DEL - 2023/2024
- Thread starter Eye of Ra
- Start date
Eye of Ra
Grandmaster General of the International boards
Eye of Ra
Grandmaster General of the International boards
This is truly depressing for German hockey fans…
Everyone keeps talking about the growth of German hockey with all the high-end NHL talent and international silver medals. But in reality, nothing ever changes.
Everyone keeps talking about the growth of German hockey with all the high-end NHL talent and international silver medals. But in reality, nothing ever changes.
Eye of Ra
Grandmaster General of the International boards
I know he is not a normal rookie, but I really like the way Lukas Kälble has stepped into the DEL this season. Averaging over 22 minutes after 3 games while picking up 3 assists and being a solid +4 is pretty good. The only thing I am slightly disappointed by is that he has only managed 2 shots so far, because I really like his shot.
I really hope we will get so see him on the national team at some point. We could really use another defenseman in the mix. Especially one with a heavy shot who might be able to step in right away, because some of the younger one may not be ready to take over when some of the oldery guys will inevitably retire in the near future.
I really hope we will get so see him on the national team at some point. We could really use another defenseman in the mix. Especially one with a heavy shot who might be able to step in right away, because some of the younger one may not be ready to take over when some of the oldery guys will inevitably retire in the near future.
Bennet Roßmy is having himself quite the start into the season.
1g 3a so far 4 games into the season, and he gets decent ice time every game.
Overall it seems like the ice time for U23 players is down compared to previous years, but Roßmy is one of a few exceptions, and, at least up to this point, he is making the most of it.
1g 3a so far 4 games into the season, and he gets decent ice time every game.
Overall it seems like the ice time for U23 players is down compared to previous years, but Roßmy is one of a few exceptions, and, at least up to this point, he is making the most of it.
No worries. If he keeps this up, then the DEB will give him a look next spring.
1-3-4 is all Rossmy had all last season with Berlin.
It was clear he could benefit with a change of scenary.
Then again, the "vacancies" in that DEG line-up are playing in his favor.
It would be wonderful for fans, the league, and the DEB if each of Rossmy, Blank, and Eham would collect upwards of 25 points this season.
Blank seems to stagnate a bit. He is still a very good young player, but he has yet to take his game to another level, that I think he has in him.
Eham is just so well rounded. Even when he is not getting points he is a net positive most games, and he seems to develop chemistry fairly quickly with new players on his line.
Roßmy was in a bad situation in Berlin last season. The team was not playing well, there were problems everywhere and that was not a good place for young player on a team that is used to play for the championship. Düsseldorf is a much better place for him.
There are already a bunch of established young players on that team, that have demonstrated in the past that this club will give you a chance and it will be up to the players to make the most of it. It worked for Tobi Eder, it worked for Alex Ehl and it's working for Alex Blank and Sepp Eham. The jury is still out on Borzecki, but Roßmy has at least the same talent level as all those guys and is off to a good start.
To be honest, I would love to see Yannick Proske in Düsseldorf at some point. He is getting a bit more of chance in Iserlohn this season, but that is a very young team and also not the easiest situation for a young player.
I feel a little bad for Hänelt who is getting very little ice time so far in Köln, I had hoped for more of an opportunity for him, as well as Glötzl this season. But ice time for the young players is still hard to come by in Köln. They usually have many young players who get a little ice time here and a little ice time there, but it's often inconsistent.
Not that the youngsters should just be gifted ice time, but. if you want them to be a part of your team's future, you have to give them a real shot at some point and I often feel, that most teams aren't doing that. And it is somewhat understandable. We really need a better way to continue development of players between juniors and the DEL. And as much as I like the old promotion and relegation system, it can be a bit detrimental when it comes to development, because teams will be even more reluctant to play the prospects when it is about avoiding relegation or earning promotion.
Sometimes I wonder if it would make sense to have a team of our top junior players compete in the Oberliga or if they are good enough (unlikely) in the DEL2.
Yannick Proske (Iserlohn) and Taro Jentzsch (Mannheim) switched teams. Great move for Jentzsch who was wasted on this Adler team, but questionable for Proske, who was getting decent minutes in Iserlohn and will now, in all likelihood, rarely play more than 10 minutes. I hope being around some of these excellent and experienced players in Mannheim will compensate for the loss in ice time.
An interesting exchange.
I was not surprised about Jentzsch's lack of offensive progress last season. Just too buried on a team like that. He should have much more opportunity on the Roosters and to be honest, they REALLY need someone to score, so he'll likely get a good shot.
Although.... he's never worked with Poss before.
As for Proske, I already found last season disappointing. Maybe he should have spent it in the DEL2 instead?
Like you say, it's hard to imagine that there's much of a role for him in Mannheim. Can he be assigned to Bietigheim?
Not sure if he can be reassigned to Bietigheim or not, but it seems that for now he will take one of the mandatory slots for U23 players on that Adler team.
Also, I am a little worried about Bietigheim. They just made a coaching change and got their second win of the season after 6 losses in a row or something.
Not sure if that would be the greatest environment for a young player, unless there is some guarantee he will play significant minutes.
Looking at the lines from their game today, I have my doubts Proske would be given a chance on the top two lines.
I am really not liking where Mannheim's youth development is trending at the moment and that includes their U20 and U17 teams which used to dominate and right now look rather mediocre. Not sure what happened, but they seem to be heading in the wrong direction.
