Head Coach Philipp Pinter: “Char­acter is a major focus for us!”

As always, there is plenty of activity at the ice jewel box in Ferlach-Gries, also known as Loiblbach. The arena is currently receiving some visual finishing touches, while there is no summer break on the ice either. 

The U18 National Team is working hard under the guidance of Head Coach Philipp Pinter and his experienced coaching team, Patrick Harand and Mathias Lange. The coaches are supported by Gernot Wegerer, who is working with the goaltenders as a guest goalie coach. 30 skaters and four goaltenders – split into two teams – are taking part in the summer camp and going through a demanding programme in the sessions.

Pinter is very pleased with the commitment shown by the young players: “Their commitment really deserves to be highlighted. That was our focus this week in designing the drills, which are primarily about one-on-one battles: making sure the lads give everything in the drills and try to push their way into the World Championship squad. The mood among the players is very good; after all, there are 34 players battling for the places. The lads are giving it their all, working hard and eager to learn – it is the same with the U18 and the U20, and we are very pleased about that!”

As with the U20 summer camp, the head coach also has some initial tactical points on the agenda: “We have already introduced the lads to our playing philosophy and the principles of how we want to play. There are quite a few new players involved. It has worked quite well so far and they are trying to implement our instructions as best they can.”

The team spirit from the World Championship in Bled in April, where the U18 secured promotion to Division I, Group A following the opening defeat against Poland with a sensational and highly emotional winning run, is to be further developed: “That is always a focus for us. We address things immediately. That is the compete level we always talk about: the lads must always give everything. Mistakes are part of it and they happen, but we at least want to make sure we never leave anything on the table and can say that more would have been possible because we did not give everything!”

Character development and acceptance of roles in focus

The development of the players’ character is important to Pinter and his assistants: “Character is a major focus for us. For me, that also includes body language: how do the players treat their teammates, how do they deal with their teammates’ mistakes, how do they deal with their own mistakes, and how do they deal with decisions by the coaches or referees!”

The summer camps are also used to teach players to accept their roles in order to create the best possible team dynamic: “We try to identify the players in that regard. They have to evaluate themselves a lot, and we also evaluate the players, so that we can constantly compare their self-image with how others see them. Does a player perhaps see himself very differently? Does he hear something completely different at his club and believe that he has to play a different role in the team from the one we have envisaged for him? It is always partly a gut feeling to identify whether a player accepts his role and can carry it out as effectively as possible. We try to find classic role players who are willing to do anything. That already set us apart in Bled, and it was a joy to see how the team grew together at the World Championship because everyone believed in the same goal. Of course, you also need a bit of luck at key moments. But character development is clearly a focus for us.”

Players pushing for the U20 team

Looking back on the U20 summer camp, Head Coach Philipp Pinter is confident ahead of the preparatory tournament in Sweden in mid-August, but the strong performances in training have already left him with a difficult selection decision: “A number of players would genuinely have been in contention for Sweden. For now, we have decided on 23 players whom we believe are the best group we want to field for August!”