Briere and Giroux sign with Eisbaren Berlin of the DEL

It has been reported that Danny Briere and Claude Giroux have signed with Eisbaren Berlin out of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL) in Germany. It has not been confirmed yet on when they will arrive to play in Berlin.

This news comes as a bit of a surprise, as I thought Giroux might end up going to the KHL, or go and play for HC Kladno in the Czech league. HC Kladno is the team that his former Flyers teammate Jaromir Jagr owns and is playing for until the lockout ends.

Danny Briere, who I saw a few weeks ago at the local rink where I play hockey at, also comes off as a surprise. He is turning 35 this month and I figured he would stay local and take some time off from the game and spend it at home. He and other Flyers were renting the rink and running their own practices to stay on top of their game. With all of these moves, it can only mean that the lockout is no where close to being resolved.

For anyone who doesn’t know much about the DEL. It is the highest level of professional hockey in Germany and the Eisbaren Berlin hockey team has won the championship 6 times since the 2004-2005 season. They are coached by former NHL player Don Jackson.

I will have an update on these two players progress in “Keeping up with the Flyers,” but until then, at least we have a team to root for in Germany!

-Brett Gibbs