With almost a third of the regular season in the books. Let’s see how the U23 players are doing in the DEL for each team.
Disclaimer: There have been several games where no ice-time data has been available on the DEL website, so some of my references to ice time may not be entirely accurate, but I can only work with the data I have. I split the whole thing up into 4 or 5 posts., or at least I tried, but they keep getting joined together.
Wolfsburg:
F – Julian Chrobot (2001) 13GP 1G 2A 3Pts
F – Robert Kneisler (2001) 15GP 0G 1A 1Pts
D – Jimmy Martinovic (2002) 13GP 0G 0A 0Pts
F – Timo Ruckdäschel (2005) 1GP 0G 0A 0Pts
The team that gives the least amount of ice time to their U23 players. Between them they only have 6 games with more than 10 minutes of ice time.
Chrobot is doing ok, but I wonder if he will still get a chance in the DEL when he is no longer an U23 player.
Augsburg:
F – Moritz Elias (2004) 16GP 4G 2A 6Pts
F – Christian Hanke (2003) 7GP 1G 2A 3Pts
D – Leon Van der Linde (2003) 10GP 0G 0A 0Pts
D – Niklas Länger (2001) 10GP 0G 0A 0Pts
Augsburg is an interesting case. The most promising U23 on their roster Justin Volek (2002) could miss the entire season. On average their young players don’t get a whole lot of ice time, but they also seem to play either very little of quite a bit. Between them these guys have played 12 games with double digit ice time. One of them was more than 15 minutes.
Lately, Moritz Elias and Christian Hanke are both making the most of the chances they’re given. Hopefully this will lead to more and consistent ice time for them both.
Mannheim:
F – Yannick Proske (2003) 7GP 1G 3A 4Pts
D – Fabrizio Pilu (2002) 14GP 1G 1A 2Pts
F – Simon Thiel (2001) 16GP 0G 2A 2Pts
D – Paul Mayer (2005) 11GP 0G 0A 0Pts
F – Noel Saffran (2004) 3GP 0G 0A 0Pts
G – Arno Tiefensee (2002) 8GP 2.23 GAA .921 Sv%
Not a lot of ice time for U23 players in Mannheim. After they signed Proske he got a couple of games with almost 15 minutes of ice time and he contributed on the scoreboard as well. Since then, his ice time has pretty much regressed steadily. Will have to wait and see how things develop for him further. Not surprisingly, Arkadiusz Dziambor who had not appeared in a single game for Mannheim has now moved on to Schwenningen, where his ice time has increased in every game I believe.
While the U23 skaters in Mannheim don’t see a lot of ice time, goalie Arno Tiefensee gets a lot of starts and is doing a great job, basically picking up where he left off in last eason’s playoffs.
Bremerhaven:
F – Nino Kinder (2001) 16GP 1G 2A 3Pts
D – Philipp Preto (2001) 10GP 0G 1A 1Pts
F – Justin Büsing (2003) 4GP 0G 0A 0Pts
F – Marat Khaidarov (2002) 15 GP 0G 0A 0Pts
Nino Kinder and sometimes Philipp Preto get a solid chunk of ice time, while Khaidarov, in most games, is barely more than a spectator. At least he gets a few minutes every game now, and is not sitting on the bench for the entire 60 minutes anymore.
Cologne:
F – Robin Van Calster (2003) 14GP 1G 0A 1Pts
D – Maximilian Glötzl (2002) 15GP 0G 1A 1Pts
F – Elias Lindner (2001) 9GP 0G 1A 1Pts
F – Håkon Hänelt (2003) 7GP 0G 0A 0Pts
G – Tobias Ancicka (2001) 7GP 3.40 GAA .857 Sv%
Hänelt is barely playing and should probably spend more time with Bad Nauheim in the DEL2. It would be almost tragic if he would end up with another lost year while staying healthy for the first time in forever.
Glötzl has a had a few games where he got a lot of ice time, but especially recently he also had several games where he played less than 5 minutes. Maybe he needs a change of scenery, because I am still convinced, he could be much better, but it doesn’t look like it’s going to happen in Cologne.
Van Calster on the other hand, has played decent minutes in most of his games and averages just north of 10 minutes.
Ancicka playing quite a bit, and he is actually winning despite his numbers. Almost always a lot of goals when Cologne is playing.
Berlin:
D – Korbinian Geibel (2002) 16GP 0G 1A 1Pts
F – Maximilian Heim (2003) 16GP 0G 3A 3Pts
F – Eric Hördler (2004) 8GP 1G 2A 3Pts
F – Michael Bartuli (2002) 12GP 0G 1A 1Pts
G – Jonas Stettmer (2001) 2GP 1.97 GAA .932 Sv%
G – Nikita Quapp (2003) 1GP 2.00 GAA .895 Sv%
Geibel has seen solid minutes especially in the last 6 games. He may yet turn into another solid player for that remarkable 2002 born group. Heim has been fairly impressive in limited minutes. He has developed really well the last couple of years. Hopefully he can keep it up and take the next step.
Hördler, like Heim, is not playing a lot but aside from a few outliers it’s usually at least regular 4th line minutes and not just a handful of shifts. And both are making the most of it. Especially Hördler has one of the best points per 60 minutes values of all U23 players in the league.
