"24 years are enough," Marc Lüthi said at the press conference and said that he is going to leave the position as CEO of SC Bern by the end of August. He took the decision after struggling with health problems in the past months, from which he has recovered. Nevertheless, he has drawn personal conclusions from this difficult time.
While Marc Lüthi will become the new chairman of SCB's Board of Directors, Raeto Raffainer is going to take over as CEO of the club. With Raffainer's promotion, there will no longer be a Chief Sport Officer.
Raffainer apologized in front of the media and fans for the too early end of the season and provided a glimpse into the future of SC Bern on the ice. First, Raffainer announced that the coaching staff around head coach Johan Lundskog is going to stay. "It would be too simple to just blame the coach," he explained. They are convinced that the staff has done a good job considering the circumstances and that they have the right philosophy.
In addition to the already confirmed additions (see the list below), also youngsters Vincent Ryser and Nick Meile will be part of SC Bern next season. Raffainer is sure that all additions will help the club get better: "We bring in more skills, more speed, more leadership into the team."
Raffainer also confirmed that they are looking to get rid of the import-players Cory Conacher (
) and Kaspars Daugavins (
). In case they find a solution with them, SCB will have two or even three open spots for imports (one defender, two forwards), for which Canadians Phil Varone and Cody Goloubef are options. There is also interest in Sven Bärtschi for the remaining spot for a Swiss player, Raffainer confirmed.
Arrivals: Romain Loeffel (HC Lugano), Joël Vermin (Genève-Servette HC), Chris DiDomenico (HC Fribourg-Gottéron), Marco Lehmann (SC Rapperswil-Jona Lakers), Jesse Zgraggen (HC Davos), Fabian Ritzmann (HC Davos), Éric Gélinas (, Rögle BK), Santiago Näf (SCB jun.), Vincent Ryser (SCB jun.), Nick Meile (SCB jun.)
Departures: Gregory Sciaroni, Jeremi Gerber, Thomas Thiry, Dustin Jeffrey (), Christian Thomas (), Jan Neuenschwander, Alain Berger, Eric Blum, Thomas Rüfenacht, Vincent Praplan, Calle Andersson, Timothy Kast.
