The 2020–21 DEL2 season was the eighth season since the founding of the DEL2, the second tier of German ice hockey, set below the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). The season began on a delayed start date of 6 November 2020 after being rescheduled from 2 October 2020,[1] and concluded with the end of the playoffs on 22 May 2021. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, DEL2 along with DEL and DEB agreed to a set of health rules and guidelines to ensure a safe and consistent work environment for everyone involved with hockey in Germany.[2] Fans were excluded from attending matches.[2] The DEL2 board agreed to suspend relegation to the Oberliga for the season, resulting in no relegation play-offs being contested.[3] The season also marked the first time the league implemented promotion to DEL.[4]
2020–21 DEL2 season | |
---|---|
League | DEL2 |
Sport | Ice Hockey |
Duration | 6 November 2020 – 22 May 2021 |
Number of games | 364 (52 per team) |
Number of teams | 14 |
TV partner(s) | Sprade TV eoTV |
Regular season | |
Season champions | EC Kassel Huskies |
Top scorer | Marco Pfleger (Tölzen Löwen) |
Relegated to Oberliga | No relegation (relegation suspended for season) |
Playoffs | |
Champions | Bietigheim Steelers |
Finals MVP | Norman Hauner (Steelers) |
Teams
editIn 2020–21 the DEL2 had 14 teams competing in the league.[5]
Format
editFourteen teams competed in the 2019–20 DEL2 regular season that ran from 6 November 2020 to 11 April 2021. No team was promoted or relegated to Oberliga. Each team played each other twice in the regular season, home and away, for a total of 52 matches each. The top eight teams qualified for the championship playoffs, played in a best of five format.[6]
For the first time in DEL2 history, sporting promotion to DEL was introduced. Relegation from DEL to DEL2 was suspended for the season. Financial account examination was an additional requirement for the DEL2 champion to obtrain a DEL licence to secure promotion. Löwen Frankfurt, EC Kassel Huskies and Bietigheim Steelers all applied for their financial accounts to be examined.[7]
Regular season
editResults
editStandings
editPos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | EC Kassel Huskies | 49 | 32 | 6 | 4 | 7 | 210 | 108 | +102 | 112 | 2021 DEL2 Championship Playoffs |
2 | Tölzer Löwen | 50 | 28 | 1 | 6 | 15 | 210 | 153 | +57 | 92 | |
3 | EHC Freiburg | 49 | 23 | 8 | 4 | 14 | 177 | 149 | +28 | 89 | |
4 | Bietigheim Steelers | 49 | 26 | 4 | 3 | 16 | 183 | 165 | +18 | 89 | |
5 | Löwen Frankfurt | 49 | 22 | 8 | 5 | 14 | 158 | 141 | +17 | 87 | |
6 | ESV Kaufbeuren | 50 | 22 | 6 | 2 | 20 | 181 | 187 | −6 | 80 | |
7 | Ravensburg Towerstars | 50 | 20 | 2 | 8 | 20 | 155 | 161 | −6 | 72 | |
8 | Heilbronner Falken | 49 | 20 | 3 | 2 | 24 | 173 | 175 | −2 | 68 | |
9 | Eispiraten Crimmitschau | 49 | 17 | 6 | 3 | 23 | 156 | 166 | −10 | 66 | |
10 | EV Landshut | 50 | 15 | 4 | 7 | 24 | 162 | 191 | −29 | 60 | |
11 | EC Bad Nauheim | 49 | 16 | 4 | 4 | 25 | 156 | 187 | −31 | 60 | |
12 | Lausitzer Füchse | 50 | 15 | 3 | 7 | 25 | 141 | 175 | −34 | 58 | |
13 | Dresdner Eislöwen | 49 | 12 | 7 | 6 | 24 | 140 | 184 | −44 | 56 | |
14 | Bayreuth Tigers | 50 | 12 | 4 | 5 | 29 | 145 | 205 | −60 | 49 |
Rules for classification:
Tie-break: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored
Points: 3 points for regulation win; 2 points for OT or SO win; 1 point for OT or SO loss; 0 points for regulation loss
Top scorers
editThese are the top-ten scorers in DEL2 for the 2020–21 season. (Table is created at the conclusion of the DEL2 regular season)
Top goaltenders
editThese are the top-ten goaltenders in DEL2 for the 2020–21 season. (Table is created at the conclusion of the DEL2 regular season)
Playoffs
editDue to the ongoing coronavirus situation, the relegation play-offs were suspended for the season.[3] The championship play-offs saw the DEL2 champion qualify for promotion to DEL for the first time, as long as the winning team also met financial requirements to obtain a DEL licence.[4]
Championship
editThe championship playoffs reference:[8]
The championship playoffs ran from 22 April 2021 to 22 May 2021. The top eight teams from the regular season qualified and played best-of-five series. Teams were reseeded following the quarter-finals, which meant that Ravensburg, the only lower seed to advance, had to face top seed Kassel in the semi-finals. In the finals, Bietigheim came back from two games down to win the series and the DEL2 championship, 3 games to 2.
Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Finals | ||||||||||||
1 | EC Kassel Huskies | 3 | ||||||||||||
8 | Heilbronner Falken | 0 | ||||||||||||
1 | EC Kassel Huskies | 3 | ||||||||||||
7 | Ravensburg Towerstars | 1 | ||||||||||||
2 | Tölzer Löwen | 1 | ||||||||||||
7 | Ravensburg Towerstars | 3 | ||||||||||||
1 | EC Kassel Huskies | 2 | ||||||||||||
(Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | ||||||||||||||
4 | Bietigheim Steelers | 3 | ||||||||||||
3 | EHC Freiburg | 3 | ||||||||||||
6 | ESV Kaufbeuren | 2 | ||||||||||||
3 | EHC Freiburg | 2 | ||||||||||||
4 | Bietigheim Steelers | 3 | ||||||||||||
4 | Bietigheim Steelers | 3 | ||||||||||||
5 | Löwen Frankfurt | 2 |
Note: All numbers represent series results, not a match score
References
edit- ^ "DEL2 gezwungen Saisonstart nochmals zu verschieben" [DEL2 forced to postpone the start of the season again] (in German). DEL2. 14 August 2020. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
- ^ a b "Task Force Eishockey präsentiert umfassendes Hygiene- und Zuschauerkonzept" [Task Force Ice Hockey presents a comprehensive hygiene and spectator concept] (in German). Deutscher Eishockey Bund. 16 July 2020. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
- ^ a b "DEL2 beendet Saison vorzeitig" [DEL2 ends season prematurely] (in German). DEL2. 10 March 2020. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
- ^ a b "PENNY DEL und DEL2 einigen sich über Auf- und Abstieg für die Saison 2021/22" [PENNY DEL and DEL2 agree on promotion and relegation for the 2021/22 season] (in German). Deutsche Eishockey Liga. 23 October 2020. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
- ^ "DEL 2: 2020-2021 Standings". eliteprospects.com. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
- ^ "Spielmodus Saison 2020/2021" [Game mode for the 2020/2021 season] (in German). www.del-2.org. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
- ^ "Grizzlys geben Lizenzunterlagen ab" [Grizzlys hand in license documents] (in German). Grizzlys Wolfsburg. 25 May 2020. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
- ^ "DEL2 | Statistik | Spielpläne - Archiv der DEL2". www.del-2.org. Retrieved 18 March 2020.