Happy New Year!

January 1, 2019

On the eve of the new year and looking back, 2018 certainly proved to be one of the most exciting and monumental years for the Vikings. There were a lot of ups and downs with wins and losses, injuries, parties, birthdays, meetings, players coming and going, family tragedies, weddings, newborn babies, and an unknown number of get-togethers that proved that no matter the situation, the Vikings stick together and is a great family! We could write a book about this past year but many of the stories can be found on our site and especially spoken about when you come to spend some time with us.

One Major change is that the Vikings have grown to FOUR teams! BLACK, RED, WHITE, and GRAY. More on this later…

After the holiday break of 2017/2018, the Vikings came back strong for the second halves of their seasons. The 2017/2018 DPL season ended with both of our competitive teams finding their ways to the finals. With the support of a busload of Vikings, BLACK and RED made the trip to Eppleheim to battle for their respective 1st and 4th Division titles. Despite their efforts and cheering from our supporters, both teams came up short. There is definitely something to prove this season.

As for the RMHL, the Vikings BLACK won for the fourth consecutive season with a dominant game over the Mainzer Wölfe.

This year, the 2nd annual Battle for Henkel 3v3 tournament had a huge showing! Ten teams signed up with a total of 41 skaters. It was a great time with music, good hockey and some snacks. We can’t wait to do it again next year.

The 26th Annual Armed Forces Alpine Classic in Garmisch-Partenkirchen was a great time as always. We brought three teams, BLACK, RED, and WHITE. Coming back to Wiesbaden without any titles was a huge bummer, but the Vikings had a very memorable time. The annual Saturday night dinner brought all three teams together followed by a final hoorah at peaches and the very long ride back home. We have already signed up for next year’s tournament, this time bring all 4 teams!!!

The summer time kept many of the Vikings busy, playing in both the Regionalliga as well as the RMHL. There were practices and games almost every week, making it a great chance for guys to stay fit during the off season.

The annual golf outing allowed our superstars to show off their skills outside of the rink. The Vikes played a round at the Rheinblick Golf Course, realizing for the first time in history that Canadians can golf!

For the second year, with the organization by David Leska, we took a team trip to an ice hockey training camp in Pisek, Czech Republic. This year, to avoid the stressors of driving, 37 vikings took the bus for a four day trip to kick off the season. There was intense daily training and stickhandling drills geared towards getting the Vikes ready for winter. Included were 3 meals each day, a top team match against the Kuwaiti National team, a beer fest in the city center, and a great team dinner. We will be re-visiting Pisek again next year.

“Oh Captain, my Captain”
-Walt Whitman

More ice time is a never ending goal, and with our Captain’s realization that a Friday night slot opened up, came the birth of the Wiesbaden Pond Hockey Liga (WPHL). Twelve teams of five players have been assembled by mixing skaters from each of the four Vikings teams. The WPHL has seen tremendous success so far with four tournaments having been played in 2018. This gives players of all levels to skate with and against each other.

The team held annual elections at Brauhaus Kastel voting on an expanded board, appointing volunteers and providing an update on club activities. The board meets on a monthly basis to discuss all club matters. One thing that has been in discussion for some time is the new rink in Wiesbaden. Jan 22nd 2019 is the next milestone. Rink planners from all over Europe will show their first plans to a very small group of people, where Hans Schmidt will have the chance to give his experience to the City for the future rink.

The 2018/2019 Season Kick-off-BBQ was a huge success, bringing lots of the players and family members together for a day of fun-filled activities, great food, and the celebration of Luke’s birthday. HUGE thanks to Frankie for organizing that great day.

Also, we have secured lots of practice ice this year with at least three ice times in Wiesbaden each week and with the addition of so many new skaters, we were able to build a fourth (GRAY) team, which practices each week and also plays in friendly games. GRAY’s first EVER game was a 4-2 win against the Stuttgart Mustangs. White was granted access to the DPL this season and have given teams a lot of trouble in their short time in the league. They had a slow start to the season but have already taken a huge win against the Lightnings Wiesloch.

This year’s Christmas party had a great turnout. We had around 100 guests to include players, families, and friends. The night was eventful with toasts, a delicious buffet, live music from our very own Yannik Suhre on the ukulele, Danny D. on vocals and the kick-ass band from Kaiserslautern, Roll n’ Rock. There were door prizes, plenty of dancing, the traditional coaster toss and, of course, the mid-season boat race championship. For the first time ever, BLACK has taken the reigns as boat race champions!

Thank you everyone who has supported us this year. Friends, fans, and especially our families who prove day in and day out to have our backs as we take part of something we have so much passion for. Being an international team has its up and downs and it’s definitely tough having to say goodbye to some great teammates. We hope that your memories as a Viking will stay with you forever and you will spread the word about this great club.