Ice Hockey World Championship live ticker: Germany faces US stars on Saturday afternoon

Friday, May 16, 10:20 p.m.: Welcome to the FOCUS online live ticker. React or tremble for the World Cup quarterfinals: The 5-1 defeat against Switzerland has left the national ice hockey team feeling disillusioned. The result, as well as the team's performance against the USA on Saturday (12:20 p.m.), will be crucial for the rest of the tournament. "It's a sign of a good team when they bounce back after a defeat like that," said striker Frederik Tiffels of the Eisbären Berlin.

The Swiss team showed the German Ice Hockey Federation's selection their limits in Herning, Denmark, with four goals in just under ten minutes. Not only the video analysis afterward was clear, but also the tone in the locker room. "We're not afraid to yell at each other from time to time. We'd rather have more passion than a dead bench – and that's perfectly fine," captain and NHL star Moritz Seider clarified.

With a win against the USA, the German national team can take a big step toward the quarterfinals. However, the German team will have to improve significantly to achieve this. "We didn't play to our standard against Switzerland," complained Tiffels, demanding: "If we want to be successful against the USA, we should do it as quickly as possible."

However, the US boys' team faces an opponent on a level similar to Switzerland. In their World Cup dress rehearsal, the Americans dominated the German team 5-2 in Düsseldorf. "A reaction is therefore all the more important," said Seider. "The Americans are beatable. But we have to deliver our best performance."

After the USA, the German team faces another tough challenge on Monday: the Czech Republic, the world champions. The final match will be a clash with co-hosts Denmark, potentially leading to a final for fourth place. "Perhaps the wake-up call against Switzerland had something positive for us to take with us," Seider noted. The German national team started the tournament with three wins.