The SC Bern management has found the successor to the dismissed coach Jussi Tapola. Heinz Ehlers takes over at the big club, which has had a disappointing start to the championship.
06.10.2025, 09:19
06.10.2025, 09:59
SDA
Ehlers was brought to the Swiss capital from EHC Basel, according to a press release from the club. The 59-year-old Dane has been working as an assistant to head coach Eric Himelfarb at the Swiss League club since this spring.
Prior to his engagement in Basel, Ehlers was head coach at EHC Visp for two seasons. He led the Valais team to the championship title in the second-highest division last season, but missed out on promotion. Visp lost the play-off duel against Ajoie, who finished bottom of the National League, with a 1:4 win.
In Switzerland, Ehlers also worked as a coach at EHC Biel, Lausanne HC and the SCL Tigers, among others. As a player, he was under contract in several top European leagues and played 104 international games for Denmark.
Ehlers will be supported in his work in Bern by former Czech international Pavel Rosa and Patrick Schöb, who will complete the coaching team as assistants. After Tapola's dismissal, Schöb coached the team together with his compatriot Tuomas Tuokkola in the games against the ZSC Lions (3:7) and the SCL Tigers (2:1). Tuokkola will return to his role in the coaching team of the U21 team and as Head of Development SCB Future.
"Heinz Ehlers knows the National League very well and has proven many times in his career that he can lead teams successfully. Pavel Rosa is an ideal addition to the coaching staff. His experience as a player and coach will give the team additional impetus," sports director Martin Plüss is quoted as saying in the press release.
Tapola had to vacate the head coaching position in Bern last Wednesday, the day after the 1:5 home game against Fribourg-Gottéron. The Finn had been in charge at the SCB for a good two years. With the completely unsatisfactory start to the National League, what had been predicted not only in specialist circles, namely a difficult season, materialized at the earliest stage of the championship. The Bernese won only four of their first eleven games.
