2018–19 DEL season
# 2018–19 DEL season

The 2018–19 Deutsche Eishockey Liga season was the 25th season since the founding of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga running from 14 September 2018 to 30 April 2019.

All 14 clubs from the previous year and the Löwen Frankfurt applied for a license. The season saw the same teams as last year, as all teams were given their license.

After a points-per-game record during the regular season with 2,23 points per game, the Adler Mannheim won the title for their seventh time defeating EHC Red Bull München 4–1 in the finals.

## Player and staff awards

During the season, Danny aus den Birken, goalkeeper of EHC Red Bull München was selected als player of the year and goalie of the year. Philipp Gogulla from Düsseldorfer EG was awarded as forward of the year whereas Joonas Lehtivouri from the Adler Mannheim was elected as defenceman of the year. For the award of the best rookie of the year, the later NHL first round pick Moritz Seider was chosen by the DEL-fans. The lineup is completed by Don Jackson (RB München) as coach of the year. After the playoffs, Adler Mannheim's goalkeeper Dennis Endras was awarded with the MVP of the playoffs-title.

## Teams

| Team | City | Arena | Capacity |
| - | - | - | - |
| Augsburger Panther | Augsburg | Curt Frenzel Stadium | 6,218 |
| Eisbären Berlin | Berlin | Mercedes-Benz Arena | 14,200 |
| Fischtown Pinguins | Bremerhaven | Eisarena Bremerhaven | 4,674 |
| Düsseldorfer EG | Düsseldorf | ISS Dome | 13,400 |
| ERC Ingolstadt | Ingolstadt | Saturn Arena | 4,815 |
| Iserlohn Roosters | Iserlohn | Eissporthalle Iserlohn | 5,000 |
| Kölner Haie | Cologne | Lanxess Arena | 18,500 |
| Krefeld Pinguine | Krefeld | König Palast | 9,000 |
| Adler Mannheim | Mannheim | SAP Arena | 13,600 |
| EHC Red Bull München | Munich | Olympia Eishalle | 6,256 |
| Thomas Sabo Ice Tigers | Nuremberg | Arena Nürnberger Versicherung | 7,810 |
| Schwenninger Wild Wings | Villingen-Schwenningen | Helios Arena | 6,215 |
| Straubing Tigers | Straubing | Eisstadion am Pulverturm | 6,000 |
| Grizzlys Wolfsburg | Wolfsburg | Eis Arena Wolfsburg | 4,660 |

## Regular season

### Standings

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Adler Mannheim | 52 | 35 | 2 | 7 | 8 | 194 | 117 | +77 | 116 | Playoffs |
| 2 | EHC Red Bull München | 52 | 31 | 5 | 6 | 10 | 176 | 118 | +58 | 109 | Playoffs |
| 3 | Augsburger Panther | 52 | 24 | 4 | 6 | 18 | 149 | 139 | +10 | 86 | Playoffs |
| 4 | Kölner Haie | 52 | 23 | 6 | 5 | 18 | 147 | 139 | +8 | 86 | Playoffs |
| 5 | ERC Ingolstadt | 52 | 23 | 7 | 3 | 19 | 158 | 152 | +6 | 86 | Playoffs |
| 6 | Düsseldorfer EG | 52 | 18 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 151 | 136 | +15 | 83 | Playoffs |
| 7 | Fischtown Pinguins | 52 | 21 | 6 | 6 | 19 | 169 | 161 | +8 | 81 | Pre-playoffs |
| 8 | Straubing Tigers | 52 | 21 | 6 | 6 | 19 | 159 | 151 | +8 | 81 | Pre-playoffs |
| 9 | Eisbären Berlin | 52 | 20 | 6 | 2 | 24 | 146 | 164 | −18 | 74 | Pre-playoffs |
| 10 | Thomas Sabo Ice Tigers | 52 | 18 | 4 | 3 | 27 | 158 | 168 | −10 | 65 | Pre-playoffs |
| 11 | Krefeld Pinguine | 52 | 12 | 11 | 3 | 26 | 141 | 170 | −29 | 61 | |
| 12 | Grizzlys Wolfsburg | 52 | 15 | 2 | 10 | 25 | 134 | 182 | −48 | 59 | |
| 13 | Iserlohn Roosters | 52 | 15 | 2 | 7 | 28 | 162 | 189 | −27 | 56 | |
| 14 | Schwenninger Wild Wings | 52 | 10 | 8 | 3 | 31 | 111 | 169 | −58 | 49 | |

