Cortina has already been the head coach of the German men’s national team for the last two seasons. His tasks as sport director will be assumed by long-time U20 national team coach Ernst Hofner while Cortina will fully focus on coaching and take over the U20 national team in addition to the men’s national team that will compete in the 2015 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship in Prague and Ostrava, Czech Republic.

“You cannot successfully combine the structural requirements of a sports director with the tasks of a national team head coach. Pat Cortina has the full responsibility for the current development and presence of our national teams, which entails the short and mid-term goals of improving our world ranking, ensuring a top performance at the 2017 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship, and achieving Olympic qualification in 2018,” said German Ice Hockey Association President Franz Reindl.

For Cortina it will be the third year in the national team program and the first as head coach of the U20 national team. The 49-year-old was previously coaching EHC Munchen in Germany, for seven years the Hungarian national team and for three years the Italian national team.

On the U20 national team Reindl said: “We have good, talented, and motivated players at the U20 and U18 levels. For us, what placement the teams achieve is not our goal, but rather the development of our players. That development can only be optimal at the top level. Therefore, it must remain our primary objective with both of these junior teams to remain at the top level.”