Polar bear captain Frank Hördler is going back home Photo: picture alliance / Eibner-Pressefoto | Jonas Brockman
From BZ/dpa
After 20 years and nine championship titles, ice hockey veteran Frank Hördler says goodbye to the capital. In the future he will play for his home club Selber Wölfe in the DEL2.
Club legend Frank Hördler leaves the Eisbären Berlin. The 38-year-old defender returns to his home club Selber Wölfe after 20 professional years with the record champions of the German Ice Hockey League (DEL). The second division club from Upper Franconia presented the prominent newcomer to the public on Tuesday.
“I thank the Eisbären Berlin for twenty incredible and intense years,” said Hördler in a farewell statement. “The decision to leave the Eisbären was very difficult for me. I would like to thank everyone in charge, my coaches, teammates and supervisors over the past two decades, as well as the incredible fans. Without them I would not have been able to celebrate the successes.”
1026 games for the polar bears
Hördler played a total of 1026 DEL games for the Berliners, which he led onto the ice as captain in the past three seasons. In 2003, at the age of 18, the Bad Muskauer native moved to the capital from ERC Selb, where he had learned to play ice hockey.
In the same year he made his debut with the polar bears and was then on the team for all of the club’s DEL championships. With nine titles, he is the sole record holder in the league. In 2018 he also won the silver medal with the German national team at the Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang.
Although the past season ended disappointingly for the defending champion from the capital with the unexpected exit after the main round, Hördler was able to celebrate two more personal career highlights: In September, the veteran was in a league game for the first time together with his 18-year-old son Eric Ice, in December he played his 1000th DEL encounter.