1996–97 DEL season

The 1996–97 Deutsche Eishockey Liga season was the 3rd season of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (English: German Ice Hockey League).

1996–97 Deutsche Eishockey Liga season
LeagueDeutsche Eishockey Liga
SportIce hockey
Number of teams16
1996–97
Season championsAdler Mannheim

Adler Mannheim became the DEL Champion, winning a German title for the second time in their history. Both the Ratinger Löwen and Wedemark Scorpions earned their keep in the league playing against 1st League EHC Neuwied and TSV Erding.

The Bosman ruling, a 1995 decision of the European Court of Justice regarding the movement of labor in soccer, had profound influence on the league. The old Bundesliga had national character: German clubs competing for the German title with mostly German players. After the ruling European Union players were excluded from the "foreign" player quota. Within a year, the DEL teams employed 97 EU players and lowered their costs significantly, enabling the smaller teams to compete more effectively. The frequent player moves were not viewed positively by the fans.

Another visible change for the fans was the change in corporate sponsorship. The Krombacher Brewery ended their agreement with the league, resulting in a change in the league logo design. The league would not have a corporate sponsor again until 2003, when the German Yellow Pages (German: Gelbe Seiten) signed two consecutive 3-year agreements.

Regular season

The mode of play changed for this season. In the first round, all teams played one home and one away game with each other for a total of 30 rounds. The first 6 placed teams continued playing for the playoff placements Meisterrunde), and the teams 7-16 played to against relegation/playdowns (Relegationsrunde), with only the 2 best-placed teams in this group being eligible for playoffs.

Phase I

Team GP W T L OTL GF:GA Points
1.Kölner Haie3022172157:9147
2.Adler Mannheim3020371130:7444
3.Berlin Capitals3017492107:7940
4.Kassel Huskies30182101121:10239
5.EHC Eisbären Berlin3018390118:9139
6.Starbulls Rosenheim30162123111:11337
7.EV Landshut30161133125:7736
8.Krefeld Pinguine30150153105:10833
9.Düsseldorfer EG3015213093:9032
10.Frankfurt Lions3013314185:8830
11.Schwenninger ERC Wild Wings30131163114:12830
12.Kaufbeurer Adler30122163112:15729
13.Augsburger Panther3011415191:11427
14.Wedemark Scorpions (N)308121295:13419
15.Nürnberg Ice Tigers305322090:14813
16.Ratinger Löwen304224274:13412
GP = Games, W = Win, T = Tie, L = Loss, OTL = Overtime loss, GF:GA = Goals For : Goals Against
   = Continue play for playoff spots,    = Continue play against relegation

Phase II - "Meisterrunde"

Team GP W T L OTL GF:GA Points
1.Adler Mannheim50355101212:12376
2.Kölner Haie50362122235:14276
3.Kassel Huskies50274191190:16759
4.EHC Eisbären Berlin50264201177:16357
5.Berlin Capitals50236213162:14955
6.Starbulls Rosenheim50202285171:20947
GP = Games, W = Win, T = Tie, L = Loss, OTL = Overtime loss, GF:GA = Goals For : Goals Against

Phase II - "Relegationsrunde"

The first two placed teams qualified for the playoff spots 7 and 8.

Team GP W T L OTL GF:GA Points
1.EV Landshut48293163202:12264
2.Krefeld Pinguine48282183198:16661
3.Düsseldorfer EG48282180164:13858
4.Schwenninger ERC Wild Wings48231245200:19152
5.Augsburger Panther48215221176:18148
6.Frankfurt Lions48214231136:14247
7.Kaufbeurer Adler48173283166:25240
8.Wedemark Scorpions48121353150:23128
9.Nürnberg Ice Tigers4896331149:22925
10.Ratinger Löwen4892372136:21922
GP = Games, W = Win, T = Tie, L = Loss, OTL = Overtime loss, GF:GA = Goals for : GoalsaAgainst
Color code:    = Playoff    = Playdowns

Playdowns

First round

The first round was played in the best-of-seven mode.

Game1234567
Düsseldorfer EG-Ratinger Löwen4:05:15:32:06:2
Schwenninger Wild Wings-Nürnberg Ice Tigers4:14:12:36:15:311:3
Augsburger Panther-Wedemark Scorpions4:07:12:15:45:3
Frankfurt Lions-Kaufbeurer Adler2:43:23:64:33:62:51:4

Second round

The second round was played in a best-of-five mode.

Game12345
Wedemark Scorpions-Nürnberg Ice Tigers1:34:64:65:22:5
Frankfurt Lions-Ratinger Löwen3:06:15:45:3

Wedemark Scorpions (now known as Hannover Scorpions) and Ratinger Löwen (English: Ratinger Lions) had to play against the first two placed teams of the second league.

Relegation

The relegation round was played in a best-of-three mode.

Game123
EHC Neuwied-Ratinger Löwen0:22:43:10
Wedemark Scorpions-TSV Erding2:010:29:5

Both the Ratinger Löwen and Wedemark Scorpions earned their keep in the DEL.

Playoffs

All playoff rounds were played in as a best-of-five series, with the better placed team playing Home-Away-Home-Away-Home.

Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals
         
2 Adler Mannheim 3
8 Krefeld Pinguine 0
2 Adler Mannheim 3
7 EV Landshut 0
1 Kölner Haie 1
7 EV Landshut 3
2 Adler Mannheim 3
4 Kassel Huskies 0
4 Kassel Huskies 3
6 Starbulls Rosenheim 0
4 Kassel Huskies 3
5 EHC Eisbären Berlin 1
5 EHC Eisbären Berlin 3
3 Berlin Capitals 1

Quarterfinals

Game12345
Adler Mannheim-Krefeld Pinguine3:04:14:18:4
Kölner Haie-EV Landshut1:36:33:42:41:3
Kassel Huskies-Starbulls Rosenheim3:06:14:15:4
EHC Eisbären Berlin-Berlin Capitals3:14:33:45:04:1

Semifinals

Game12345
Adler Mannheim-EV Landshut3:07:52:44:3
Kassel Huskies-EHC Eisbären Berlin3:14:24:56:33:1

Finals

Game12345
Adler Mannheim-Kassel Huskies3:05:45:24:2

With the last game, the Adler Mannheim became first time DEL Champion and won the German Champion title for the 2nd 8th time in the club history.

Player awards

CategoryNameTeamRecord
PointsCanada Italy Bruno ZarrilloKölner Haie74 Points
GoalsCanada Chris LindbergKrefeld Pinguine37 Goals
GoalieCanada Italy Mike RosatiAdler Mannheim2.35 Goals-against-average
DefenseCanada Gordon HynesSchwenninger ERC Wild Wings56 Points

References

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