Author Archives: Master Of This Domain

IHLC Team Profiles – 🇯🇵 Japan (Men’s)

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🇯🇵 JAPAN (JPN) Men’s National Ice Hockey Team (1930-)
1 win, 1 reign, 1 game with IHLC – ranked 22nd
IHLC last held 01 November 1997

Japan first burst on to the international scene in 1930, quite an anomaly for an Asian squad in the largely European / North American dominated hockey scene. Japan competed for their first IHLC in 1957, and made a number of World Championship appearances thanks to the IIHF allowing a “Far East” competitor to play in tournaments they otherwise wouldn’t have qualified for, before winning their first and only IHLC forty years later from Canada. While Japan has not played for the IHLC since, they have stayed a mainstay of Division IA, looking to reach the World Championship’s top pool once again.
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IHLC Team Profiles – 🇱🇻 Latvia (Junior)

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🇱🇻 LATVIA (LAT) Men’s Junior National Ice Hockey Team (1992-)

After a quarter century of futility in Division I and II, Latvia has emerged as a recent contender on the Top Division stage, first breaking through in 2009, returning in 2012, 2017 and 2022. While their debut game was a 16-0 thrashing from Canada, their scores and skills have continuously improved, and look for Latvia to work hard to keep a permanent seat in the Top Division in the coming years. Continue reading →

IHLC Team Profiles – 🇸🇪 Sweden (Junior)

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🇸🇪 SWEDEN (SWE) Men’s Junior National Ice Hockey Team (1973-)
126 wins, 43 reigns, 134 games with IHLC – ranked 2nd
IHLC last held 30 August 2026

The Juniorkronorna, who has taken part in every World Junior Championship since its inception, is consistently a medal threat, but has surprisingly only won Gold three times, winning nearly twenty additional Silver and Bronze medals. However, they have made the medal finals in every tournament since 2007, and with the ever-improving quality of players coming out of Sweden each year, look for Sweden to improve on their lowly Gold count in the coming years.
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IHLC Team Profiles – 🇰🇷 South Korea (Men’s)

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🇰🇷 SOUTH KOREA (KOR) Men’s National Ice Hockey Team (1979-)

Korea landed on the radar of the IHLC in 2018, both being the hosts of the 2018 Olympics in PyeongChang and qualifying for their first World Championship Top Division in history. While finally getting a shot at the IHLC in 2018 (after narrowly missing two previous opportunities), they certainly surprised the hockey world in 2018, and will look to continue to surprise and become a permanent fixture on the international stage.
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IHLC Team Profiles – 🇳🇱 Netherlands (Women’s)

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🇳🇱 NETHERLANDS (NED) Women’s National Ice Hockey Team (1987-)

The Netherlands women’s squads was one of the inaugural teams to play at the Women’s World Tournament in 1987, losing their only IHLC title game to Canada by a score of 19-1. The Oranje have yet to qualify for the top pool at the World Championships, or an Olympic Games, in women’s hockey.
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IHLC Team Profiles – 🇨🇭 Switzerland (Junior)

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🇨🇭 SWITZERLAND (SUI) Men’s Junior National Ice Hockey Team (1977-)
12 wins, 5 reigns, 12 games with IHLC – ranked 7th
IHLC last held 17 April 2026

Switzerland entered the World Juniors stage at the second World Championship tournament in 1978, finishing last and ping-ponging between the Top Division and Pool B between 1978 and 1995, only twice managing to stay in the Top Division for more than a season. But they have consistently remained in the Top Division since 1996, only being relegated once since, and even winning Bronze in 1998. While they had their struggles in recent years, the quality of talent coming out of Switzerland should help keep them in the Top Division for good in the future.
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IHLC Team Profiles – 🇨🇦 Canada (Men’s)

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🇨🇦 CANADA (CAN) Men’s National Ice Hockey Team (1910-)
339 wins, 68 reigns, 364 games with IHLC – ranked 2nd
IHLC last held 22 May 2025

