marc Michaelis has now taken over this with the music,” said Berlin defender Jonas Müller on Wednesday in Herning, where the team of the German Ice Hockey Association (DEB) will play his seven preliminary round games. Michaelis, captain of the Adler Mannheim, is now MC Marc. And how does the new one do? “It’s okay,” said Müller with a smile. “Are malle hits, which is not bad in terms of mood. But it is definitely still expandable.”
The mood is already suitable for party in the German squad, which is also due to the fact that three players have taken over it not to replace the indisposed captain Müller, but to represent them. Michaelis has the easiest task. The more difficult comes to the team from Jonas Müller and Moritz Seider, the other Mo, who not only slips in Mo Müller’s captain’s role.
MO (Seider) and Müller (Jonas) are not only a deputy composite at this World Cup, they will also form the backbone of this team. “The MO does it quite well so far,” says Jonas Müller. “I’m not the giant speaker in the cabin anyway. I try to be a role model on the ice.” And it is clear who should hold together in the absence of Mo Müller Body and Soul of the German game.
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The greatest load rests on Seider, 24. In the NHL at the Detroit Red Wings, the former Mannheimer plays around 25 minutes per game, a few more could be added in Herning. Seider must give the interior, foreign and environment minister at the same time, responsible for the defense, media and internal climate. Seider is the youngest German captain since Alois Schloder, who led the DEB team to the World Cup at the age of 23.
He steps in “big footsteps,” said Sider, but the “C” for captain on the chest is “even a letter, nothing more”. Harold Kreis emphasizes that Seider stands for more: “He shows attitude. This has not only since yesterday. He has increased more and more into the role when you see how much ice age he gets in Detroit, how much responsibility. He has an overview in any situation and can hit a pass from any situation.” And: “It is also a very important engine for team cohesion.” Seider will be asked in all situations, outnumbered, outnumbered, at the same number anyway and certainly in the mixed zone with the journalists. Jonas Müller should keep his back on his back on the ice.
How much trust circle in Seider’s multitasking skills places and how high the demands are at the same time to all World Cup drivers shows, for example, the waiver of Leon Gawanke, 25, three-time World Cup participants and silver medalists in 2023 from Mannheim. “We want a Leon who is absolutely fit,” said Kreis before the start of the tournament, “and I don’t quite believe that this is the case at the moment.” Instead, the national coach called two Berlin champions, Eric Mik, 25, and Korbinian Geibel, 22, both without the World Cup experience, in the squad, praised their strong season and “outstanding playoffs” and said: “We want to take this performance into the national team.” Both are intended to take on strictly defensive tasks, unlike Berlin teammate Kai Wissmann, who is also injured.
Is NHL professional Tim Stützle still coming?
First, the defense must stand, the former national defender Kreis knows, so that there are no bad surprises against the supposedly easier opponents – on Saturday promoted Hungary, then Kazakhstan (Sunday) and Norway. After that, Switzerland, USA, world champion Czech Republic and host Denmark come. As the minimum goal, the DEB spent the quarter -finals, and Kreis does not want to look ahead. One step after the other. “The team makes a good impression that the mood is good,” said the national coach on Wednesday after an apparently sweaty training session in the very warm Jyske Bank boxing from Herning. “Gradually you notice, they are happy when the training sessions are reduced and the games increase.”
And then there was the question of Tim Stützle: does the NHL professional from the Ottawa Senators still come or does it not come? According to Seider, Philipp Grubauer (Seattle), Lukas Reichel (Chicago) and Maksymilian Szuber (Tucson) the fifth player from North America in the squad and would significantly increase its offensive opportunities. “I don’t know,” said Kreis on Wednesday, “I am not involved in the conversations, I only get the answer.” But that was initially still on Thursday.