The young goalies do not get many chances with Hildebrand starting the vast majority of the games.
Both are mostly playing DEL2 where they split the starts pretty evenly. So far Stettmer is outperforming the younger Quapp in both leagues, but the sample size is still pretty small.
Disclaimer: There have been several games where no ice-time data has been available on the DEL website, so some of my references to ice time may not be entirely accurate, but I can only work with the data I have. I split the whole thing up into 4 or 5 posts., or at least I tried, but they keep getting joined together.
Wolfsburg:
F – Julian Chrobot (2001) 13GP 1G 2A 3Pts
F – Robert Kneisler (2001) 15GP 0G 1A 1Pts
D – Jimmy Martinovic (2002) 13GP 0G 0A 0Pts
F – Timo Ruckdäschel (2005) 1GP 0G 0A 0Pts
The team that gives the least amount of ice time to their U23 players. Between them they only have 6 games with more than 10 minutes of ice time.
Chrobot is doing ok, but I wonder if he will still get a chance in the DEL when he is no longer an U23 player.
Augsburg:
F – Moritz Elias (2004) 16GP 4G 2A 6Pts
F – Christian Hanke (2003) 7GP 1G 2A 3Pts
D – Leon Van der Linde (2003) 10GP 0G 0A 0Pts
D – Niklas Länger (2001) 10GP 0G 0A 0Pts
Augsburg is an interesting case. The most promising U23 on their roster Justin Volek (2002) could miss the entire season. On average their young players don’t get a whole lot of ice time, but they also seem to play either very little of quite a bit. Between them these guys have played 12 games with double digit ice time. One of them was more than 15 minutes.
Lately, Moritz Elias and Christian Hanke are both making the most of the chances they’re given. Hopefully this will lead to more and consistent ice time for them both.
Mannheim:
F – Yannick Proske (2003) 7GP 1G 3A 4Pts
D – Fabrizio Pilu (2002) 14GP 1G 1A 2Pts
F – Simon Thiel (2001) 16GP 0G 2A 2Pts
D – Paul Mayer (2005) 11GP 0G 0A 0Pts
F – Noel Saffran (2004) 3GP 0G 0A 0Pts
G – Arno Tiefensee (2002) 8GP 2.23 GAA .921 Sv%
Not a lot of ice time for U23 players in Mannheim. After they signed Proske he got a couple of games with almost 15 minutes of ice time and he contributed on the scoreboard as well. Since then, his ice time has pretty much regressed steadily. Will have to wait and see how things develop for him further. Not surprisingly, Arkadiusz Dziambor who had not appeared in a single game for Mannheim has now moved on to Schwenningen, where his ice time has increased in every game I believe.
While the U23 skaters in Mannheim don’t see a lot of ice time, goalie Arno Tiefensee gets a lot of starts and is doing a great job, basically picking up where he left off in last eason’s playoffs.
Bremerhaven:
F – Nino Kinder (2001) 16GP 1G 2A 3Pts
D – Philipp Preto (2001) 10GP 0G 1A 1Pts
F – Justin Büsing (2003) 4GP 0G 0A 0Pts
F – Marat Khaidarov (2002) 15 GP 0G 0A 0Pts
Nino Kinder and sometimes Philipp Preto get a solid chunk of ice time, while Khaidarov, in most games, is barely more than a spectator. At least he gets a few minutes every game now, and is not sitting on the bench for the entire 60 minutes anymore.
Cologne:
F – Robin Van Calster (2003) 14GP 1G 0A 1Pts
D – Maximilian Glötzl (2002) 15GP 0G 1A 1Pts
F – Elias Lindner (2001) 9GP 0G 1A 1Pts
F – Håkon Hänelt (2003) 7GP 0G 0A 0Pts
G – Tobias Ancicka (2001) 7GP 3.40 GAA .857 Sv%
Hänelt is barely playing and should probably spend more time with Bad Nauheim in the DEL2. It would be almost tragic if he would end up with another lost year while staying healthy for the first time in forever.
Glötzl has a had a few games where he got a lot of ice time, but especially recently he also had several games where he played less than 5 minutes. Maybe he needs a change of scenery, because I am still convinced, he could be much better, but it doesn’t look like it’s going to happen in Cologne.
Van Calster on the other hand, has played decent minutes in most of his games and averages just north of 10 minutes.
Ancicka playing quite a bit, and he is actually winning despite his numbers. Almost always a lot of goals when Cologne is playing.
Berlin:
D – Korbinian Geibel (2002) 16GP 0G 1A 1Pts
F – Maximilian Heim (2003) 16GP 0G 3A 3Pts
F – Eric Hördler (2004) 8GP 1G 2A 3Pts
F – Michael Bartuli (2002) 12GP 0G 1A 1Pts
G – Jonas Stettmer (2001) 2GP 1.97 GAA .932 Sv%
G – Nikita Quapp (2003) 1GP 2.00 GAA .895 Sv%
Geibel has seen solid minutes especially in the last 6 games. He may yet turn into another solid player for that remarkable 2002 born group. Heim has been fairly impressive in limited minutes. He has developed really well the last couple of years. Hopefully he can keep it up and take the next step.
Hördler, like Heim, is not playing a lot but aside from a few outliers it’s usually at least regular 4th line minutes and not just a handful of shifts. And both are making the most of it. Especially Hördler has one of the best points per 60 minutes values of all U23 players in the league.
