Wolfsburg's Captain Kai Hospelt

He’s originally from Cologne and used to play for the Kölner Haie, but he had his ultimate breakthrough with his current team from Wolfsburg: Kai Hospelt is a symbol for a new generation of ambitious German hockey players. Although the center is only 26 years old, he’s already seen both ups and downs throughout his career.

Already at a very young age, Kai Hospelt’s strong performances got a lot of attention. When he was playing for Cologne’s junior team at the age of just 17, he scored an amazing 106 points in 40 games in the German national junior league and was the league’s top scorer: It wasn’t much longer until he gave his debut in Germany’s professional league, the DEL, where he played 29 games before he returned to his team in the junior league. And yet again, he scored and scored and again finished the season as the national junior league’s top scorer. In the 2003 draft, the San Jose Sharks picked the promising young German player, but he never got to actually play in North America.

His Iron Will – An Important Characteristic

During pre-season practice the following year, Hospelt managed to establish himself within Cologne’s first team and secured himself a spot in the fourth line. But then he suffered his first big setback: Before the season even started, Hospelt injured his knee (rupture of the ligament). However, Hospelt is a real role model - he didn’t let this injury crush him and didn’t give up. Slowly but surely he fought his way back to the top. “In hockey, your willingness to work very hard is especially important,” Hospelt said in an interview with “indigo” magazine; it’s an attitude that he shows in everything he does.

No disappointments, be it Germany’s poor performance at the 2009 World Championships in Switzerland or his second ligament tear, managed to divert him from his track and he continuously worked on his game and improved his capabilities on the ice: He’s an excellent skater, his stick handling is very sophisticated and he has a distinct feeling for how a game develops.

Offer from Wolfsburg despite Injury

In 2008, Hospelt transferred from Cologne to Wolfsburg together with Sebastian Furchner – the two of them have not only been playing on the same team for nine years, they’re also best friends. The fact that Wolfsburg offered him a contract although he’d been suffering from a lengthy injury and was only just trying to get back into the action really impressed Hospelt.

Once the forward had recovered from his injury, he immediately felt very comfortable with his new club and found his place within the team quickly. Also, he has become friends with Christopher Fischer, who’s his teammate on both the Wolfsburg and the German national teams.

Important Cornerstone of Germany’s National Team

While everyone primarily considered Hospelt a reliable defensive center back in Cologne, he’s also rediscovered his strengths in the offensive zone since he joined Wolfsburg; he’s really blossomed and his game keeps getting better and better still. But despite this, it’s not surprising that a guy like him doesn’t want to take all the credit for himself – he always passes the compliment on to his teammates.

Hospelt has been getting more and more playing time and has taken on more responsibility in Wolfsburg – and he reciprocates this trust and gives something back to his club by showing great performances on the ice. Thanks to these he was called up for the German national team, and no one can imagine a German squad without him. He was one of the team’s most important players when the Germans made it to the semi-finals at the 2010 World Championships in their home country and last spring, Uwe Krupp, Germany’s Head Coach, said Hospelt was one of the “three best German players” at the World Championships in Slovakia.

Can He Lead His Team to the Spengler Cup Win?

This year, the center is playing the season of his life and is scoring more goals and assists than ever before. He’s currently the DEL’s top scorer and was recently elected the best DEL player of the month of November by ''Eishockey NEWS'' magazine. But he emphasizes yet again that he’s only able to perform so well because of his teammates and thanks to their support during each game: “The guys make it real easy for me.”

This is typical of Wolfsburg’s assistant captain, who sees himself as just another player on the team. He says: “I always want to give all I’ve got in every game.” Also at this year’s Spengler Cup, where he wants to lead his club to the tournament win.