Austria wasn’t exactly favored to win its Olympic qualifying group in Bratislava this past weekend. Still, to be eliminated after just two games – following a 2-1 loss to Kazakhstan on Friday – was disappointing.

The Austrians seemed disinterested to start their last game on Sunday against Hungary, falling behind 3-0 in the first period before rallying to win 4-3 in a shootout. Not surprisingly, the celebration was muted.

“It’s better than losing the last game,” shrugged Austrian defenceman David Reinbacher. “We didn’t play our best in the first period, but at least we showed some character and some pride in our game and came back to win it.”

Despite his team picking up only two of a possible nine points, Reinbacher still looks positively on the experience and is looking forward to the weeks ahead.

“I’ll go home, have some time with the family, have a bit of a rest, and then I fly overseas on the fifth,” he said, looking ahead to his second training camp with the Montreal Canadiens. “I’m excited to see all the guys.”

After being chosen fifth overall by the Habs in 2023, Reinbacher was loaned back to his Swiss club EHC Kloten after being cut from camp last year. He hopes to stick around longer this year, and figures playing meaningful games with the Austrian national team before the start of camp will benefit him this time around.

“For sure,” he agreed. “I mean, you gotta be mentally prepared to play your best game and I guess it was a good test for me, to prove to myself that I’m ready to go over there. Now I’ve got some reps in me, I’ll take some of the positives out of it, go over there and try to make the team.”

After Kloten’s National League season ended, Reinbacher joined the AHL’s Laval Rocket and showed the offensive flair from the back end that helped make him such a high draft pick, recording two goals and three assists in Laval’s last 11 games of the season.

“That’s in the past now,” Reinbacher figures. “I was lucky to have a good start over there, but now it’s today. I’ve gotta show myself every single day.”

Does he figure he has a shot of making the Canadiens’ opening-night roster?

“That’s my dream,” he said. “That’s why I’m going over there, to try to make the team. I have to prove to the coaches and the staff that I belong there.”

Another positive of the Olympic qualifying tournament was catching up with Vinzenz Rohrer, Montreal’s third-round pick in 2022. The two grew up 10 minutes from each other in western Austria and are the same age – although Reinbacher’s October birthday meant he got drafted a year later.

“For sure, it’s nice that he’s also there in the same organization,” said Reinbacher. “A guy from Austria, I grew up with him, so when we first met after the draft, that was something special. Hopefully, he also gets the chance to go over there one day and maybe we’ll play together.” 

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