NHL star laments his own stupidity: The big World Cup drama looms: Germany eats - or dies

The German national ice hockey team can't afford any more slip-ups at the end of the group stage in Herning, Denmark. For the first time in seven years, they face a return home before the knockout phase. A new player voices strong criticism.

Eat or be eaten. It's the simplest form of survival. For the German national ice hockey team, everything is at stake this Tuesday evening. At the World Championship, co-host Denmark awaits this evening (8:20 p.m. on ProSieben and MagentaSport, as well as in the live ticker on ntv.de) , and the winner advances to the quarterfinals. They're one of the eight best national teams in the world. That's the Germans' ambition. "We're playing for everything," says forward Marcel Noebels.

However, national coach Harold Kreis's players are carrying a heavy burden onto the ice in Herning, having been thoroughly outplayed in their last three games. They suffered consecutive defeats against Switzerland (1:5), the USA (3:6), and the reigning world champions, the Czech Republic (0:5). The good start with three wins, albeit against their three weakest opponents, has long been forgotten. Now it's time for the ultimate showdown. And that comes with plenty of criticism and self-criticism.

"One, two work, three watch"

"We have to be ice-cold. We're lacking a bit of composure at the moment. We don't need to score ten goals; one would be enough," complained Noebels, who had only returned to the team for the thrashing against the Czech Republic as a replacement for the injured and previously in-form NHL pro Lukas Reichel. He was also there for Germany's last preliminary round exit seven years ago – also in Herning. Back then, the German national team lost 3-2 to Denmark in their tournament opener. History is unlikely to repeat itself.

The experienced Eisbären Berlin forward called for better coordination among the players. "Currently, we have the problem that two players are working with the puck, while three are just watching. When one player has the puck, he relies on the other to do something special and leave two players behind. Our strength is running. The support for each other must be there from the start against Denmark."

The hosts are experiencing a contrasting tournament. Denmark advances to the group finals with three wins against the "lesser" nations. They also potentially receive a massive boost from the NHL, the strongest league in the world. Nikolaj Ehlers of the Winnipeg Jets traveled to Herning immediately after his team's elimination in the NHL playoffs and is expected to be on the ice this evening.

"We punish ourselves"

"It doesn't matter what happened today," said captain Moritz Seider on MagentaSport after the bitter defeat, at least in terms of the result, against the defending champions: "Tomorrow will be the most important game of the World Cup." But it was also true: The game actually gave us courage for a long time. The aggressiveness that was often lacking against Switzerland and the USA was evident from the start. "We are well prepared for this final, both in terms of fighting spirit and emotionally," said national coach Kreis. The Czechs, who were better players, took full advantage of the Germans' mistakes and their own chances. The German national team was powerless against the efficiency of the defending champions, led by NHL star striker David Pastrnak. In addition, individual mistakes were made at crucial moments, even by key players like Seider before the fourth goal.

As against the USA, the German national team also received an early penalty – and quickly went down 0-1. Manuel Wiederer, who replaced Hager in the fourth forward position, was sitting in the penalty box after a foul, far from the puck, as superstar Pastrnak left goaltender Mathias Niederberger no chance. The number of penalties will also be crucial against the Danes. The Germans have performed poorly in shorthanded games at the World Cup so far. The Czechs' goal was the sixth German goal conceded with a player down.

NHL striker Tim Stützle, who is still waiting for his first goal for Germany, was sharply critical of the national coach. "We're punishing ourselves. We can get away with it against Kazakhstan and Hungary. But not against the top nations," said the Ottawa Senators star. "We make stupid mistakes, everyone on the team, not just one. We definitely have to work on things." The 23-year-old is also dissatisfied with himself, despite playing his best game of the World Cup so far against the Czechs. "I have enough chances. Now one of them just has to go in," said Stützle.