Cuddly ice bulls

Ice bulls to cuddle up to

Start of the next Bulls ice age.(Bild: Gintare Karpaviciute - EC Red Bull Salzburg)

(Bild: Peter Schneider)

Ice hockey league champions Salzburg are back in action on the ice and have started their preparations. But the cracks have not forgotten the summer off and their vacation. The time spent with their loved ones makes even the tough ice hockey players go soft.

They throw themselves into the shots come hell or high water, check hard, just as they themselves are mercilessly checked, and then get into the occasional really violent fight. Ice hockey cracks are not good for cherries. Not even with the ice bulls from champions Salzburg, who kicked off the 2024/25 ice season at the academy in Liefering on Monday.

When you get to spend quality time with your family, with your daughter, you think twice about turning on the TV

Thomas Raffl

But the Bulls also have a completely different side away from the ice, especially when they talk about their summer break and vacations. Especially the fathers, who particularly enjoy spending time with their families and their children. "Once you can really spend time with your family, with your daughter, you think twice about turning on the TV," emphasizes Tom Raffl, who enjoyed every day of his vacation in Greece with his wife Verena and Ava Rose. The muscle man mutates into a cuddly ice bull just by telling the story. Which Peter Schneider also likes to play: Having only become a father for the first time during the final series against the KAC in the spring, he soaked up the time with his daughter Lotta during the trip to Croatia. "It was a balancing act between family and training," explains the national team player, who emphasizes that his wife Lena supports him magnificently.

Peter Schneider (right, with Lena and Lotta) has not yet forgotten his vacation.(Bild: Peter Schneider)

Quality time with his Katharina and son Fabio was also a top priority for Mario Huber. "We like being outside together, we do a lot," says "Hubsi", who, as one of the many Salzburg national team players, rightly speaks of a not-so-long summer.

The next few weeks until October could no doubt pass more quickly for Ryan Murphy. The defender is currently away from his family - as he was after the birth of his son Mason in January.