What excited the German national ice hockey team at the World Cup in Latvia.
One of the World Cup heroes is Maximilian Kastner.
The Garmisch-Partenkirchner speaks in the Tagblatt interview with sports editor Patrick Hilmes about this unforgettable journey full of highlights but also bitter defeats.
Mr. Kastner, what was the first thing you did after arriving back in Germany?
We had to get out of the hotel around 4 a.m.
Then we went to the airport, landed in Frankfurt and then on to Munich.
At home I first took a shower, unpacked my bag, and then I went on to Garmisch-Partenkirchen.
You probably fell in bed dead after that, right?
I fell asleep again at 5 p.m., but then I went out to eat with my buddies.
I missed everything.
First the outside catering and now you can eat inside again.
I had to take advantage of that directly with the boys.
We let it go well.
That was time again.
Have you reached the point of pride or is there still disappointment?
I'm proud now.
The disappointment was quickly gone because we were such a great team.
You could also see that in Dominik Kahun's video that went viral.
How we sang Wonderwall loudly on the bus.
But of course there was no dry eye after the games in the dressing room.
After which game - Finland or USA?
After both.
The game against Finland was the more disappointing one because we were the better team and we lost undeservedly.
You first have to manage to put such a nation on the wall.
We also heard from the Finns' assistant coach that they didn't think they were going to advance.
How was the mood in the dressing room afterwards?
The disappointment was of course huge.
Especially with Toni (national coach Toni Söderholm, editor's note).
This is his home country and he was the coach of the better team, only the wrong team got through.
In the dressing room afterwards, he couldn't even finish a sentence.
In the game against the USA we were too dogged because of the chance for a medal.
The Americans were just more relaxed.
What is your World Cup conclusion anyway?
I think we made a very, very big difference.
We have also received a lot of positive news.
We should build on that now.
Don't bury your head in the sand and cry after the medal.
We should look ahead and tackle the Olympics.
We have shown again that we can take on the top nations.
And we are world champions (laughs).
The Canadians have won the title again. Was that what you expected after Canada narrowly made it through the preliminary round?
It's unbelievable when you consider that Canada would have been out if we drew against Latvia.
But after that it was clear that they would win the title.
That just went with the story.
What was it like to live in the corona bubble for such a period of time?
Very tough.
We were almost never allowed to leave the hotel.
We only went to dinner once, that was somewhere in the forest - completely sealed off.
There was a burger and we were allowed out for two hours.
Otherwise everyone had their own single room, and we were in single isolation for the first three days.
Afterwards we could at least eat together, play cards, play table tennis, sit together in the rooms for a bit.
But usually you go into town and look around a bit.
We also had a great view of Riga - 20th floor.
You could see everything where you weren't allowed to go.
Was there at least a bit of the World Cup atmosphere?
Not really. You were totally isolated, also from the other teams. There were only a few moments when you realized it was a world championship. One was when Latvia beat Canada in the first round match. Latvia was also staying with us in the hotel. And I thought the Latvian fans were racing into our hotel, they were so euphoric. They also cheered incredibly when we beat Canada. Another moment was when we played against Latvia in front of a crowd. I got goosebumps after walking in. There weren't many, but it was loud and unfamiliar. Unfortunately, you quickly get used to the fact that there are no spectators, that it is quiet, that you can hear everyone else. And then all of a sudden, when it was really about, fans were there again. It was a great feeling.It could also have been the Latvians' game. But we didn't let that happen.
The team had to endure various pressure situations. The first against Latvia. Had you lost, the World Cup would have been a disappointment ...
The whole tournament was insane.
Ups and downs.
After we won the first three games, people thought like this: Wow, this will be our World Cup.
But then you lose to Kazakhstan and Finland.
You could already feel the pressure.
But we knew that if we played our game, then we would win it. That was communicated by the coach and among the players.
Each took the pressure off the other.
That way we could just enjoy it.
Then the drama against Switzerland continued ...
That was brutal, one of the toughest games in the World Cup.
The Swiss teased something in advance.
In the media it was communicated that there is no easier opponent in the quarter-finals than us.
It felt like we were an easy hurdle.
But in the game we were the better team and we fired twice as many shots.
It was only a matter of time before we score a goal.
You noticed that the pen was going well.
After the 2: 2 they were only quiet, and the atmosphere was so great for us.
In overtime nobody wanted to take the wrong step, nobody wanted to be the idiot.
The penalty shootout was amazing.
It couldn't be worse.
Did Marcel tell Noebels what he was going to do beforehand?
No.
In the game before that he has to get out and then he makes a move like that - brutal.
If he had to equalize, he certainly wouldn't have done it that way.
I just thought: Are you kidding me?
The bank went completely nuts.
There's a cool video that shows how our physiotherapist rattles the door against the bench and Tobias Rieder doesn't even know where to go.
Just awesome.
How loud were you in the cabin afterwards?
These weren't closed cubicles, but a separate gymnasium.
Therefore everything was open upstairs.
I think we were heard well because we completely freaked out (smiles).
Was that the coolest moment of the tournament?
Yes, definitely.
Also how we stood on the blue line and everyone shouted the national anthem.
