Red Bull Salzburg is relying on a strong goalkeeper duo for the new season!

Red Bull Salzburg is relying on a strong goalkeeper duo for the new season!

EC Red Bull Salzburg has made important personnel decisions for the coming season and continues to rely on the proven goalkeeper duo Atte Tolvanen and David Kickert. Tolvanen's contract extension was announced on Tuesday morning, while Kickert, 31 years old and from Vienna, was confirmed in the early afternoon. Kickert, who can already look back on three years of club history in Salzburg, has a current contract and will be entering his fourth season.

Last season, Kickert played in 16 regular season games and had a catch rate of 88.1 percent. His three appearances in the Champions Hockey League were particularly impressive, where he recorded a save percentage of 93.6 and three wins. Kickert is currently training with the ÖEHV team and is preparing for the upcoming World Championships in Stockholm.

History of EC Red Bull Salzburg

EC Red Bull Salzburg was founded in 1995 through the merger of the clubs EC Morzg and EC Tiefenbach. The EC Morzg was founded in 1988 after the Salzburg EC went bankrupt and served as a refuge for youth players. In 1995, the Kaindl company became the first main sponsor, changing the club name to EC Kaindl Salzburg. With the entry of Red Bull as a sponsor in 2000, the club was given the name EC The Red Bulls Salzburg, before being renamed EC Red Bull Salzburg in 2007 to create a unit with the football club FC Red Bull Salzburg.

The club has played continuously in the highest Austrian ice hockey league, the Erste Bank Eishockey Liga (EBEL), since 2004. The first few years were challenging, and the first season ended with just 12 wins from 48 games. But through significant budget increases and well-known signings such as Dieter Kalt and André Lakos during the 2005 summer break, the team stabilized and reached the finals the following season.

Successes and challenges

Over the years, Salzburg celebrated several championship titles in the EBEL, including the first championship title in 2007 and further title wins in 2014, 2015 and 2022. In recent years, Salzburg has been able to hold on to its successes through consistent expansion of its team and constant strategic development under new coaches such as Oliver David. This continuity in club management has led to the club winning its third championship title in a row in the 2023/24 season.

Overall, EC Red Bull Salzburg shows that the club has great ambitions both in the past and in the present, and the goalkeeper duo Tolvanen and Kickert will play a crucial role in this.