The young goalies do not get many chances with Hildebrand starting the vast majority of the games.
Both are mostly playing DEL2 where they split the starts pretty evenly. So far Stettmer is outperforming the younger Quapp in both leagues, but the sample size is still pretty small.
Frankfurt:
F – Markus Schweiger (2002) 15GP 2G 0A 2Pts
F – Kevin Bicker (2005) 14GP 1G 0A 1Pts
D – Simon Gnyp (2001) 11GP 0G 1A 1Pts
D – Lua Niehus (2005) 10GP 0G 0A 0Pts
Oh look, another 2002 born player having a pretty good season. Schweiger’s ice time went down a little after starting the season in the top6, but it has stabilized at pretty decent level and he is doing a good job. His point totals could and should be higher, but that should take care of itself if he keeps playing like this. Bicker’s ice time has been at a low-end 4th line level most of the time with a few outliers up and down. His play has been inconsistent (not surprising for an 18-year-old), but it has improved as of late and he got rewarded (or rewarded himself) with his first DEL goal. It’s still too early to tell, but it looks like he is starting to get used to this level of play.
Gnyp is starting to run out of time, if he really wants to make it in the DEL. He turned 22 at the start of the season and will soon no longer benefit from his status as an U23 player. Unless he can establish himself as a DEL regular, he may soon find himself in the same situation as many other former U23 players where he cannot get a deal with a DEL team.
Niehus has actually played more than I thought he would when he signed with Frankfurt. However, the last 6 games he did not dress for 4 of them sat on the bench for 60 minutes in one of the remaining two and played only 51 seconds in the other. I am not a fan of playing these young men 2-3 minutes or less, but at least Niehus already had 3 games where he played 10, 14 and 16 minutes respectively. Those games can really help him. And he is only 18, so he still has time.
Schwenningen:
F – Daniel Neumann (2002) 13GP 1G 4A 5Pts
D – Arkadiusz Dziambor (2002) 4GP 0G 0A 0Pts
F – Filip Reisnecker (2001) 10GP 2G 0A 2Pts
F – Philip Feist (2003) 12GP 2G 0A 2Pts
D – Kai Zernikel (2003) 9GP 0G 0A 0Pts
Ever since Neumann returned from Switzerland where he played junior hockey for 5 and a half years (also some SL and even 8 games in the NL) he has been a pretty good player for Schwenningen. Already, at 13 games played, he is only 1 assist away from matching his point total of last season, when he played 33 games. And of course, he was born in 2002, just like Arkadiusz Dziambor who just joined Schwenningen after not getting any play in Mannheim this season. It’s only been 4 games, but so far, his ice time increased in each game, getting up to 15 minutes last game. Like many other 2001 born players Reisnecker really needs to step up if he wants to continue to play in the DEL. He always had the talent, but injuries have set him back multiple times. Right now, it’s not looking that good for him. The solid play from Philip Feist and the acquisition of Dziambor have made things even more difficult for Reisnecker, since most of the time teams don’t play (or dress) more than the mandatory three U23 players.
Munich:
F – Filip Varejcka (2001) 12GP 0G 5A 5Pts
F – Veit Oswald (2004) 16GP 4G 2A 6Pts
F – Nikolaus Heigl (2003) 8GP 0G 3A 3Pts
D – Jakob Weber (2004) 12GP 0G 1A 1Pts
D – Sten Fischer (2003) 1GP 0G 0A 0Pts
Varejcka is one of 5 to 8 guys born in 2001, who I expect to really stick in the DEL at this point. Despite some injuries along the way, he has developed very well and is probably the most skilled ’01 forward we have. Veit Oswald is adding to a growing group of 2004 born players that are making some noise. His minutes aren’t that crazy, but he is getting around or above 10 minutes consistently and he is clearly outproducing his ice time. And his game is becoming more and more well-rounded. We could have a future national team player on our hand here.
Nikolaus Heigl is the Heigl twin who is getting DEL games this season, a couple of seasons ago it was Thomas who got a first taste. Heigl really adjusted quickly to the league. Seeing a little less ice time than Oswald so far, Heigl is producing well within his limited role.
Jakob Weber started the season fairly strong in limited minutes and last game he actually got to play over 14 minutes. His play hasn’t been spectacular, but that he is getting to play this much at all is somewhat impressive, and while the 2004 forwards have been doing great this season, the defensemen have been a bit of a letdown. Weber is a rare exception so far. It would be nice if a dman from that birth year would pan out and as of now Weber has as good a chance as any of them.
Ingolstadt:
F – Philipp Krauß (2001) 16GP 3G 5A 8Pts
F – Enrico Henriquez-Morales (2001) 16GP 2G 2A 4Pts
D – Jan Nijenhuis (2001) 13GP 1G 0A 1Pts
F – Noah Dunham (2002) 4GP 0G 0A 0Pts
D – Daniel Schwaiger (2002) 9GP 0G 0A 0Pts
Krauß has been a pleasant surprise the last couple of seasons. I never paid much attention to him in juniors, so his development into an almost established DEL player, who is regularly contributing is quite unexpected to me. Henriquez-Morales on the other hand was a player I followed during his junior career he is also pretty established at this point. The other three are not really big factors so far.