Those were pretty crooked notes, but that didn't matter (laughs).
Was there at least a little celebration afterwards?
Yes, a little bit.
But of course we knew that it was only a small step, we had a lot more plans.
So we stayed disciplined.
And then it continued in the semi-finals against Finland with this historic chance ...
We were excited, but in the first game against Finland we saw that we had a chance. We have been hired really well, also in the special teams. The first ten minutes were tactical. Everyone looked to see if the other really played the way they were supposed to. You also noticed that both coaches are tactical experts. That might not be so cool to watch, but you didn't want to make the first mistake either. The Finns are very good at building walls. Then they make two goals out of their first two chances. They have the quality, we knew how to accept that. But we also knew that we still had a chance. We didn't let ourselves be thrown out of the rhythm. The coaches also conveyed a positive mood. We just knew we were better.There has never been a situation where I thought the Finns were superior. We just scored one goal too few. Actually, we were closer to silver and gold than bronze.
Which hurts more, the defeat against Finland or the one against the USA?
Against Finland.
The one against the US doesn't hurt nearly as much because we were just closer to making history again.
How many messages did you have on your cell phone?
Incredibly many.
A lot of positive ones, even after the semi-finals.
That was good.
How did the team manage to get the team spirit on the ice again?
No groups were formed during the preparation. Toni put the squad together in such a way that the character also fits. There are always players who are not used. If they bring in a negative mood, it can pull the whole team down. The guys who didn't play never looked long. We knew we had the talent and could be a unit that can beat anyone. We also said to ourselves: if we play badly, the atmosphere will stay good. If someone drives a check, interrupts the attack of the opponent, then we celebrate it on the bench. We took this mood on the ice and played like this from day one. The opponent then has to break you, the team and the morale on the bench first. We embodied that you don't just need the talentbut also the will that everyone sacrifices himself for the other. You saw that especially in the game against Canada. Everyone threw themselves in the shots, nobody was too good for it.
You were one of them. How many bruises do you have left?
One is still there on the hip.
But I knew the outnumbered game would be mine.
If you don't accept the role, you haven't lost anything in the team.
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Accepts his role completely: Kastner (left) is especially in demand when Germany is outnumbered.
© Jari Pestelacci via www.imago-images.de
How was it when you got the news that you were going to be at your first World Cup?
That was the fulfillment of my childhood dream.
My parents were also incredibly proud.
It's a nice feeling when the family is so behind you.
From then on I just thought: Now it can only get awesome.
The feeling of sitting in the plane with the clothes of the national team on and then pulling on the jersey before the first game - indescribable.
A time that you will never forget.
In the end, it's just a shame to see that the Americans didn't really celebrate their medal.
We would have freaked out.
Did you notice that Germany was in ice hockey fever?
I couldn't believe it because you never really noticed it.
But through all the news you slowly noticed it more and more.
I think that we have taken another step forward.
The most important thing is that we hopefully could animate the offspring as a result.
If not, it was kind of ruined.
Was there a specific ritual for the team before the games?
Holzi (Korbinian Holzer, editor's note) always read out or shouted out the Starting Six (laughs). In the first games we created the atmosphere to the rhythm of “We will rock you”. He then said two or three sentences to each player, making everyone laugh. After the third game he didn't have a vote at all. After the two lost games in the preliminary round, we changed the ritual a bit. We all stood in a circle and, according to AU! screamed so that the other teams heard it too. Toni also wanted someone to always edit a video that was then shown in the meetings before each game. It didn't matter if it was motivating or fun. Dominik Bittner, for example, picked out a scene from the film "The Wolf of Wall Street".Others have chosen highlights. This served to loosen up, not to go into the games too stiffly. Toni managed that very well.
How do you rate your own World Cup performance?
I believe I did my job well.
It could have been more points, but I was responsible for other things.
I think I played a good World Cup.
Actually, the last game felt like the best of me, even if the result wasn't right at all.
So you could also come to terms with your role in retrospect?
Absolutely.
I knew there were so many good offensive players there.
So I made sure that I put everything away in the back.
Was there the one player who held everyone together?
No, it was always all in common.
Of course, Mo (captain Moritz Müller, editor's note) and Holzi lead the way as alpha animals, but everyone has contributed their part to bring their character into the team and put their ego in the background.
Has there been a final conversation with Toni Söderholm?
That is yet to come.
Toni needs a few days to digest that.
It really bothered him.
The only thing he could say after the games was how proud he is of us.
How are you doing now?
First shut down.
We have a new dog in the family that I will spend some time with.
Then we go golfing on Lake Garda with the usual suspects in the same hotel as always.
I'm sure they're looking forward to seeing us.
Are you good guests?
Always (laughs).
Then you and your friends in Garmisch-Partenkirchen prepare for the next season with the EHC Red Bull Munich?
I've already engaged the boys to renovate our house - as training, of course (laughs). There is always food to compensate. In addition, this year I will be training more in Garmisch-Partenkirchen - in the gym, going to the mountains, cycling. Then it starts again with the training in Munich. It was very unusual for me to play for so long. Now it was good too. But it was definitely worth it.