Halle (Saale) / MZ – On Thursday morning, Ryan Foster is still trying to get the last of the tiredness off his face in his coaching office. He had previously spent the night with his second sports lover. “I’m a baseball fan, I was even a talented player, but I decided to play ice hockey when I was 13,” says the 46-year-old.
He’s a Canadian, the passion for the sport of skating is practically innate. He keeps his fingers crossed for the Toronto Blue Jays from the North American MLB baseball league. “It’s about the playoffs for them right now,” explains Foster. For this he likes to sacrifice a few hours of sleep.
With the Saale Bulls, however, the knockout round for Foster is still very far away. The season has just started, one game has been played. Nevertheless, the coach of the ice hockey top division team issued a maxim for the away game in Hamm on Friday that sounds a lot like playoffs: “No losing”.
Saale Bulls: Trainer Ryan Foster builds pressure right away
Now the structure of an ice hockey season is like a marathon. In the main round you just have to work out a reasonable starting position for the decisive phase. Only in the last kilometers, the playoffs, does it really count.
Foster knows, of course. Nevertheless, he is already building up pressure. Reason: “We stumbled right away,” he says. And by that means the 5: 6 against the newly promoted Essen. A disappointing start. Which directly increases tension. After Hamm with the home game against Tilburg on Sunday and the following week with the games against Erfurt and Hanover Scorpion’s difficult tasks. If the game goes wrong in Hamm, there is a risk of a false start, which in view of the top-class squad would inevitably cause unrest.
To prevent another stumbling block, Foster of course has more in store than just a snappy maxim. In training he increased the intensity. “We did a lot of repetitions. This is necessary so that all players understand about the right routes, ”says the coach. The Bulls have signed nine new professionals, so Foster just wants every player to understand his or her idea of ice hockey. “It’s a process,” he says. The former attacker Foster loves fast, aggressive ice hockey. The opponent should be disturbed at the target early on.
Saale Bulls rearrange their ranks against Hamm
At the same time, the coach will rearrange his ranks against Hamm. With 13 attackers and seven defenders, the Bulls’ roster is wider than in previous seasons. This not only ensures increased competition. Many players also make many possible combinations.
A complex matter. Against Essen, the coach had then grabbed right next to it. Lukas Valasek, actually a winger, played in the front row as the center. The new Finnish import player Joonas Niemelä moved into the second row. The first storm with Patrick Schmid and Roman Pfennings had harmonized well in the preparation.
Access Philipp Halbauer makes his debut for Saale Bulls in Hamm
“But we need several rows that are dangerous for goals,” says Foster. “Valasek used to play center, I withdrew Joonas so that Tatu could get going.” Tatu Vihavainen, high-flyer of the previous season, also scored. But the first row didn’t work at all. Therefore, the change is now being made again. Niemela back to the front row, Valasek back on the wing as part of the second attack trio.
So the offensive should be balanced and dangerous. And the defensive? After the departure of Michal Schön and Eric Wunderlich, she is younger. “We wanted it that way,” says Foster. “However, this means that we still lack experience, we are still prone to make mistakes.” That was shown by the six goals we conceded against Essen.
Philipp Halbauer should bring improvement. The Bulls signed the defender from Selb at the weekend, who has the experience of 278 second division games. The 24-year-old is now making his debut against Hamm.
Anbully in Hamm at 8 p.m., then start against the top team Tilburg on Sunday in the Eisdom at 6.15 p.m.
