The Spengler Cup is an exceptional event for a majority of all ice hockey professionals. A tournament that does not leave anyone unaffected. So, too, for Reto Berra, who already experienced the tournament at a very young age. ‘I love this tournament and I have special emotions connected to the Spengler Cup. We always spent our skiing vacations in Hoch-Ybrig. Then, I was often sick and would spend a week on the couch with a fever watching the Spengler Cup. Those are memories deep inside my being’, explains Berra.

Of course, his anticipation is now huge to enter the tournament with Gottéron. ‘I will be 38 years old in January, and to be a part of it again is super cool’, says Berra. Even after his move to EHC Biel-Bienne following his first two participations as a member of HCD, the man from Zurich traveled to Davos on loan to HCD for Boxing Week; a fact that shows just how deep his connection to the Spengler Cup is. ‘Arno Del Curto asked me whether I wanted to come – and I came four times. In 2011, we even won the tournament’, says Berra.
Three world championship silver medals, championship titles, Spengler Cup win, and 76 NHL games: veteran Reto Berra has experienced, seen, and won a lot, but HCD and the Spengler Cup have had and always will have a special meaning to him. Davos, where he still now has a lot of friends, is a ‘winter wonderland’ with – hopefully – a lot of snow, a wonderful arena, many familiar people. ‘It is the traditional tournament, bar none, with many cool teams and a fantastic atmosphere’, says the goaltender.

Now, for the first time, he is competing at the tournament for a team other than HCD: Fribourg Gottéron, his current employer. In the group stage, Gottéron, which is in group “Torriani”, will face Pardubice and Karpat. Two challenging opponents, as Berra says, ‘Pardubice is very dominant, has a huge team, the largest budget in Czech hockey as far as I know, and very good players. That will be a heavy lift!’ He knows less about Karpat, but ‘the Finns definitely know how to play hockey, these are two very cool opponents.’ HC Davos a year ago, HC Ambri-Piotta in 2022, and Genève-Servette in 2013 and 2014 were the last Swiss teams to show how to win the traditional tournament. And of course, the team from Fribourg, which is still waiting for its first big title in club history, is looking to follow suit. ‘Winning the championship or the Champions Hockey League takes months of play, but at the Spengler Cup you can achieve a super cool success within a week. That is fascinating and a huge incentive’, says the soon-to-be 38-year-old Berra. The goalie states that especially a team like Gottéron, which has recently stumbled in the championship and has yet to get in gear, could achieve a lot in a week. ‘You never know what will happen, any team could end up winning in the end.’ Gottéron has a good team and suddenly one starts scoring goals that one did not earlier, ‘which is somehow still something mystical about team sports and can’t be explained.’

And it can be just as trying when battling at three fronts, as the team from Fribourg is doing – championship, Champions Hockey League, and Spengler Cup -, and suddenly the energy left in the tank becomes a discussion. On the one hand, it becomes important to manage the workload and especially the older players will have to use their rest time effectively. On the other hand, as almost always in sports, the head plays a role as well. Berra says, ‘when things are clicking, everything seems much less strenuous. When the going gets tough, you notice everything a bit more.’ Consequently, Gottéron’s opening game versus Dynamo Pardubice will be pivotal.

Text: SLAPSHOT, das Hockey-Magazin der Schweiz  Foto: IMAGO/Mediafab.ch/Fabrice De Gasperis

Tickets to the 96th Spengler Cup are available for presale online erhältlich. Further tickets to all games will be released continuously.