Straubing:
F – Joshua Samanski (2002) 15GP 4G 3A 7Pts
D – Adrian Klein (2003) 16GP 1G 3A 4Pts
D – Mario Zimmermann (2001) 16GP 0G 1A 1Pts
F – Linus Brandl (2005) 2GP 0G 0A 0Pts
G – Florian Bugl (2002) 6GP 2.14 GAA .916 Sv%
I had actually hoped and expected a little more from Samanski, but he is still doing well and remains one of the top U23 players in the country. Klein has really exceeded my expectations to this point and he is getting rewarded with a decent amount of ice time. His trajectory is looking good and I hope he can keep it up.
Zimmermann on the other hand is playing less than last year. He wouldn’t be the first guy who looks good at 19 or 20 and then sees his ice time and scoring decrease and then ending up in the DEL2 or Oberliga. But I thought Zimmermann would not be in danger of that given his solid performances for the national team as well as the club. Hopefully he can bounce back.
Brandl has only played a few minutes in a couple of games recently. We will have to see if he gets more chances and any real ones.
Bugl continues to duel with Tiefensee for the spot of the best 2002 goalie. I have Tiefensee slightly ahead, but Bugl is getting a good number of starts this season and keeps performing very well. It is good to know we have some strong young goalies coming up. That was a position of great concern for me a couple of years ago.
Dusseldorf:
F – Bennet Roßmy (2003) 16GP 2G 6A 8Pts
F – Alexander Blank (2002) 16GP 1G 3A 4Pts
F – Josef Eham (2002) 16GP 1G 1A 2Pts
F – Jakub Borzecki (2002) 16GP 0G 0A 0Pts
F – Edmnd Junemann (2004) 3GP 0G 0A 0Pts
What a season from Roßmy so far. The move to Dusseldorf has really paid off for him. He is flourishing and is now clearly the top skater of the 2003 birth year. His game has translated very well from junior to the pro level and we should see him play in many World Championships in the future.
Alexander Blank had a very slow start to the season, but has picked it up in recent games, just as I was starting to doubt him again. Eham kind of went the other way. He started fairly well, but his play and his ice time took a dive after the first few games. He averaged more than 16 minutes through the first 4 games, but only about nine and a half minutes in the 12 games since.
Borzecki is not really progressing much as far as ice time or scoring are concerned compared to the previous season.
F – Markus Schweiger (2002) 15GP 2G 0A 2Pts
F – Kevin Bicker (2005) 14GP 1G 0A 1Pts
D – Simon Gnyp (2001) 11GP 0G 1A 1Pts
D – Lua Niehus (2005) 10GP 0G 0A 0Pts
Oh look, another 2002 born player having a pretty good season. Schweiger’s ice time went down a little after starting the season in the top6, but it has stabilized at pretty decent level and he is doing a good job. His point totals could and should be higher, but that should take care of itself if he keeps playing like this. Bicker’s ice time has been at a low-end 4th line level most of the time with a few outliers up and down. His play has been inconsistent (not surprising for an 18-year-old), but it has improved as of late and he got rewarded (or rewarded himself) with his first DEL goal. It’s still too early to tell, but it looks like he is starting to get used to this level of play.
Gnyp is starting to run out of time, if he really wants to make it in the DEL. He turned 22 at the start of the season and will soon no longer benefit from his status as an U23 player. Unless he can establish himself as a DEL regular, he may soon find himself in the same situation as many other former U23 players where he cannot get a deal with a DEL team.
Niehus has actually played more than I thought he would when he signed with Frankfurt. However, the last 6 games he did not dress for 4 of them sat on the bench for 60 minutes in one of the remaining two and played only 51 seconds in the other. I am not a fan of playing these young men 2-3 minutes or less, but at least Niehus already had 3 games where he played 10, 14 and 16 minutes respectively. Those games can really help him. And he is only 18, so he still has time.
Schwenningen:
F – Daniel Neumann (2002) 13GP 1G 4A 5Pts
D – Arkadiusz Dziambor (2002) 4GP 0G 0A 0Pts
F – Filip Reisnecker (2001) 10GP 2G 0A 2Pts
F – Philip Feist (2003) 12GP 2G 0A 2Pts
D – Kai Zernikel (2003) 9GP 0G 0A 0Pts
Ever since Neumann returned from Switzerland where he played junior hockey for 5 and a half years (also some SL and even 8 games in the NL) he has been a pretty good player for Schwenningen. Already, at 13 games played, he is only 1 assist away from matching his point total of last season, when he played 33 games. And of course, he was born in 2002, just like Arkadiusz Dziambor who just joined Schwenningen after not getting any play in Mannheim this season. It’s only been 4 games, but so far, his ice time increased in each game, getting up to 15 minutes last game. Like many other 2001 born players Reisnecker really needs to step up if he wants to continue to play in the DEL. He always had the talent, but injuries have set him back multiple times. Right now, it’s not looking that good for him. The solid play from Philip Feist and the acquisition of Dziambor have made things even more difficult for Reisnecker, since most of the time teams don’t play (or dress) more than the mandatory three U23 players.
