Dresdner Eislöwen - Cologne 04-01-2026

It's been a bit of a mess lately with hockey results. So this time we've dug deep to find what we think is a good game. We're going to the German DEL and the match between bottom team Dresdner Eisløwen and league leader Kölner.

It is a superb league leader who travels to the away match against the decidedly bottom team in the series. Kölner leads the series with 77 points after 35 matches, while Dresdner is at the very bottom with 22 points in 36 rounds. So there should be a class difference between these teams. Many are probably wondering if we can find something playable in a match like this. Surprisingly, we think we have found it. Here we are a little into the article we wrote about the narrow sports. Which often means that you can find completely different odds than in other parts of the market. If you want to read more about it, you can find it here !

Dresdner Eisløwen – As expected.

Anyone who follows DEL and has been doing so for a while could tell in advance that Dresdner was going to be the bottom team this season. As expected, they have had a tough time after their promotion last season. A team that finished 4th in DEL 2 last season would have a tough time in this division anyway. They surprised many in the playoffs, and thus finally managed to move up. An impressive achievement. If you go back to the 23/24 season, this team finished second to last in DEL 2. So the curve has been too steep. All bookmakers had the team placed last in this year's DEL, and in that respect they have not disappointed.

The last place they now hold ensures relegation straight away, and there are already 13 points up to safe ground. Eight wins in 36 games is simply too bad at this level. The team has performed a little better lately. But overall they are simply not good enough for this level. They have already met today's opponent twice this season, and both games have ended in a solid loss. 2-5 and 5-0 say the most. Here they will have a tough time.

Of the individual players, Austin Ortega has impressed the most. But unfortunately he is terribly alone, and the team clearly lacks depth. Only one other player is in the top 100 of the players in this year's league in points statistics. So there are too few who produce anything in this team. What about today's opponent?

Cologne – A fantastic season.

This is a Cologne team that has surprised many so far this year. The team that has not been higher than number 6 in the last 5 seasons in the DEL, has this year taken the league lead with 6 points. They are in fantastic form these days, and they are delivering solid hockey with many goals. Fun to follow.

They score more than most (2) and concede less than most (3). This often leads to a solid position. They now have 8 wins in a row. Where several of the matches have been against tough opposition. So it is safe to say that the team delivers the goods. Most matches are often won by more goals, and it is no surprise that we think in those terms here too. As I said, they should be much better than their opponent. We also think that they are not normally in this position, there is no danger of the team dropping down against a supposedly inferior opponent. They find motivation in being where they are. It is simply boiling inside the team now.

If you look at the number of players who contribute to the points statistics, you can quickly see why the team is where they are. Russel and MacLeod are number 3 and 4. Even though MacLeod has now been out of the team for a while, they also have others who contribute on that front. They have 9 players in the top 100 in that statistic this year. So the goals can come from many sides here. We think that this is the big strength this season. The team simply delivers in several ways. But the internal results between these two teams this season, we believe that the away team will win something similar this time too.

Conclusion – Quality ensures victory.

The quality difference between these teams should be more than enough for us to believe in a victory for league leader Cologne in this one. When you also meet the weakest team of all in the division in Dresden. Should this only end with an outcome.

Unfortunately, a clean win is not enough to get playable odds. But there should be at least two goals separating these teams. So we try the following bets:

Hockey at 16:30: Dresdner Eislöwen - Kölner: Kölner wins -1.5 goals (1.78)