### Results

**Matches 1–26**

| Home \ Away | AUG | BER | BRE | DÜS | ING | ISE | KÖL | KRE | MAN | MUN | NÜR | SCH | STR | WOL |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Augsburger Panther | — | 1–2 (OT) | 4–1 | 1–2 (OT) | 6–3 | 4–2 | 4–1 | 3–2 | 1–5 | 0–2 | 5–2 | 8–1 | 2–5 | 6–0 |
| Eisbären Berlin | 1–2 | — | 5–2 | 3–2 (SO) | 1–3 | 4–3 | 0–4 | 5–3 | 4–1 | 2–4 | 5–4 | 5–3 | 0–1 (SO) | 3–2 (OT) |
| Fischtown Pinguins | 4–0 | 2–3 | — | 3–4 | 4–5 | 4–1 | 2–6 | 5–3 | 2–1 (OT) | 6–2 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 3–1 | 4–3 |
| Düsseldorfer EG | 5–3 | 5–1 | 2–3 (SO) | — | 2–3 (OT) | 5–1 | 4–3 | 3–4 (OT) | 2–3 | 3–1 | 4–3 (OT) | 4–0 | 1–3 | 7–3 |
| ERC Ingolstadt | 1–3 | 2–4 | 3–0 | 3–2 (OT) | — | 3–4 (OT) | 6–0 | 7–4 | 4–3 (OT) | 0–4 | 4–1 | 6–0 | 1–4 | 2–1 (OT) |
| Iserlohn Roosters | 6–7 | 3–2 | 4–2 | 6–3 | 4–2 | — | 1–3 | 2–3 (OT) | 2–3 | 8–3 | 6–3 | 5–2 | 2–4 | 5–2 |
| Kölner Haie | 4–5 (OT) | 3–2 | 3–2 (SO) | 2–3 (OT) | 1–2 | 2–1 (OT) | — | 2–3 | 2–4 | 3–4 (SO) | 4–1 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 |
| Krefeld Pinguine | 3–2 | 1–3 | 3–4 (OT) | 3–2 (OT) | 4–7 | 6–5 (OT) | 4–5 | — | 0–2 | 2–5 | 2–0 | 4–2 | 2–3 (OT) | 4–3 |
| Adler Mannheim | 4–0 | 2–3 | 4–1 | 1–2 (OT) | 3–1 | 6–2 | 5–3 | 3–0 | — | 4–5 (SO) | 4–2 | 3–1 | 6–1 | 6–3 |
| EHC Red Bull München | 2–1 | 3–1 | 2–3 (OT) | 5–4 (OT) | 2–4 | 6–2 | 2–1 (OT) | 1–2 | 0–1 (SO) | — | 4–1 | 4–2 | 3–1 | 5–1 |
| Thomas Sabo Ice Tigers | 0–1 | 4–3 | 6–2 | 2–3 | 3–4 | 7–1 | 2–3 | 3–4 | 1–4 | 1–4 | — | 0–2 | 5–2 | 5–1 |
| Schwenninger Wild Wings | 0–3 | 0–1 (SO) | 2–3 | 0–3 | 3–4 | 5–3 | 1–4 | 4–5 (OT) | 4–0 | 4–3 (OT) | 3–2 (OT) | — | 2–5 | 3–2 (SO) |
| Straubing Tigers | 2–4 | 5–3 | 1–2 | 2–3 (OT) | 4–2 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 2–3 (SO) | 5–6 | 1–3 | 3–7 | 2–1 | — | 1–2 |
| Grizzlys Wolfsburg | 4–2 | 4–2 | 3–6 | 4–3 | 4–3 | 1–3 | 3–5 | 2–3 (SO) | 4–3 (OT) | 0–4 | 2–3 (OT) | 3–0 | 2–5 | — |