Munich:
F – Filip Varejcka (2001) 12GP 0G 5A 5Pts
F – Veit Oswald (2004) 16GP 4G 2A 6Pts
F – Nikolaus Heigl (2003) 8GP 0G 3A 3Pts
D – Jakob Weber (2004) 12GP 0G 1A 1Pts
D – Sten Fischer (2003) 1GP 0G 0A 0Pts
Varejcka is one of 5 to 8 guys born in 2001, who I expect to really stick in the DEL at this point. Despite some injuries along the way, he has developed very well and is probably the most skilled ’01 forward we have. Veit Oswald is adding to a growing group of 2004 born players that are making some noise. His minutes aren’t that crazy, but he is getting around or above 10 minutes consistently and he is clearly outproducing his ice time. And his game is becoming more and more well-rounded. We could have a future national team player on our hand here.
Nikolaus Heigl is the Heigl twin who is getting DEL games this season, a couple of seasons ago it was Thomas who got a first taste. Heigl really adjusted quickly to the league. Seeing a little less ice time than Oswald so far, Heigl is producing well within his limited role.
Jakob Weber started the season fairly strong in limited minutes and last game he actually got to play over 14 minutes. His play hasn’t been spectacular, but that he is getting to play this much at all is somewhat impressive, and while the 2004 forwards have been doing great this season, the defensemen have been a bit of a letdown. Weber is a rare exception so far. It would be nice if a dman from that birth year would pan out and as of now Weber has as good a chance as any of them.
Ingolstadt:
F – Philipp Krauß (2001) 16GP 3G 5A 8Pts
F – Enrico Henriquez-Morales (2001) 16GP 2G 2A 4Pts
D – Jan Nijenhuis (2001) 13GP 1G 0A 1Pts
F – Noah Dunham (2002) 4GP 0G 0A 0Pts
D – Daniel Schwaiger (2002) 9GP 0G 0A 0Pts
Krauß has been a pleasant surprise the last couple of seasons. I never paid much attention to him in juniors, so his development into an almost established DEL player, who is regularly contributing is quite unexpected to me. Henriquez-Morales on the other hand was a player I followed during his junior career he is also pretty established at this point. The other three are not really big factors so far.
Straubing:
F – Joshua Samanski (2002) 15GP 4G 3A 7Pts
D – Adrian Klein (2003) 16GP 1G 3A 4Pts
D – Mario Zimmermann (2001) 16GP 0G 1A 1Pts
F – Linus Brandl (2005) 2GP 0G 0A 0Pts
G – Florian Bugl (2002) 6GP 2.14 GAA .916 Sv%
I had actually hoped and expected a little more from Samanski, but he is still doing well and remains one of the top U23 players in the country. Klein has really exceeded my expectations to this point and he is getting rewarded with a decent amount of ice time. His trajectory is looking good and I hope he can keep it up.
Zimmermann on the other hand is playing less than last year. He wouldn’t be the first guy who looks good at 19 or 20 and then sees his ice time and scoring decrease and then ending up in the DEL2 or Oberliga. But I thought Zimmermann would not be in danger of that given his solid performances for the national team as well as the club. Hopefully he can bounce back.
Brandl has only played a few minutes in a couple of games recently. We will have to see if he gets more chances and any real ones.
Bugl continues to duel with Tiefensee for the spot of the best 2002 goalie. I have Tiefensee slightly ahead, but Bugl is getting a good number of starts this season and keeps performing very well. It is good to know we have some strong young goalies coming up. That was a position of great concern for me a couple of years ago.
Dusseldorf:
F – Bennet Roßmy (2003) 16GP 2G 6A 8Pts
F – Alexander Blank (2002) 16GP 1G 3A 4Pts
F – Josef Eham (2002) 16GP 1G 1A 2Pts
F – Jakub Borzecki (2002) 16GP 0G 0A 0Pts
F – Edmnd Junemann (2004) 3GP 0G 0A 0Pts
What a season from Roßmy so far. The move to Dusseldorf has really paid off for him. He is flourishing and is now clearly the top skater of the 2003 birth year. His game has translated very well from junior to the pro level and we should see him play in many World Championships in the future.
Alexander Blank had a very slow start to the season, but has picked it up in recent games, just as I was starting to doubt him again. Eham kind of went the other way. He started fairly well, but his play and his ice time took a dive after the first few games. He averaged more than 16 minutes through the first 4 games, but only about nine and a half minutes in the 12 games since.
Borzecki is not really progressing much as far as ice time or scoring are concerned compared to the previous season.
Iserlohn:
F – Maciej Rutkowski (2002) 16GP 1G 4A 5Pts
F – Florian Elias (2002) 10GP 2G 1A 3Pts
F – Marcel Barinka (2001) 12GP 2G 0A 2Pts
D – Maxim Rausch (2003) 11GP 0G 1A 1Pts
F – John Broda (2001) 16GP 0G 0A 0Pts
D – Leonhard Korus (2002) 7GP 0G 0A 0Pts
F – Yannick Proske (2003) 9GP 0G 0A 0Pts
G – Finn Becker (2003) 1GP 4.47 GAA .714 Sv%
Rutkowski has taken a significant step forward last season when he signed with Iserloh, and he might take another one this season. While Elias has “only” been solid this season so far, I think he is on a good path, even if it seems right now like his little brother may surpass him. I still think Florian will have the better career overall, but that is of course just speculation.
