Düsseldorf put on a masterclass against Dresdner Eislöwen, running out 6:1 winners in DEL2 action on Saturday. The hosts were already top of the table after seven games, and they made sure nobody forgot it. To be fair, the result was never really in doubt once the puck dropped.
And here's the thing about teams that go seven from seven — they don't just win, they dominate. Dresdner had looked decent on paper with four wins from seven, but Saturday exposed what happens when confidence meets a machine. The visitors were outplayed from the start and never really recovered.
Our forecast had given the away side a 71 per cent chance of victory. We were wrong, and there's no point dressing that up. What broke the prediction wasn't bad luck — it was Düsseldorf at full throttle, playing a game that felt nothing like the five-game winning streaks either team had built up.
By then, the visitors had been playing against teams like Vaiden and Landshut, who tend to fall apart under pressure. Dresdner had scored heavily in those matches, 5:1 and 5:2, but against the league leaders that kind of attacking output meant nothing. Goals are easy to score when the opposition isn't looking.
The table now shows Düsseldorf sitting alone at the summit with seven wins and no losses. Dresdner remain fifth after three defeats, and the gap between them is opening fast. This wasn't a game that needed extra time to decide — it was over before the third period properly began.
There's unrest in the dressing room when results turn like this, and Dresdner's run of heavy scoring against weaker sides now looks like a mirage. Düsseldorf, meanwhile, are on a good run and showing they can put games away without drama. That's the kind of consistency that separates the top from the rest.
