Winnipeg Jets forward Nino Niederreiter had personal cheering section for four-game homestand (2025)

How far would your best buddies be willing to travel to watch you work?

If the answer is anything less than 7,000 kilometres, Jets forward Nino Niederreiter has you beat. The veteran forward had his own personal cheering section at Canada Life Centre this week as a group of long-time friends from Switzerland made the lengthy trek to Winnipeg to take in a four-game homestand.

“It was awesome. A lot of fun with the games, and we’ve had a lot of fun getting together with Nino,” the unofficial ringleader of the group, Gian Gilli, told the Free Press on Sunday afternoon during the first intermission of an eventual 3-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks.

Gilli and the others — Tom Eichholzer, Reto Rietberger, Andrea Basig and Sven Probst — weren’t hard to find if you attended any of the games at the downtown rink. They were all wearing bright red Switzerland jerseys with Niederreiter’s name and number on the back and quickly became fan favourites.

Whether it was dancing during TV timeouts or repeatedly stopping to chat and posing for pictures with other spectators, the group certainly took the city by storm.

“It was great to see the people here. So friendly. A very warm welcome,” said Rietberger.

Their journey began by witnessing a 5-3 loss against the Buffalo Sabres, but that was followed by three straight victories over the Washington Capitals, New Jersey Devils and Vancouver Canucks.

It also timed out well in that they got to see other Swiss stars such as Nico Hischier and Timo Meier of the Devils, and Pius Suter of the Canucks who scored the lone goal for the visitors on Sunday.

But the main attraction was Niederreiter, who goes all the way back to childhood with some of them.

“He’s a really humble guy. He’s the same guy since he’s grown up. He knows where he’s from,” said Basig, who had Niederreiter as the best man at his wedding in 2016.

“His feet are down to Earth. Always,” added Eichholzer.

The group got the full Winnipeg experience. There was some terrific spring weather early last week followed by a big snowstorm that had a familiar feeling.

“His feet are down to Earth. Always.”– Tom Eichholzer, who made made the lengthy trek to Winnipeg from Switzerland to see long-time friend, Nino Niederreiter, play.

“Lots of snow. Just like in Switzerland,” said Eichholzer.

They joined Niederreiter for a crash course in curling during an off-day last Wednesday out in St. Adolphe — a sport they knew well from having watched plenty of classic games against Canada over the years but hadn’t got down in the hack for.

There were dinners and card games with Niederreiter, too, plus a relaxing visit to Thermea.

“We came 7,000 kilometres here and figured if we were going to come this far, we wanted to see a lot,” said Gilli, who has served as the Chief of Mission of the Swiss Olympic Team and got to know Niederreiter years ago while organizing the World Championships.

“He’s our famous player, the captain of the national team and we have such a good connection with him.”

Rietberger, Basig and Probst have all played hockey with Niederreiter earlier in their lives and love seeing him enjoy the success that he has, now in his 14th pro season.

“Nino is a great friend. He does amazing work. One of our best hockey players,” said Probst.

They also got a chuckle out of how the Jets game-day operations crew would often show Niederreiter’s reaction to their antics during games this past week.

“It was funny to watch Nino how he was shaking his head,” said Rietberger. “When we checked the game schedule and saw at the end of the season they had four games in a row (at home), it was a pretty good week to come.”

Niederreiter said he was honoured his friends would come so far to show their support — a tradition that actually dates back to previous teams he’s played on in Nashville, Minnesota and Carolina.

“It speaks to how close of a group we are,” he said.

“We want the Jets to win the Stanley Cup. They’re a tough team, a very good team. Unbelievable goaltender. Lots of great players. They have to stick together. It’s going to be tough.”– Gian Gilli who likes their chances following a week-long, up-close viewing of Niederreiter and the Jets.

Niederreiter rewarded them with a goal against Buffalo and an assist against Washington while also showing off the strong two-way play which makes him such a valuable member of the Jets.

After coming over in a 2022 trade from the Nashville Predators, Niederreiter signed a three-year contract extension last season to remain in Winnipeg. The 32-year-old from Chur has 33 points (15G, 18A) in 74 games this year and is now just 39 away from hitting 1,000 for his career.

Niederreiter’s pals were to fly home Monday but are already talking about a return visit down the road. Perhaps for a playoff game at some point?

“We want the Jets to win the Stanley Cup,” said Gilli, who certainly likes their chances following a week-long, up-close viewing.

“They’re a tough team, a very good team. Unbelievable goaltender. Lots of great players. They have to stick together. It’s going to be tough.”

One of the loudest roars from the sold-out crowd Sunday afternoon came when the five men held out signs which initially read “Thank You Winnipeg Jets For Having Us” — then were flipped to reveal another sentence.

“Jets Go For The Cup.”

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

X and Bluesky: @mikemcintyrewpg