“A very difficult question!”: Will Niederreiter end his career at Rapperswil?

Niederreiter’s time with his old friends has been limited in recent weeks as he has been working very hard. In addition to strength and conditioning training with former ski coach and SRF expert Michi Bont, the winger sweated on the ice with the SCRJ Lakers.

“Why not with the HCD?”

When Arno del Curto (67) heard about Niederreiter’s daily business trips from Chur to Rapperswil, the former Davos champion reacted with surprise: “Why doesn’t Nino, as a Graubünden resident, complete his season preparation with the HCD?” Niederreiter’s answer: “The fact that I started playing ice hockey at a very young age can be traced back to Leandro Profico. Leandro was my neighbor in Chur. And because he had been under contract with the Lakers for a long time, I decided four years ago to spend the summer ice time with him.”

Although defender Profico moved from Rappi to Kloten last year, Nino wants to stick to the training location on Obersee-Ufer. «The Lakers offer me the perfect opportunity to prepare for the season. I can train with the team for two hours every day, the coaching team at this club is absolutely great!” Can the former Chur and HCD junior imagine playing for the SCRJ Lakers in the National League in the fall of his career? “That is a difficult question that I cannot answer at the moment. “Ultimately, I want to play in North America for another four to five years,” says the 205-time NHL goal scorer.

Wonder runners from the old master

Niederreiter is facing a particularly difficult season in the best league in the world. “My contract expires next spring. And I will have to score regularly for a new, well-paid contract.” To make this a success, the 31-year-old purchased very special material from Chur hockey veteran Riccardo Signorell just before his departure to Canada. «Riccardo makes skate blades from a special carbon steel mixture. When I couldn’t really get up to speed in Carolina about two years ago, I installed his skates on my skates for the first time. Because I scored two goals in the first match, I have loved the ‘Signorell speedsters’ ever since.” What’s really special about it: “You can get out of a turn faster with these runners, because you get a kick effect like on carbon skis.”

Niederreiter’s total conviction for this tailor-made product has often brought drops of sweat to the foreheads of his supervisors. «The materials manager pointed out to me one day that he could only sand the Signorell runners one more time until they were completely worn out. I have therefore asked him not to crush the runners, so that they remain playable until Riccardo sends me the supplies by post.” To ensure that the spare lasts much longer this time, Niederreiter has packed six pairs of runners in his suitcase. “There I should last at least until half of the season.”

Investing in trend sports

Niederreiter’s plans extend far beyond his ice hockey career to the trend sport of padel tennis. He recently became co-owner of a company that operates six courts in the Zurich Exhibition Center. “We will soon open a Padelta facility in Chur. There are some very innovative people in this company who want to make this sport even bigger in Switzerland. It makes me happy that I am now part of this special project.” So there’s a lot to be said for the fact that Niederreiter, who makes an annual salary of $4 million in Winnipeg, will continue to make a lot of money in his post-career career.