The result crisis is coming to a head: Defending champions Eisbären Berlin lost the repeat of last year’s final at EHC Red Bull Munich in the German Ice Hockey League (DEL) 1:4 (0:1, 0:1, 1:2).
Coach Serge Aubin’s side took just three points from their first four games, falling behind the top play-off spots early in the season.
The Adler Mannheim move up to 10th place with a 3:2 (1:2, 0:0, 1:0, 0:0, 1:0) after a penalty shoot-out against the Straubing Tigers. The Kölner Haie, who were still furious at the start of the season won 6:3 against Munich, after the 1:3 (0:1, 1:2, 0:0) at the Schwenninger Wild Wings, they fell deeper and deeper into the table basement.
Three days after the Eisbären’s first win of the season against newly promoted Löwen Frankfurt, in which they lost a 4-0 lead in the last third and were only able to win in extra time, the runners-up from Munich set the tone from the start.
Early lead for Red Bull Munich
Austin Ortega scored the opening goal for the EHC after just two minutes, and in the second period Ben Street followed suit (30′). In the final third, the German international Maximilian Kastner (49th) and Ben Smith (59th) made everything clear, before that Marcel Noebels had brought the Berliners up again (47th).
“Defensively we still make too many mistakes. A team like Munich uses them coldly,” said Berlin’s Jonas Müller at MagentaSport: “We still have a lot of work to do, but the season is still long. We will come back. “