Starting next season with the addition of DVTK Jegesmedvék and MAC Budapest the Slovak Extraliga will expand to a 12 team league. This was announced at a press conference in between the Tipsport liga and the Hungarian Ice Hockey Federation.
“Today we took the first steps and we are preparing for more” said Richard Lintner, the president of the Slovak Tipsport liga. Litner thinks that the additions of last year’s champions MAC Budapest and the runners up, DVTK Jegesmedvék are a good addition to the Slovak league. Based off what was season last year during the Visegrad Cup this will improve the presigte of the league and grow interest in the league.
“Hungary hockey has improved tremendously in the past decade, for them it is great that in the past it would not have been achievable to be working together with a top hockey country such as Slovakia. The goal of this project is to give another boost to Hungarian hockey.” said Levente Sipos, general secretary of the Hungarian Ice Hockey Federation. They hope that this will help the hockey of both countries.
“We have developed a great relationship with the Slovaks and we have always wanted to be at the level that they are at.” said DVTK Jegesmedvék president István Egri. He also said that he hopes that the team will play a part in raising the level of hockey in the league and they will do everything they can to make the playoffs.
The Extra league regular season is made up of 55 games.
Extraliga participants: HK Nitra (Nyitra), HKM Zvolen (Zólyom), Dukla Trencin (Trencsén), HC ‘05 iCLINIC Banska Bystrica (Besztercebánya), HC Kosice (Kassa), HK Poprad (Poprád), MsHK DOXXbet Zilina (Zsolna), HC Nové Zámky (Ersekújvár), MHk 32 Liptovsky Mikulas (Liptószentmiklós), HC07 Detva (Gyetva), DVTK Jegesmedvék, MAC Budapest
