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Stuck in the middle
Stuck in the middle
Tournament start critical for the Dutch
The Dutch will open the tournament against Lithuania. Photo: Ruta Mikalkeviciute
Occasionally the Netherlands has flirted with promotion but they have also looked relegation in the face. Last year the Dutch only escaped the drop thanks to a lobsided 9-1 win over Romania on the final day. It marked their only victory in a tournament the Netherlands would like to forget quickly. Entering the tournament aiming for medal, a failing offense that managed to score just a single goal in the first three matches meant the Dutch had to brace themselves for a relegation battle instead.
Fast forward one year, there are questions galore about the strength of the host country. The 2014-15 Dutch league season was rocky to say the least. Several teams were forced to withdraw from participation due to financial troubles which even threatened the regular season as whole. In the end a five team league saw Unis Heerenveen Flyers and Destil Trappers Tilburg dominate and turn it into a two-team race. Tilburg won an exciting playoff finals in six games. Both teams have clearly outgrown the league and are planning to join the German Oberliga next season.
The majority of the squad of Chris Eimers, head coach of the Unis Flyers Heerenveen, is consisting out of the players from both teams. Eimers continued the the trend to play with home grown players rather than utilizing dual citizens.
Only two players on the Team Entry Long list have not played their junior hockey in the Netherlands: Steve Mason (Germany), Raphael Joly (Canada).
Suffering from lack of financial support after the Dutch Olympic Committee has decided to no longer provide financial support, the Netherlands are relying on being inventive and counting on the enthousiasm of the players.
Continue readingPreparing for this tournmaent the Dutch played two exhibition games against Belgium which both ended up in comfortable victories (7-0; 14-0).
“We would have liked to play against other countries but lacked the finances to do so,” explained Chris Eimers. “It’s not easy to work with such limitations but we’ve got to take things as they come.”
Although the preparation has not been ideal, a determined Dutch team is able to surprise any opponent on a given day. Three years ago during the Olympic qualifying tournament they caused an upset defeating hosts Hungary on home ice in a wild game after penalty shots; 7-6, stunning the crowd and advancing the final qualification round. A good start to a tournament seems to be vital for the Netherlands if they want to succeed.
With Lithuania as the first opponent the team in orange will meet a team they have been comfortably beaten over the years (see table below) until a 4-0 drubbing on the opening day last year. A loss the team has not forgotten and would like to erase instantly to get the crowd behind them.
With a handful of candidate players unavaialable due to ongoing club commitments, Eimers will be aiming to take full advantage of building on lines and special teams with players that have played together all season long. On top of that a leading offensive role will be given to Kevin Bruijsten who finished a successful point-per-game first season in the French top league with HC Amiens Somme.
The orange brigade will also be one of the tallest in the tournament with 10 players boast an impressive 188 cm height; 6’2.
Although a gold medal is probably too much of a reach, the Netherlands will want to use this tournament to build a solid fundament for the future. But more importantly the aim is to promote hockey with the tournament hosted on home ice.
“I’m confident that the media attention this tournament will bring can bring back ice hockey on the radar in the Netherlands,” Eimers says. “
Captain Diederick Hagemeijer is also looking towards the future. “I really hope this squad can lay the first stone towards a bright future for the next generations of Dutch hockey. I feel honoured that I can captain the team that is paving the way for the future.”
Until then the Dutch will remain stuck in the middle as they will face off their 16th consecutive Division 1 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championships.
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Five year results and standings window |
2009 |
2010 |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
|
KOR |
|
|
3-6 |
3-4 OT |
|
|
|
CRO |
|
|
|
|
|
0-4 |
|
GBR |
2-3 |
|
|
|
|
3-4 |
|
NED |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|
LTU |
|
4-1 |
|
7-1 |
5-3 |
0-4 |
|
EST |
|
|
|
|
5-4 |
|
|
Final Result |
5 |
4 |
4 |
3 |
3 |
5 |
|
Level |
Div. 1 |
Div.1 |
Div.1 |
Div.1B |
Div.1B |
Div.1B |
|
World Ranking |
24 |
25 |
25 |
24 |
24 |
25 |
Team entry long list:
Goalies: Ian Meierdres, Martijn Oosterwijk, Deniz Mollen
Defencemen: Jurryt Smid, Erik Tummers, Jordy Verkiel, Giovanni Vogelaar, Nick de Jong, Boet van Gestel, Jeffrey van Iersel, Jordy van Oorschot, Dax van der Velden
Forwards: Mickey Bastings, Maarten Brekelmans, Lester Brown, Kevin Bruijsten, Mitch Bruijsten, Tony Demelinne, Diederick Hagemeijer, Levi Houkes, Raphael Joly, Tom Marx, Steve Mason, Nardo Nagtzaam, Joey Oosterveld, Danny Stempher, Ronald Wurm, Nick de Ruijter, Peter van Biezen, Julian van Lijden, Ivy van den Heuvel
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