Ice hockey Now let’s get the title: Bremerhaven’s fairy tale continues
The Fischtown Pinguins are in the DEL final. photo
© Carmen Jaspersen/dpa
The confident semi-final success against top favorite Munich also leaves the opponent amazed. The two Bremerhaven ice hockey makers are about to reach their crowning glory.
The fishtown penguins’ reticence is over. “We want the title,” said Bremerhaven’s top scorer Jan Urbas after the semi-final coup against current champions EHC Red Bull Munich.
With four wins in five games, coach Thomas Popiesch’s team made it into the final series of the German Ice Hockey League (DEL) for the first time in the club’s history. Starting next Wednesday, the sports fairytale from the North Sea continues in the first of seven possible finals.
“I don’t even know how to put it into words,” marveled manager Alfred Prey at MagentaSport. His team finally decided the semi-finals with 3-0 on Tuesday evening and sent the favored Munich team on vacation with 4-1 victories in this semi-final series. “It was just our turn now,” emphasized Prey.
Praise from Munich
The opponent also acknowledged defeat. “They deserve to be in the final,” said Munich manager Christian Winkler and raved: “What they have continually built up here is sensational.”
Participation in the final alone is no longer enough for the professionals from Seestadt. “We want to win the cup now,” emphasized Urbas. Prey announced an “insane final series”, regardless of whether it is against the Eisbären from Berlin or the Tigers from Straubing.
The Pinguins also have a home advantage as champions of the DEL main round. The series starts on the North Sea and will possibly be decided in a seventh match in the ice arena. “The city breathes and lives ice hockey,” said Prey.
How strong the Penguins are now became clear in the fifth meeting. Once again goalkeeper Kristers Gudlevskis was invincible. The Latvian parried 32 shots against the star ensemble from Munich and remained without conceding a goal for the second time in the semi-final series. And in front of the opposing goal, Phillip Bruggisser and Urbas were ice cold. “They always had the right answer,” said Munich manager Winkler.
Bremerhaven on the verge of upheaval
For the long-time Bremerhaven manager Prey, it is his last season in a managerial position. The 70-year-old comes from Bavaria, was transferred to northern Germany as a professional soldier – and started in 1992 as a press spokesman for the then REV Bremerhaven.
Coach Thomas Popiesch is also about to leave for second division club Krefeld for personal reasons. The two Penguins makers can crown their many years of work with the championship title.
Since the promotion in 2016, things have continued to rise. “We have continually built up this team,” explained Prey, describing their career: “At the start of the season we noticed what the team was capable of. The further the season went on, the more self-confidence grew.”
The coaching team around Popiesch and assistant coach Alexander Sulzer also received high praise from Prey: “The team was always focused on the point. Today we see the result.”
dpa
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