**Matches 27–52**

| Home \ Away | AUG | BER | BRE | DÜS | ING | ISE | KÖL | KRE | MAN | MUN | NÜR | SCH | STR | WOL |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Augsburger Panther | — | 3–0 | 3–2 (SO) | 3–6 | 4–2 | 3–2 (SO) | 2–1 | 4–0 | 2–6 | 3–2 | 2–3 (SO) | 3–1 | 3–2 (OT) | 6–2 |
| Eisbären Berlin | 0–1 | — | 5–3 | 2–0 | 2–4 | 4–3 (SO) | 5–4 | 6–3 | 0–7 | 2–6 | 2–5 | 1–3 | 4–0 | 1–4 |
| Fischtown Pinguins | 5–0 | 4–5 | — | 4–3 | 6–5 (OT) | 2–3 | 2–3 | 5–2 | 4–5 (OT) | 4–3 (OT) | 4–2 | 3–4 (OT) | 1–3 | 8–1 |
| Düsseldorfer EG | 4–3 | 4–5 (OT) | 5–4 (SO) | — | 3–2 (SO) | 3–2 | 3–4 (SO) | 1–2 | 1–2 | 2–5 | 1–3 | 3–4 (OT) | 2–3 (OT) | 3–1 |
| ERC Ingolstadt | 3–2 (OT) | 2–3 | 2–4 | 1–0 | — | 3–2 | 3–2 | 4–0 | 1–6 | 2–4 | 3–0 | 4–1 | 6–4 | 3–2 (OT) |
| Iserlohn Roosters | 2–4 | 2–5 | 3–5 | 4–2 | 1–2 | — | 3–4 (SO) | 5–2 | 1–2 | 3–5 | 8–2 | 5–4 | 3–4 | 7–6 (OT) |
| Kölner Haie | 6–1 | 2–5 | 5–4 (OT) | 2–3 (OT) | 5–2 | 2–1 | — | 3–0 | 1–5 | 1–6 | 6–3 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 0–3 |
| Krefeld Pinguine | 5–4 (OT) | 6–2 | 2–3 | 2–4 | 2–3 (SO) | 4–1 | 1–3 | — | 5–4 | 3–2 (OT) | 2–4 | 3–5 | 0–1 | 5–2 |
| Adler Mannheim | 5–3 | 6–2 | 6–5 | 2–5 | 7–2 | 4–3 | 2–3 (SO) | 4–2 | — | 1–2 | 4–3 | 1–2 | 6–3 | 5–1 |
| EHC Red Bull München | 4–1 | 4–3 (OT) | 1–4 | 4–1 | 3–2 | 5–1 | 5–2 | 2–0 | 1–3 | — | 7–2 | 1–2 (SO) | 4–3 | 3–1 |
| Thomas Sabo Ice Tigers | 5–3 | 6–4 | 7–3 | 3–2 | 1–2 | 5–2 | 1–2 | 4–3 | 1–4 | 4–1 | — | 4–3 (SO) | 2–3 (OT) | 0–7 |
| Schwenninger Wild Wings | 3–6 | 3–5 | 2–5 | 0–1 | 5–1 | 4–3 | 2–3 | 2–1 | 0–4 | 5–3 | 3–8 | — | 2–1 (OT) | 0–3 |
| Straubing Tigers | 2–1 (OT) | 7–3 | 5–0 | 2–3 | 7–2 | 4–5 | 7–4 | 3–4 (OT) | 4–3 (SO) | 5–6 | 6–5 (SO) | 5–2 | — | 5–4 |
| Grizzlys Wolfsburg | 2–1 | 3–2 | 4–0 | 2–3 (SO) | 5–7 | 5–4 (OT) | 2–4 | 4–5 (OT) | 5–3 | 0–4 | 0–5 | 1–2 (SO) | 6–1 | — |

## Playoffs

The playoffs started on 6 March 2019.

