Derby opponents on equal terms: That’s what makes EHC Winterthur so dangerous for HC Thurgau
After its playoff premiere last spring, EHC Winterthur got off to a strong start in the new season. On Tuesday at 7:45 p.m. he will be a guest at HC Thurgau.
Safe support: Winterthur’s goalie Damian Stettler, here in the home game against Olten, has the puck in his catcher’s glove.
The EHC Winterthur is a gift for the Swiss League. Without him and the patronage of President Rolf Löhrer, the second highest division in Swiss ice hockey would perhaps already be history today due to a lack of participants. And since last season, when the team led by sports director Christian Weber made it into the playoffs for the first time, the Zurich team has been a serious opponent for all competitors.
EHC Winterthur is a special gift for HC Thurgau. Because he has been SC Herisau’s first and only derby opponent since the NLB days – and is usually inferior to the HCT. Also this season? Before the Swiss League round last Friday, the Winterthur team, who had started well, were ranked ahead of Thurgau in the table. As with the HCT, victories against Bellinzona, Sierre (in a penalty shootout) and Olten resulted.
Winterthur counts on strong goalkeepers
For the first derby of the 2024/25 season this Tuesday at 7.45 p.m. in the Weinfelder Güttingersreuti, a fight on equal terms can be expected. Winterthur’s sports director Weber predicts “a fast, very aggressive game”. At the beginning of this season, Weber’s team thrives on strong goalkeeping performances. Both Christof von Burg (95.87% of all shots saved) and Damian Stettler (94.59%) are statistically slightly ahead of Thurgau’s Loïc Galley (94.05%). HCT backup Mathieu Croce (96.49%) towers above them all in his two previous appearances.
On the other hand, the young and fast team at EHC Winterthur usually scores their goals from a counterattack. So the people of Thurgau have been warned. Winterthur’s current top scorer is Nico Lehmann. The royal transfer – he was stolen from the HCT – has so far met all of Zurich’s expectations, as sports director Weber says. “He is the desired leader in our game.” The fact that the club was able to cushion the departures of last year’s top goalie Michal Chmel (to the Czech Republic) and Canadian high-flyer Josh Lawrence (to Sierre) relatively well proves that Winterthur’s squad development under the former HCT head coach and sports director Weber is sustainable.
When patronage reaches its limits
The fact that EHC Winterthur has only played with his compatriot Allan McShane as the only foreigner for four games and the injury of Canadian Brett Neumann shows that the development and financial scope are not yet as advanced or as large as in Thurgau, where with Sebastian Benker reacted quickly to the loss of Swede Daniel Ljunggren.
More articles from these communities
