betprepare.com

In the first two rounds DEG conceded 11, and scored only one goal

DEG have only one goal this season - to avoid the last place on the table. Judging by their performances so far, this could prove to be a rather difficult task.

After losing in the first two rounds the Freezers are desperate for a win today. Last Friday they lost the match in overtime in Munich, and last Sunday they lost after conceding very late in Nurnberg. After an even first period, in the 25th minute Nurnberg took the lead. But, just three minutes after that Jerome Flaake scored from power play for Hamburg. Two minutes before the end of the game, just as it seemed that the match is going to overtime, the home team scored the winning goal. Hamburg successfully defended all seven of their opponents power plays, and their goalie Niklas Treutle defended 33 out of 35 shots on his goal. But, that wasn't enough to win the game since they are  struggling in the attack


- I wish to congratulate Nurnberg for playing a very good match. I can't blame my boys for anything, they gave their best against a very tough opponent - said Hamburg's coach Benoit Laporte.


- We are disappointed for winning only one point in the last two matches. We played an even game in Nurnberg and in the end we found ourselves on the losing side. It was a very close match and we could have easily won that one. I can't be satisfied with my own performances, it is very frustrating to concede a goal in such a late stage of the game - goalie Niklas Treutle added. He has successfully defended 93,8% shots on his goal this season.


The home team is struggling with injuries a lot this season. Their goalie Dimitri Kotshnew is out, and head-coach Laporte can't count on five more players. Defenseman Ejdepalm and Roy, forwards Mochel, Cabane and Pettinger are all out due to injuries. Also, the appearance of the defenseman Westcott remains questionable. Despite the problems with injuries, they are still favorites against probably the weakest team in the competition.


The away team is well aware of their capabilities and their expectations from this season are definitely not high. They are a rather limited team and they have shown that during the two very convincing defeats they experienced last weekend. The Freezers lost 5-1 in Krefeld, and couple of days later they lost 6-0 to Munchen in front of their own crowd. That was a rather odd match as DEG had nine power play chances and they failed to score a single goal. On the other side, the away team turned all of their five power plays into goals. In the 13th minute Munich was leading 4-0 and the match was practically over.


- We were very slow, we didn't help each other in the defense and we were standing too far away from the opponent players - said assistant captain Bernhard Ebner. 


DAG is experiencing some financial issues and they have the youngest team in the competition. Besides the financial ones, they also have a lot of troubles with injuries. Their top goalscorer Ashton Rome, captain Daniel Kreutzer and forwards Alexander Preibisch and Manuel Strodel are all out. Also, defenseman Andrew Hotham is under five-match long suspension and thus will be unavailable today.


They basically have only one offensive lineup and they just don't posses the required quality to play against most of the teams in the league. They are facing a very tough challenge tonight. Hamburg is an ''wounded beast'' after two narrow defeats in the last rounds and I think DAG is an ideal opponent for gaining back some confidence.

The DEG Metro Stars are at this moment a weaker team. They don't have a lot to offer in attack, and their defense has conceded 11 goals in the last two games. Even though Hamburg has injury problems, there is a big difference in quality and DEG will probably lose today for the third time this season. The first two games they lost with 4 and 6 goals of difference, and they will not concede any less against Hamburg. I would recommend a safe bet of over two goals for the home team.