Since the NHL is taking a break during the Winter Olympics, players from the world’s best ice hockey league will also be there for the first time since 2014. The German squad is nominally better than ever before. But all other nations can also rely on their best players.
At the Olympic Games in Milan Cortina, for the first time in history, six players from the NHL will be in the German Ice Hockey Federation (DEB) squad. National coach Harold Kreis nominated superstar Leon Draisaitl (Edmonton Oilers), Tim Stützle (Ottawa Senators), Moritz Seider (Detroit Red Wings), Philipp Grubauer (Seattle Kraken), Nico Sturm (Minnesota Wild) and JJ Peterka (Utah Mammoth).
Lukas Reichel (Vancouver Canucks), Wojciech Stachowiak (Tampa Bay Lightning) and Joshua Samanski (Edmonton) will also be there. The trio have signed NHL contracts, but play for the farm teams in the AHL training league.
“Best team of all time”
For Nico Sturm from the Minnesota Wild, a two-time Stanley Cup winner, the DEB team is “In terms of squad, the best team of all time.” But it’s difficult to say at the moment whether this will be reflected in a medal. Because, like the DEB, all other nations can also rely on their stars from the NHL – and some have even more players there, both at the top and at the top.
Nico Sturm therefore sees the Olympic Games as the perfect yardstick: “We have said in recent years that German ice hockey is on the upswing“, he said before the squad announcement. “This really is a perfect opportunity to see where we stand when all teams have all players available.“
Leon Draisaitl – one of the best players in the world
The undisputed star of the German team is Leon Draisaitl. The Cologne native is one of the absolute top stars in the NHL. In 2020 he received the Art Ross Trophy for the most points scored (goals and assists) and consequently became the MVP of the season. Last season he scored the most goals in the league during the regular season and the most points overall in the play-offs.
Leon Draisaitl in the Edmonton Oilers jersey
Since Draisaitl usually plays in the NHL, it will be his first Olympic Games. “Leon is an exceptional player. It will be cool for everyone to play on a team with someone like Leon“, said Tim Stützle, himself an accurate striker from the Ottawa Senators, about the world-class striker Interview with Sport Bild: “Everyone will learn from him.”
The Germans in the NHL: On the way to the top
Stützle could become the second star in the German team. The 23-year-old is already playing his sixth season in the NHL and is his team’s best scorer. With 45 points (19 goals, 26 assists) in 41 games this season, he is in 21st place on the league-wide scorers list. Moritz Seider also plays outstandingly. In contrast to Draisaitl and Stützle, Seider is a defender. The 24-year-old has played in all 82 games in each of his past four seasons. He is currently in second place in his division with the Detroit Red Wings.
Tim Stützle (r.) from the Ottawa Senators celebrates a goal in the NHL
In JJ Peterka, the German team has another accurate striker in its ranks. Goalie Philipp Grubauer has had changeable seasons in recent years and not always from the start, but has recently turned up the heat and is currently in outstanding shape with Seattle Kraken.
Offensive from the NHL, defense from the DEL
In addition to the professionals from North America, Moritz Müller (Kölner Haie) and Jonas Müller (Eisbären Berlin) stand out from the 25-man squad of national coach Harold Kreis, as well as Swiss legionnaire Dominik Kahun from Lausanne HC. The trio sensationally won the silver medal with the German team in Pyeongchang eight years ago.
Captain Moritz Müller is going to his third Winter Games at the age of 39, and district favorite Alexander Ehl (Adler Mannheim) also made it into the squad, which includes a total of 16 runners-up in 2023. However, there are question marks behind some of them. Kai Wissmann from the Eisbären has not yet played a game of the season after tearing his Achilles tendon, but is expected to return soon. Goalkeeper Niederberger, who has been number two behind Grubauer for years, and former NHL strikers Tobias Rieder and Kahun are also not yet ready to play again.
Two generations: Captain Moritz Müller (l.) and Moritz Seider in the 2021 DEB team
Does Germany have a chance of one? Olympic medal?
For the German team, the opportunity to nominate NHL players is on the one hand a blessing, but on the other hand it is also a curse. Because the top nations are brimming with NHL power both across the board and at the top. “If you look at each other’s squads, it will be extremely difficult to get close to Sweden, Finland, USA and Canada“, Stützle classifies the balance of power.
Germany’s silver medal at the Olympic Games in Pyeongchang was a sensation. With all NHL players on board, a medal will be much more difficult. Stützle sees at least outside chances for the German team. With such short tournaments, “about how quickly you get together. We don’t come from playfulness, but from hard work. We need to understand this as quickly as possible. Then I wouldn’t rule anything out.“
At the 2026 Olympics there will be three groups with four teams each. Germany will face Denmark, Latvia and the USA in the preliminary round. The group winners and the best group runners-up automatically advance to the quarter-finals. The other eight teams play in knockout games for a place in the quarterfinals. The first German game is scheduled for February 12th against Denmark.