NHL star Leon Draisaitl will not take part in the Ice Hockey World Championships in Switzerland after the disappointment at the Olympics.
Defender Moritz Seider and goalkeeper Philipp Grubauer, on the other hand, are about to make a comeback. Christian Künast, sports director at the German Ice Hockey Federation (DEB), confirmed this to the specialist magazine “Ice Hockey News” on Saturday before the test match against Austria in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.
According to Künast, the NHL professionals Seider (Detroit) and Grubauer (Seattle), who missed the playoffs with their teams, should join national coach Harold Kreis’ DEB selection for the fourth phase of preparation for the World Cup (May 15th to 31st) with the dress rehearsal against Olympic champions and defending champions USA (May 10th, 5 p.m.).
“He’ll be with us from Wednesday and then we’ll just look from day to day. The goal is for him to play the game against the USA and then give the green light for the World Cup after the game,” said Künast about Seider, who is still injured and is rehabilitating in Mannheim.
At the World Cup last year, the 25-year-old led the team onto the ice as captain.
Grubauer is “a model player and a very, very good team player who also gives a lot to the other players,” said Künast. The goalie also struggled with an injury in the final sprint of the main round.
Another NHL disappointment for ailing Draisaitl
Draisaitl didn’t go into the playoffs fully fit and then failed in round one with the Edmonton Oilers. The knee injury that the striker sustained in mid-March does not appear to have healed yet.
The chances of participation for Tim Stützle (Ottawa Senators) and John-Jason Peterka (Utah Mammoth), who were also eliminated, have also decreased due to physical complaints.
Draisaitl’s teammate Josh Samanski could still join the German team after “good discussions” (Künast).
Defender Maksymilian Szuber, who recently took part in the World Cup three times but was not considered by Kreis for the Olympics, has canceled due to his expiring contract with the NHL organization in Utah.
It has not yet been decided whether Lukas Reichel (Boston Bruins) will travel after the playoff exit or whether he will be sent to the AHL.