Canada, the inventors of the game of ice hockey, naturally entered the international circuit as a dominant force, winning their first IHLC in 1911 and rarely losing any game from then until 1953, winning all but one Olympic Gold and 13 World Championship titles. However, with the emergence of the Soviet Union, and disputes with the IIHF over defining amateur players, Canada largely dropped off from international competition, mainly competing in now-classic events like the Summit Series and Canada Cup. Now that the playing field has equaled with professionals playing, Canada has regained its footing as a dominant hockey nation, only second in IHLC rankings to Russia.
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IHLC Team Profiles – 🇸🇪 Sweden (Men’s)

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🇸🇪 SWEDEN (SWE) Men’s National Ice Hockey Team (1920-)
226 wins, 87 reigns, 242 games with IHLC – ranked 3rd
IHLC last held 20 May 2025

Ever since Sweden’s first international game at the 1920 Olympics, and their first IHLC game three days later, Tre Kronor has become a dominant force on the international hockey circuit, producing some of the top talent in the past 40 years in the NHL, and winning ten World Championship and two Olympic Gold titles. Sweden also holds the record for the most IHLC reigns, winning the title over 70 times since their first victory in 1931, and recently tipping over 200 total IHLC victories. Sweden is one of the few teams to never be relegated at the World Championship, and is a constant threat to retake the crown.
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IHLC Team Profiles – 🇦🇹 Austria (Junior)

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🇦🇹 AUSTRIA (AUT) Men’s Junior National Ice Hockey Team (1979-)

Austria has had a rocky history at the World Junior level, appearing sporadically in the Top Division only six times in history (1981, 2004, 2010, 2021-23), with their best finish ever being eighth. Struggling to stay in the top level of Division I, Austria has only thrice contended for the IHLC, first in a pre-tournament exhibition game in 2003, and then not again until the 2022 World Junior Championship.
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IHLC Team Profiles – 🇨🇿 Czechia (Women’s)

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🇨🇿 CZECHIA (CZE) Women’s National Ice Hockey Team (1993-)

Failing to match the Top Division dominance of their male or junior counterparts following the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in 1992, the Czech women’s team first joined the Top Division in 2013, staying for good in 2016, finishing a surprising sixth in only their second trip to the top. After qualifying for their first Olympics in 2022, the Czechs qualified for their first ever IHLC by stunning Finland in the 2022 Women’s World Championship quarterfinals, guaranteeing them a chance at their first ever international medal.
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IHLC Team Profiles – 🇨🇦 Canada (Junior)

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🇨🇦 CANADA (CAN) Men’s Junior National Ice Hockey Team (1973-)
129 wins, 25 reigns, 137 games with IHLC – ranked 1st
IHLC last held 20 December 2025

While the first decade of the junior IHLC belonged to the Soviet Union, Canada has emerged as the global leader in junior hockey in the past twenty-five years, with the World Junior Championship becoming something of a national holiday. Canada has captured 20 Gold Medals since 1982 (including five straight on two separate occasions), and sits first all-time in IHLC wins. With emerging nations like Finland, Sweden and their rival United States improving each year, Canada will have to continue to fight to stay atop the World Junior stage, as they look to hold on to #1 atop the rankings.
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IHLC Team Profiles – 🇺🇸 United States (Women’s)

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🇺🇸 UNITED STATES (USA) Women’s National Ice Hockey Team (1987-)
175 wins, 43 reigns, 175 games with IHLC – ranked 2nd
current IHLC title holders (since 13 April 2025)

One of the “big two” of women’s international hockey, the U.S. team was just another punching bag for the dominant Canadian squad, until they stunned Canada (and the world) by winning the first women’s Olympic Gold in 1998. Since then, their tilts with Canada have become the stuff of legend, and in recent years the U.S. has become a regular champion at the Women’s World Championship and Olympics. Since becoming the second ever IHLC winner in 1993, the U.S. trails only Canada in the number of IHLC wins, reigns and days as champion.
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IHLC Team Profiles – 🇳🇴 Norway (Men’s)

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🇳🇴 NORWAY (NOR) Men’s National Ice Hockey Team (1937-)
8 wins, 4 reigns, 11 games with IHLC – ranked 12th
IHLC last held 13 April 2013

