For Steven Raabe and Jan Nijenhuis from the Grizzlys Wolfsburg, the Germany Cup in Krefeld was over quickly with the top Beijing team. After two games within two days. But that was not unexpected for this junior team, which had been formed as a replacement after many rejections by top nations. And so the Wolfsburg U20 players were overall very satisfied. The grizzlies had also been seen with joy.
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Defender Raabe said: “It was just cool. On the one hand, I would never have thought that I would play at the Deutschland Cup so young, on the other hand, it was of course a great experience and was good for staying in a rhythm.” Ice hockey professionals are used to two games in quick succession. Striker Nijenhuis saw it the same way and said: “It was just great for the rhythm.” Because of Corona there wasn’t much with games this year, the Wolfsburg duo had already had two appearances for cooperation partner Hannover Indians (Oberliga), tests in which Nijenhuis even scored two goals.
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In forward gear: Grizzlys defender Steven Raabe in the international match between Top Team Beijing and Latvia.
© City-Press GmbH /DEB
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At the Germany Cup, however, a different level was waiting: it was a 2: 7 against the DEB-A national team. It was very busy and had plenty of individual class. “You didn’t notice that they had a break almost every eight months,” said Raabe. It was often too fast for the junior team, half of which consisted of U20 players and the other half were up to 25 years old. It looked better against Latvia the next day. “There was more to it,” said Raabe, annoyed about the 2: 4. Nijenhuis also thought: “It could have been different.” But the German team in particular had mercilessly punished mistakes. Raabe honestly: “There were situations that I could have solved better, but mistakes happen at this level and people talked about them – and these are games that you can learn from.”
U20 coach Tobias Abstreiter analyzed the games by video with his protégés – because the experiences, for example with the physically tough game of the Latvians, were very important for the U20 players. The Junior World Championship in Canada awaits them in December. Nijenhuis, who left the tournament with a decent plus-minus balance of 0 and has been a selection regular for a long time, has good cards to be there. Raabe, who only really came into the focus of the junior selection last year, has to wait. Both can of course still recommend themselves through league appearances.
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“Everything is well organized!”
The process in Krefeld – in this tournament under Corona conditions – complex but optimal. Nijenhuis: “We had a tight program, with two training sessions the day before the game, then the games and the analyzes, that distracted us from it. But it was very well organized, for example with the ways around the opposing teams except on the ice Neither in the hall nor in the hotel to get too close. And the mask requirement outside the ice has long been standard, you don’t even notice it anymore. “
After they got another corona test with a negative result at the end of the international match, they are now staying with the grizzlies, who start in the Magentasport Cup in a week. You don’t play for Hannover at first. How things will go on, where they could be used if they were to be superfluous in the DEL squad, remains to be discussed. It will also be related to the decision on the DEL season (scheduled to start on December 18), which is due to fall in the House of Lords on November 19. The grizzlies do not yet have a second division cooperation partner (the season started here on Friday).
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