Even though todays result was great for german hockey (and hockey fans), I don't think it will start a hype over here. And to be honest, I think a bronze medal is the best we can achieve. Some people's dreams of gold are way out of reach.
The reasons, why there will be no hockey boom in germany, are
- soccer
- soccer
- soccer
- the costs of playing hockey vs. soccer
- soccer
- You probably need at least an hour to reach your training rink (if there's any)
- and btw ... soccer
Someone in this thread called soccer over here "cancer" and he/she's right. It gets all the broadcasting time. It's cheaper. There's a club around every corner. Every other sports tv representation declined while soccer gets more time in tv every year. Every other sport is slowly degraded into a niche, while even 3rd league soccer is broadcasted live. It's that bad and it will stay that way.