From time to time, TheIHLC.com will feature detailed recaps and boxscores of some of the most legendary games in international hockey history, considered to be “IHLC Classics.” Today, in honour of Czech Independence Day, we feature their third consecutive World Championship Gold from 2001, capping off an unprecedented half-decade of international hockey success.

🇨🇿 Czechia 3-2 Finland 🇫🇮 (OT)
World Championship Gold Medal Game
Preussag Arena, Hanover 🇩🇪
Sunday, May 13, 2001

The Czech Republic won its first IIHF World Championship as a new nation in 1996. This started an era of unprecedented success in Czech hockey history. The 1996 gold medal game against Canada was decided after Martin Procházka scored the winner with 19 seconds left to play of a 4-2 victory. Two years later, the Dominik Hašek-led Czechs won their first Olympic gold after the Dominator stunned all five Canadian shooters in a shootout in the semi-final and blanked Russia 1-0 in the final.
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