Nice Hockey Côte d’Azur will begin its eleventh season on Saturday, at home, against Mont Blanc. The Eagles will certainly have their hearts set on having a better season than the last one.
After finishing in sixth place last season, Stan Sutor’s men, the coach, will aim for a favorable standing and perhaps repeat the feat of being runners-up as in 2012. To boost their ambitions, Nice Hockey Côte d’Azur has recruited 11 players including forwards Jérémi Janneteau and Vladimir Kubus, and goalkeeper Lukas Skrecko.
The Regrettable Departure of Arne Krotak
This season, the Eagles will have to do without the legend Arne Krotak. The Slovak decided to return home for family reasons. He hasn’t left Nice for just any destination.
Indeed, he chose HK SKP Poprad (Slovak Extraliga), the club of his heart where he played for 17 years. The club’s top scorer last season (23 games, 20 goals, and 18 assists) will be greatly missed by the fans.
Among the new recruits, there might be a successor to the Slovak forward, but the public can certainly count on a strong defense that conceded only 83 goals last year (3rd best defense in the league). Is this enough to create a feat and reach the Magnus League? The Eagles will face tough competitors such as Lyon, Bordeaux, or Mulhouse, but why not be the team that springs a surprise?
The first hint may come on Saturday at 7:15 PM against Mont Blanc at the Jean Bouin ice rink for the first official match of the season.
