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Ice hockey: DEL before the start of the season: eight want, the rest is waiting

The majority of the 14 DEL clubs seem ready for the start of the season. A preparatory tournament should underline that. The Augsburg panthers do not go along.

On Sunday night, the two Augsburg perspective players Niklas Länger and John Rogl returned by car from the Deutschland Cup in Krefeld. And although they had two defeats in their luggage, the mood was almost euphoric. “It was so cool, finally back again
ice Hockey
to be able to play “, enthused Länger. He has never had such a long break before. Since last March when the
German ice hockey league
(DEL) stopped playing, the puck was idle. Until last weekend. With the DEB perspective team, Länger first lost to the German senior national team 2: 7, then to the eventual overall winner Latvia (2: 4).

Tournament should be a symbol of hope for ice hockey

The tournament, which had run out of participants due to the corona pandemic, is said to be a symbol of hope for German professional ice hockey. With the feeling that a game operation is possible even in the midst of the Corona crisis, the anticipation for the DEL preparatory tournament starting on Wednesday was huge. “We are all happy that things are starting now. I think we have given a sign that it is possible, ”said Yannic Seidenberg from EHC Munich after the final defeat against Latvia (2-3 after extra time), which was hardly noticed in the end.

From Wednesday on, eight of the 14 DEL clubs will play the winner of the cup almost every day until mid-December, according to the broadcasting Telekom portal MagentaSport is named. At the beginning, the Fischtown Pinguins from Bremerhaven and the Krefeld Penguins meet on Wednesday, on Thursday the prestige duel of the two DEL heavyweights Mannheim and
Munich
an.

Total budget more than half covered by income on match days

The Augsburg panthers are not included. These are among the smaller clubs in the highest German league and are heavily dependent on matchday-related income. Without a spectator it is more than difficult to finance the game operations, it is said from the management floor. More than half of the total budget is covered by the income from entrance fees, VIP tickets and catering on home game days. In addition, there would be sponsor payments, about half of which also depend on the opening of the halls to spectators. In contrast to professional football, the income from television rights is rather low. This alone cannot finance gaming operations. For the Panthers it is currently a matter of securing their existence beyond the year 2021, says their main shareholder Lothar Sigl: “Only when that is finally achieved will we focus on possible participation in the 2020/21 match.”

Ice hockey: DEL wants to send signs of life

Most of the league seems to have gone further. Eight months after the end of the season, the DEL, which has already postponed the start of the new season twice, wants to send a sign of life. The tournament is something of a test for a possible season that should start on December 18th. The DEL clubs want to decide on November 19th. At the moment the tendency is towards the start of the season, even if no more spectators should be allowed. As the requested financial aid from the federal government’s 200 million euro program for non-performing sports is gradually arriving at the clubs, hope is slowly returning. The efforts for a league game operation will be much greater than they were at the Deutschland Cup. During the preparatory tournament, all players must complete a corona test 36 hours before a game.

At the Deutschland Cup, the DEB had 500 tests carried out – all of them were negative. However, the three teams spent the days in Krefeld each in their own bubble. That can hardly be done in the league. And the hope is not so great everywhere that the DEL will soon continue. On Friday the ERC Ingolstadt announced that with Jochen Reimer and Sean Sullivan two top performers surprisingly end their professional careers with immediate effect. The reason is the uncertainty in connection with the corona pandemic. (with dpa)

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