### Bracket

| First round | First round | First round | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | | | 1 | Adler Mannheim | 4 | | | | | | |
| 7 | Fischtown Pinguins | 1 | 10 | Thomas Sabo Ice Tigers | 1 | | | | | | |
| 10 | Thomas Sabo Ice Tigers | 2 | | | | 1 | Adler Mannheim | 4 | | | |
| | | | | | | 4 | Kölner Haie | 0 | | | |
| | | | 2 | EHC Red Bull München | 4 | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | | | |
| | | | 9 | Eisbären Berlin | 2 | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | | | |
| | | | | | | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | 1 | Adler Mannheim | 4 |
| | | | | | | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | 2 | EHC Red Bull München | 1 |
| | | | 3 | Augsburger Panther | 4 | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | | | |
| 8 | Straubing Tigers | 0 | 6 | Düsseldorfer EG | 3 | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | | | |
| 9 | Eisbären Berlin | 2 | | | | 2 | EHC Red Bull München | 4 | | | |
| | | | | | | 3 | Augsburger Panther | 3 | | | |
| | | | 4 | Kölner Haie | 4 | | | | | | |
| | | | 5 | ERC Ingolstadt | 3 | | | | | | |

### Pre-playoffs

The playoff qualification were played between 6 and 10 March 2019 in a best-of-three mode.

**Fischtown Pinguins vs. Thomas Sabo Ice Tigers**

* Nürnberg won series 2–1

**Straubing Tigers vs. Eisbären Berlin**

* Berlin won series 2–0

### Quarterfinals

The quarterfinals were played between 12 and 31 March 2019 in a best-of-seven mode.

**Adler Mannheim vs. Thomas Sabo Ice Tigers**

* Mannheim won series 4–1

**EHC Red Bull München vs. Eisbären Berlin**

* Munich won series 4–2

**Augsburger Panther vs. Düsseldorfer EG**

* Augsburg won series 4–3

**Kölner Haie vs. ERC Ingolstadt**

* Köln won series 4–3

### Semifinals

The semifinals were played between 2 and 16 April 2019 in a best-of-seven mode.

**Adler Mannheim vs. Kölner Haie**

* Mannheim won series 4–0

**EHC Red Bull München vs. Augsburger Panther**

* Munich won series 4–3

### Final

The final was played between 18 and 30 April 2019 in a best-of-seven mode.

* Mannheim won series 4–1

## Statistics

### Scoring leaders

List shows the top skaters sorted by points, then goals.

| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | +/− | PIM | POS |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Jeremy Williams | 52 | 30 | 27 | 57 | +13 | 22 | F |
| Jon Matsumoto | 52 | 22 | 34 | 56 | +1 | 18 | F |
| Daniel Pietta | 52 | 15 | 38 | 53 | +8 | 24 | F |
| Jacob Berglund | 51 | 32 | 20 | 52 | +4 | 46 | F |
| Michael Connolly | 52 | 15 | 37 | 52 | +14 | 36 | F |
| Chad Costello | 52 | 17 | 35 | 52 | +3 | 20 | F |
| Philip Gogulla | 52 | 26 | 26 | 52 | +5 | 18 | F |
| Mark Zengerle | 46 | 14 | 38 | 52 | +7 | 24 | F |
| Jaedon Descheneau | 52 | 19 | 32 | 51 | −5 | 30 | F |
| Chad Nehring | 49 | 16 | 33 | 49 | +1 | 36 | F |

### Leading goaltenders

Only the top five goaltenders, based on save percentage, who have played at least 40% of their team's minutes, are included in this list.

| Player | TOI | GA | GAA | SA | Sv% | SO |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Mathias Niederberger | 1976 | 72 | 2.19 | 1013 | 92.9 | 2 |
| Danny aus den Birken | 2099 | 67 | 1.91 | 907 | 92.6 | 5 |
| Olivier Roy | 2030 | 82 | 2.42 | 991 | 91.7 | 5 |
| Kevin Poulin | 2482 | 115 | 2.78 | 1351 | 91.5 | 4 |
| Dustin Strahlmeier | 2673 | 124 | 2.78 | 1437 | 91.4 | 3 |
