World Junior 2015: Swiss bliss as Germans sent packing in relegation final

The Germans will be saying auf wiedersehen to the top tier of the world junior championship after they were relegated on Saturday night.

Switzerland sent Germany packing to Group A Division I by sweeping their best-of-three series with a 5-2 victory. The Swiss had come close to making the quarter-finals but were undone by a shootout loss to Denmark. The Danes ended up advancing, only to lose 8-0 to Team Canada on Friday night.

“The difference between the quarter-finals and the relegation round was one goal – the overtime shootout loss to Denmark,” said Swiss head coach John Fust. “It’s invaluable experience. We have the youngest team in the tournament; we’re a core of (1996 and ’97 birth years). There’s no other team that had as few (19-year-old’s) as us and it was a bit of a gamble, but that’s the best we have for such a small nation.”

Belarus, who won the Group A Division I tournament in Italy this year, will take Germany’s place at the 2016 world junior championship in Helsinki, Finland.

Pius Suter, who plays for the OHL’s Guelph Storm, had a pair of goals for Switzerland while Jason Fuchs, Denis Malgin and Timo Meier added singles.

Even though they avoided relegation, the mood for many of the graduating Swiss players was somber. Mirco Mueller,19, loaned to the team by the NHL’s San Jose Sharks, was upset by the outcome considering this was his final year of eligibility.

“It was kind of sobering I think,” said Mueller. “Obviously we made the quarter-finals twice in the previous years I was here, so it’s a tough pill to swallow I think, not playing for a medal. I’m disappointed.”

Andreas Eder and Parker Tuomie score for the Germans, who were winless throughout the tournament.

“We needed to work hard as a team and we didn’t do it,” said German forward Dominik Kahun. “We did it today for maybe two periods, but it’s too late. We didn’t play well in the group stage and that’s why we’re here now.”

Germany will be losing a core group of 19-year-olds who have been with the program – including third-year forwards Kahun and Frederik Tiffels, defender Tim Bender and goaltenders Kevin Reich and Ilya Sharipov.

“We had a great group of guys, that’s the worst (part),” said Kahun. “We came together three weeks ago and we had so much fun and everyone was excited about it. That’s just the saddest thing about this.”

“I hope they will get Germany up again,” said Kahun of his younger teammates. “I wish them all the best.”