After a youth at Ritten Sport Hockey, 11 seasons, 557 games and 109 goals with the Buam in the highest Italian league, 1 Alps Hockey League Championship title, 5 Italian Champion titles, 3 Coppa Italia and 5 Supercoppa, the time has come for our #94 Thomas Spinell to hang up his skates. After Daniel and Tobias he is the 3rd of the Spinell brothers to end his career.

Thomas has already excelled in the youth categories with racket technique and an overview of the game. Interestingly enough, his passes were already as accurate as drawn by the ruler back then. He had to learn for a long time that he could not fight against the referees. It was a pleasure to watch him play hockey. When the name Thomas Spinell is mentioned, I always realize that hockey is a game, says his youth coach Stan Holba.

At 19, he made the leap from the U20s to the first team with which he won the first runner-up title in club history. Since then, he has always been an integral part and pillar of the team. Not always welcome by his opponents, he was always available for fun in the dressing room. His long-time teammate Simon Kostner describes him in his Sportnews All Star Team as "one of the smartest players in the AlpsHL, who, through his overview and patience, puts his players in the limelight very well.” After Emanuel Scelfo and Dan Tudin, he is, together with Lorenz Daccordo, the player who has put on the Rittner jersey the most often and has always remained loyal to Ritten with the exception of 9 guest appearances in Val Gardena.

To be honest, Thomas was probably one of the most gifted hockey players who ever played for Ritten. Unfortunately, he didn't always want to show his full potential, he was unique in many ways. But when it came down to it, he was always ready. With his inimitable manner he gave us a lot of fun and pleasure on and off the ice for more than a decade. I fondly remember many final series and especially the Continental Cup Final 2018 in Minsk, where he was not only by far the best player in our team, but one of the best of the entire tournament. How did Tschik Čajkovski lovingly say about Gerd Müller many years ago? KLEINES DICKES SPINELL, ...we will miss you!!!, so Thomas Rottensteiner, president of the Rittner Buam.

He has been toying with the idea for a long time and has now dared to take the step - at almost 30 years of age, it is now over and Thomas is hanging up his skates.

The board, your teammates and your fans would like to thank you for the many great hockey moments, your commitment and achievements in your hockey career on the Ritten and wish you all the best for your future.