Barinka has been a bit of a disappointment for a couple of years now. I have not seen him a lot this season, but I just don’t see much progress offensively and his defensive game might even be becoming worse, although it is admittedly difficult to look good defensively on this Iserlohn team.
Nuremberg:
F – Elis Hede (2001) 13GP 5G 7A 12Pts
F – Danjo Leonhardt (2002) 16GP 5G 5A 10Pts
F – Roman Kechter (2004) 16GP 3G 5A 8Pts
D – Justus Böttner (2002) 16GP 1G 2A 3Pts
D – Maximilian Merkl (2006) 4GP 0G 1A 1Pts
F – Lukas Ribarik (2001) 4GP 0G 3A 3Pts
Ever since Nuremberg signed the young Finn during last season, he has been great. His start to this season was fantastic, but he has missed the last three games and I don’t know how long he will be out. The Ice Tigers have some serious injury woes right now, which hurts their results, but on the plus side it gives some of the young guys a chance to shine in more significant roles and most of them have stepped up. Danjo Leonhardt and Roman Kechter most noticeably as far as scoring is concerned, but they are also now playing big and tough minutes. Leonhardt has done that before, but Kechter had little experience doing it at this level.
Since the injuries are even worse on defense Max Merkl was basically thrown into the deep end and had to play significant minutes right off the bat. With the signing of Philipp Mass his minutes might go down a little more, but he has done really well under these difficult circumstances, and hopefully this will encourage the coaching staff to continue giving him a real shot going forward, even when the vets return from their injuries.
I am always rooting for this team, since they decided to go with more young, homegrown players and they have been doing so for a few years now. Sure, the results have not been great, but I love watching them and they have done quite a bit for the development of several young talents.
F – Maciej Rutkowski (2002) 16GP 1G 4A 5Pts
F – Florian Elias (2002) 10GP 2G 1A 3Pts
F – Marcel Barinka (2001) 12GP 2G 0A 2Pts
D – Maxim Rausch (2003) 11GP 0G 1A 1Pts
F – John Broda (2001) 16GP 0G 0A 0Pts
D – Leonhard Korus (2002) 7GP 0G 0A 0Pts
F – Yannick Proske (2003) 9GP 0G 0A 0Pts
G – Finn Becker (2003) 1GP 4.47 GAA .714 Sv%
Rutkowski has taken a significant step forward last season when he signed with Iserloh, and he might take another one this season. While Elias has “only” been solid this season so far, I think he is on a good path, even if it seems right now like his little brother may surpass him. I still think Florian will have the better career overall, but that is of course just speculation.
Barinka has been a bit of a disappointment for a couple of years now. I have not seen him a lot this season, but I just don’t see much progress offensively and his defensive game might even be becoming worse, although it is admittedly difficult to look good defensively on this Iserlohn team.
Nuremberg:
F – Elis Hede (2001) 13GP 5G 7A 12Pts
F – Danjo Leonhardt (2002) 16GP 5G 5A 10Pts
F – Roman Kechter (2004) 16GP 3G 5A 8Pts
D – Justus Böttner (2002) 16GP 1G 2A 3Pts
D – Maximilian Merkl (2006) 4GP 0G 1A 1Pts
F – Lukas Ribarik (2001) 4GP 0G 3A 3Pts
Ever since Nuremberg signed the young Finn during last season, he has been great. His start to this season was fantastic, but he has missed the last three games and I don’t know how long he will be out. The Ice Tigers have some serious injury woes right now, which hurts their results, but on the plus side it gives some of the young guys a chance to shine in more significant roles and most of them have stepped up. Danjo Leonhardt and Roman Kechter most noticeably as far as scoring is concerned, but they are also now playing big and tough minutes. Leonhardt has done that before, but Kechter had little experience doing it at this level.
Since the injuries are even worse on defense Max Merkl was basically thrown into the deep end and had to play significant minutes right off the bat. With the signing of Philipp Mass his minutes might go down a little more, but he has done really well under these difficult circumstances, and hopefully this will encourage the coaching staff to continue giving him a real shot going forward, even when the vets return from their injuries.
I am always rooting for this team, since they decided to go with more young, homegrown players and they have been doing so for a few years now. Sure, the results have not been great, but I love watching them and they have done quite a bit for the development of several young talents.
Great review Maverick - thanks for your fantastic work 
Jersey Fan 12
Positive Vibes
- Nov 20, 2006
- 6,064
- 2,594
Barinka was of to a decent start for Vitkovice before struggling in the DEL. Is that merely attributable to the difference in levels between the two leagues or are there other factors?
It's kind of the other way round. He started the season in the DEL and moved to Vitkovice, where he seems to be doing better.
I don't necessarily think it has to do with different levels of the leagues. He has played for 4 different teams in Germany. When he first came to Germany from Halifax, he had a really good season with Cologne, considering how young he was. His second season with Cologne was less impressive. Still ok, but he struggled especially with his defensive game.
He then moved on to Berlin for his third season, and that never worked. His minutes dropped pretty quickly and his lack of two-way play really showed. He quickly moved on to Augsburg, where he had a promising start, but really only as far as points were concerned. His overall play was not that good, but it was not all on him, the entire team was struggling.
For this season he signed again with a new team (Iserlohn). Another team that would inevitably end up in the league's basement, Barinka never really lived up to his offensive talent.
