Thursday, 04. September 2025 | Preview: Red Bull Munich's Markus Eisenschmid looks ahead to the Warrior Cup
DEL dress rehearsal: “Homecomer” Eisenschmid looks ahead to the Warrior CupGlasgow Clan, Nuremberg Ice Tigers, and ESV Kaufbeuren are participating// PREVIEWOn Saturday, EHC Red Bull München will open the Warrior Cup 2025 in Kaufbeuren. At 1:00 p.m., our team will face the Glasgow Clan from the British Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) in the opening game.After the tournament opener of our Red Bulls against the Scottish representative in the energie schwaben arena, the second semi-final between the host ESV Kaufbeuren from the DEL2 and the Nürnberg Ice Tigers will follow at 17:00.
The two winners of these games will then meet in the grand final on Sunday at 17:00, with the two losing teams playing the third-place game beforehand at 13:00. The Warrior Cup was held for the first time last year, when Jokerit Helsinki (Finland) won the tournament.
All four games of this year's edition will be streamed live. You can follow the action on Sporteurope.TV.
Return to the home country
It will be a very special weekend for our striker Markus Eisenschmid. After all, the Munich attacker comes from Kaufbeuren. "I wasn't born there, but in Marktoberdorf. But only because my mother's midwife was there at the time," he explains. "But my parents have lived in Kaufbeuren since the 1980s, I grew up and went to school there. Kaufbeuren is my home, I have a very strong connection to the town," says Eisenschmid.
The Allgäu native still follows the ESVK to this day, and not just because four current Red Bulls - Nikolaus Heigl, Rio Kaiser, Philipp Krening and Phillip Sinn - have been granted a sponsorship license for the second-division club. "I played in the first team when I was 17, and the doctors and coaches are still the same. My parents also work every Saturday at the junior hockey school," reports the 30-year-old.
By the way: His brother-in-law now also plays in Kaufbeuren. Attacker Maximilian Hadraschek only returned to the ESVK from the Ravensburg Towerstars in May. "He and my sister got married last summer and that's even more reason to follow the whole thing. I think I'm already one of the club's bigger fans," says Eisenschmid with a laugh.
Eisenschmid expects "hard-fought games"
So will we now see a direct duel against his brother-in-law? It's possible. For our team, however, it's more about working on the finer points once again. After all, things will get really serious on September 12, when the new season in the PENNY DEL begins. On matchday 1, we will be away to the Cologne Sharks at 7:30 pm.
Accordingly, Eisenschmid expects intense ice hockey from all four teams. "For most of the teams, it's the dress rehearsal before the start of the season. That's why I think we can expect exciting and hard-fought games. I hope that the fans in Kaufbeuren turn up in large numbers and see some good ice hockey," says our number eleven.
Eisenschmid himself will be making a premiere. That's because the last time he was on the ice in Kaufbeuren was twelve years ago, before he moved from there to Canada at the start of his professional career in 2013. "So it's a homecoming for me. I've never played in the new ice rink before and I'm just looking forward to playing at home in my hometown again."
How the Red Bulls' jerseys are produced
// BEHIND THE SCENES
Blick auf Glasgow, Nürnberg und Kaufbeuren
Zuerst müssen Eisenschmid und seine Teamkollegen gegen den Glasgow Clan ran. Der Tabellensiebte der vergangenen Hauptrunde der EIHL schied zuletzt im Playoff-Viertelfinale gegen die Sheffield Steelers in zwei Spielen nach Overtime aus. Im Tor steht jetzt Sami Aittokallio, der Finne verfügt über DEL-Erfahrung aus seiner Zeit bei den Bietigheim Steelers (2021 bis 2023). Auch Verteidiger Steven Seigo spielte bereits in Deutschland, der Kanadier lief für die Kassel Huskies in der DEL2 auf. Im Sturm gehören Mitchell Heard (früher Bietigheim und Straubing) und Rylan Schwartz (u.a. Löwen Frankfurt) zu den vermutlich bekanntesten Namen. Head Coach ist Corey Neilson, der bereits die Dresdner Eislöwen und die Lausitzer Füchse trainierte.
In Torhüter Evan Fitzpatrick und Abwehrspieler Jakob Weber stehen gleich zwei Profis im Kader der Nürnberg Ice Tigers, die in der letzten Saison noch für die Red Bulls aufliefen. Jeremy McKenna ging den umgekehrten Weg und schießt seine Tore mittlerweile für uns. Dafür blieben andere wichtige Eckpfeiler an Bord. Dazu gehören Top-Verteidiger Owen Headrick (zuletzt 47 Punkte) oder Evan Barratt. Der US-Amerikaner gehörte mit 67 Zählern zu den besten Scorern der zurückliegenden DEL-Saison, das Aus im Playoff-Viertelfinale gegen den ERC Ingolstadt konnten beide aber nicht verhindern. In Tyler Spezia (Toledo Valley, ECHL) und Greg Meireles (HK Spisska Nova Ves, slowakische Extraliga) konnte Head Coach Mitch O’Keefe zudem zwei vielversprechende Sturm-Neuzugänge begrüßen.
Der prominenteste Neuzugang beim ESV Kaufbeuren steht nicht mehr selber auf dem Eis. DEL-Rekordtorschütze und Punktesammler Patrick Reimer (394 Tore, 859 Zähler) arbeitet nun als sportlicher Leiter bei seinem Heimatverein. Mit der Verpflichtung von Bernhard Ebner aus Düsseldorf holte er gleich einen alten Bekannten zurück zu den Jokern. Torhüter Daniel Fießinger hat genauso eine Münchner Vergangenheit, wie auch seine Vorderleute John Rogl (kam aus Landshut) und Nico Appendino (zuletzt Pinguins Bremerhaven). Neu-Trainer Todd Warriner soll den Verein wieder in die Playoffs führen.
Spiele des Warrior Cups 2025 im Überblick
Halbfinale 1 | 06. September 2025 | 13:00 Uhr | Glasgow Clan – EHC Red Bull München | Tickets
Halbfinale 2 | 06. September 2025 | 17:00 Uhr | Nürnberg Ice Tigers – ESV Kaufbeuren | Tickets
Kleines Finale | 07. September 2025 | 13:00 Uhr | Verlierer HF 1 – Verlierer HF 2 | Tickets
Finale | 07. September 2025 | 17:00 Uhr | Gewinner HF 1 – Gewinner HF 2 | Tickets
Optimized arena plan: New design makes finding seats even easier// CURRENT
Mit Video
Education in the bag and NHL firmly in sight: That's Rio Kaiser// PORTRAIT
Heigl, Kaiser, Krening, and Sinn receive production licenses// TEAM