Norway, playing international hockey since 1937, first competed for the IHLC at the 1950 World Championship, and failed to capture the title until nearly fifty years later, winning the IHLC from Germany in 1996. After a second reign in 1997, the Isbjørnene failed to compete on the top international level throughout the 2000s, only recently reemerging as a contender on the backs of NHL stars lacing up for their country. Norway has won two more IHLC titles since 2010, competes for the IHLC on a regular basis, and surely will continue to contend in the coming years.
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IHLC Team Profiles – 🇺🇦 Ukraine (Junior)

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🇺🇦 UKRAINE (UKR) Men’s Junior National Ice Hockey Team (1992-)

Since the breakup of the Soviet Union, the Ukrainian junior squad saw some initial success in Division I, qualifying for the Top Division in 1995 and 1996, returning in 2000 and 2004. However, since 2005 Ukraine has been stuck in Division I, even dropping to Division II in 2012, looking to claw their way back to the Top Division.
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IHLC Team Profiles – 🇭🇺 Hungary (Women’s)

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🇭🇺 HUNGARY (HUN) Women’s National Ice Hockey Team (1999-)

First competing nationally in 1999, the Magyars have rocketed up the women’s world rankings in the past two decades, climbing from Division III all the way to the Top Division in 2019, competing for their first IHLC by becoming surprising quarterfinalists at the 2022 Women’s World Championships.

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IHLC Team Profiles – 🇷🇸 Yugoslavia

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🇷🇸 YUGOSLAVIA (YUG) Men’s National Ice Hockey Team (1939-92)

Yugoslavia, by virtue of hosting the 1984 Olympics, played for its only International Hockey Lineal Championship against the Soviet Union, losing 9-1. The Yugoslav squad played in one World Championship and at five Olympics before the team dissolved due to the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1992, continuing on as Serbia & Montenegro until 2006, and the lineage of the Yugoslavia team today continues with the Serbian national team, looking to claw their way back into the top Division for the first time since 1939. Yugoslavia hosted two major tournaments, the 1966 World Championship (in what is now Ljubljana, Slovenia) and the 1984 Olympic Games (in what is now Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina). Continue reading →

IHLC Results – 🇷🇺 Russia 5-2 Finland 🇫🇮 – 25 May 2014

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🇷🇺 Russia 5-2 Finland 🇫🇮
World Championship Gold Medal Game
Minsk-Arena, Minsk 🇧🇾
Sunday, 25 May 2014

Reversing the Sochi storyline, Russia’s superstars shone against Finland in Sunday’s final. Four power-play goals made the difference in a thrilling 5-2 win.
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IHLC Results – 🇫🇮 Finland 3-0 Czechia 🇨🇿 – 24 May 2014

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🇫🇮 Finland 3-0 Czechia 🇨🇿
World Championship Semifinal
Minsk-Arena, Minsk 🇧🇾
Saturday, 24 May 2014

A 20-save shutout by Pekka Rinne propelled Finland to a 3-0 semi-final win over the Czechs. Next up is a Gold medal showdown with Russia on Sunday.
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IHLC Results – 🇫🇮 Finland 3-2 Canada 🇨🇦 – 22 May 2014

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🇫🇮 Finland 3-2 Canada 🇨🇦
World Championship Quarterfinal
Chyzhouka-Arena, Minsk 🇧🇾
Thursday, 22 May 2014

Suomi is smiling. Finland edged Canada 3-2 on Thursday to advance to a semi-final clash with the Czechs. Iiro Pakarinen tallied the winner with just 3:08 left.
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IHLC Results – 🇨🇦 Canada 3-2 Norway 🇳🇴 – 20 May 2014

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🇨🇦 Canada 3-2 Norway 🇳🇴
World Championship Preliminary Round
Chyzhouka-Arena, Minsk 🇧🇾
Tuesday, 20 May 2014

Canada beat Norway 3-2 in Tuesday’s early game at Chizhovka Arena. That means that they’ll face either Finland or Latvia in the quarter-finals.
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