I think he can definitely play at a higher level than he did these last 2 seasons, but he needs to get better all around, he won't make it on skill alone, not even in second tier Euro pro leagues like DEL and Extraliga.
Note, that these are just my observations from the outside, based solely on watching 5-10 games of him each season. There may have been other things going on that I am not aware of.
Jersey Fan 12
Positive Vibes
- Nov 20, 2006
- 6,064
- 2,594
@Maverick41 That makes a lot more sense. Didn't realize he started the year in Germany. It will be interesting to see where things go from here.
I had to look it up but it appears Berlin and Fischtown will battle for league honors.
Berlin with some notable Germans and The Penguins with a heavy Slovenian presence.
Hildebrand vs Gudlevskis in goal.
Berlin with some notable Germans and The Penguins with a heavy Slovenian presence.
Hildebrand vs Gudlevskis in goal.
It's 1st against 2nd. It's a big-town club against a fairly small-town club.
Financially speaking, the two a world's apart within the realm of the DEL.
There are many who don't care for the fact that the majority of players for Bremerhaven are foreign-born, even a handful have German passes (not passports, but player passes). Along with the Slovenians, the team usually has a strong Danish component, which is the case this year too.
Whatever happens, this has been an absolute fairy tale season for a Bremerhaven club that has been a thorn in the side of the league for many years now. They're always competitive and they just seem to get more and more dangerous each season. They also have a lot of players who have been there for a while and have clearly bought in.
That said, even though Bremerhaven was 1st overall, I'm thinking most DEL fans see Berlin having the better skill and a stronger experience factor, making them the faves.
Once the series is over, gotta think that D Kälble of Bremerhaven as well as Noebels, Pföderl, J. Müller, Wissmann, and surely any number of Weiderer, T. Eder, Nowak or Bergmann could be summoned to join Team Germany.
I would agree - plenty of German national teamers here and they are favorites. Gudlevskis is going to have to make the difference.
Is there a way to watch in North America?
Looking ahead to next season here is a list of most of the incoming and outgoing players for the DEL teams.
Incoming transfers:
Outgoing transfers:
Incoming transfers:
| Team | |||
| Adler Mannheim | Luke Esposito (Augsburg) | Tobias Fohrler (Ambri-Piotta/SUI) | |
| Augsburger Panther | |||
| Düsseldorfer EG | Max Balinson (Crimmitschau) | ||
| Eisbären Berlin | |||
| ERC Ingolstadt | Daniel Schmölz (Nürnberg) | Riley Sheen (EV Zug) | Sam Ruopp (Lausitzer Füchse) |
| Fischtown Pinguins | |||
| Grizzlys Wolfsburg | |||
| Iserlohn Roosters | Colton Jobke (Ingolstadt) | Brayden Burke (Lukko/FIN) | |
| Kölner Haie | |||
| Löwen Frankfurt | |||
| Nürnberg IceTigers | Josef Eham (Düsseldorf) | Eugen Alanov (Frankfurt) | |
| RB München | |||
| Schwenninger Wild Wings | Michael Bitzer (VER Selb) | Mirko Höfflin (ERC Ingolstadt) | Daniel Schweiger (ERC Ingolstadt) |
| Straubing Tigers |
Outgoing transfers:
| Team | ||||||||
| Adler Mannheim | David Wolf (Unknown) | Korbinian Holzer (Unknown) | Max Gildon (Unknown) | Jordan Murray (Unknown) | Denis Reul (Unknown) | Simon Thiel (Unknown) | Keaton Thompson (Unknown) | Magnus Eisenmenger (Unknown) |
| Augsburger Panther | Luke Esposito (Mannheim) | |||||||
| Düsseldorfer EG | Victor Svensson (Storhamar/NOR) | Josef Eham (Nürnberg) | Hendrik Hane (unknown) | Luke Green (unknown) | Phil Varone (unknown) | Kenny Agostino (unknown) | Edmund Junemann (unknown) | |
| Eisbären Berlin | ||||||||
| ERC Ingolstadt | Andrew Rowe (Unknown) | Patrik Virta (Unknown) | Brandon Kozun (Unknown) | Mirko Höfflin (Schwenningen) | Casey Bailey (Unknown) | Marko Friedrich (Unknown) | Colton Jobke (Iserlohn) | David Farrance (Unknown) |
| Fischtown Pinguins | ||||||||
| Grizzlys Wolfsburg | ||||||||
| Iserlohn Roosters | ||||||||
| Kölner Haie | ||||||||
| Löwen Frankfurt | Eugen Alanov (Nürnberg) | |||||||
| Nürnberg IceTigers | Daniel Schmölz (Ingolstadt) | Tim Fleischer (Unknown) | Elis Hede (Unknown) | Danjo Leonhardt (Unknown) | Dane Fox (Unknown) | Ludwig Byström (Unknown) | Ian Scheid (Unknown) | Jack Dougherty (Unknown) |
| RB München | Ben Street (unknown) | Austin Ortega (unknown) | Thomas Heigl (unknown) | Adam Almquist (unknown) | ||||
| Schwenninger Wild Wings | Cody Brenner (unknown) | |||||||
| Straubing Tigers | Nicholas Mattinen (Toronto) | Benedikt Kohl (Retired) | Matt Bradley (unknown) | Tyler Sheehy (unknown) | Parker Tuomie (unknown) | Mark Zengerle (unknown) |
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