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Winkler at the Open Locker Room: “We want to come back as successful hunters”
Wednesday, 10. September 2025 |

EHC Red Bull München: Open locker room before the start of the season

Winkler at the Open Locker Room: “We want to come back as successful hunters”30 members of the press visit the locker room// CURRENTWe continued our long-standing tradition in the 2025/26 season by granting members of the press access to our players' locker room. Around 30 accepted our invitation and got their money's worth.
As always, Open Locker Room kicked off this year with a training session that gave journalists the opportunity to take a close look at the team. With the exception of Les Lancaster, who missed the session due to illness, our team was there in full force. Chris DeSousa was also present.
DeSousa is training with the team
“He's back training in parts, but hasn't completed a full training session yet. He's looking good. When he's ready to play again, we'll announce it at the appropriate time,” explained our new coach Oliver David after the training session. DeSousa, Munich's top scorer last season, had been sidelined due to injury during the preseason games.
Winkler: “13 teams are hunting the Eisbären”
Alongside Coach David, Christian Winkler also answered questions from the media representatives at the big Pennell event. For the Managing Director of Sports Red Bull Ice Hockey, the focus was on the goals and aspirations for the coming season. “13 teams in the league are Eisbären hunters. Anyone who wins four championships in five years is the gold standard in the DEL. We know how that feels ourselves, but right now we're in the hunting position,” Winkler admitted.
At the same time, he promised: “We are working hard to catch up again. To do this, we are looking for our new core, just like Berlin did a few years ago. We have made great progress in this regard this summer. But right now, we are still on the hunt—and we want to come back from this hunt as successful hunters.”
New signing? “Maybe something will happen”
When asked whether there would be any further signings before the start of the season, Winkler replied: “Maybe something will happen. Neville is currently on the hunt and if he is successful, we may have something to announce tomorrow. Let's see what he comes up with.”
Apart from the big double interview with David and Winkler, the journalists naturally had plenty of time after training to get answers to their questions from all the players in the locker room. In addition to our eleven (so far) new signings, most of whom were experiencing an open locker room for the first time, our veterans around Patrick Hager were also in high demand, as they are every year.
Hager: “A great thing every year”
For the captain, too, the event is one of the signs that the season is starting again. “The open locker room is a great thing for everyone every year. The reporters are close to us, can move around freely, and can easily ask each player their questions. Especially so close to the season, it's a good opportunity to answer a lot of questions in one day,” explains Hager, joking, “And for us players, it's not so bad that it's over relatively quickly that way.”

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