On the biggest stage in international hockey, the host nation that nobody expected to make a splash has done just that, with Italy officially locking up their spot in the Quarterfinals, and becoming the first nation since Hungary and Czechia, both in 2022, to contend for the International Hockey Lineal Championship.
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Category Archives: IHLC News
IHLC Preview – 2026 Winter Olympics (Men’s)
For the first time since Sochi 2014, NHL professionals will return to the Olympic Games, marking the first true “best on best” tournament in over a decade (and for only the sixth time ever), with the world’s top players across twelve national teams converging on Milan, Italy.
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IHLC Preview – 2026 Winter Olympics (Women’s)
The eighth quadrennial women’s Olympic tournament is set to kick off this Thursday, with an anticipated showdown once again between Canada and the United States likely to highlight the Gold Medal Match once again – but like the previous tournament hosted in Italy, the potential for an upset is more likely now than perhaps ever before.
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🇷🇺 🇧🇾 IIHF Continues Russia, Belarus Ban Into 2026-27 Season
Following an IIHF Council meeting, the International Ice Hockey Federation today confirmed that their ban on Russian and Belarusian teams, dating back to their invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, was extended through the 2026-27 hockey season.
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Full 2026 Men’s Olympic Rosters Released
Starting with France being the first to release their roster on 23 December, and capped by the host Italians releasing their final roster today (20 January), the final roster selections for all twelve Olympic men’s hockey teams are now complete.
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Full 2026 Women’s Olympic Rosters Released
Starting with France being the first to release their roster on 23 December, and to be capped by the host Italians releasing their final roster today (20 January), the final roster selections for all ten Olympic women’s hockey teams are now complete.
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Triple Gold Club: Who Can Join In Milan?
With the calendar finally turning over to 2026, and final rosters for the 2026 Milan Olympics being released daily, there has emerged a select field of fourteen men and three women from five countries who, if successful in winning Gold at next month’s Games, will gain the unique distinction of joining the Triple Gold Club.
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🇷🇺 Sergei Andronov Retires From Hockey At 36
Russian forward Sergei Andronov, a KHL veteran with two Gagarin Cups and an Olympic title under his belt, today confirmed his retirement from hockey at the age of 36 after his release from Salavat Yulaev Ufa this past August, following a fifteen-year pro career.
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🇩🇰 Denmark Relegated From World Junior Championship
For the third straight year, Germany once again avoided relegation at the World Junior Championship, this time eliminating Denmark in an 8-4 victory to send the Lions back down to Division IA in 2027 in their relegation match-up in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
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IHLC 2025 In Review – Junior
The 2025 international junior calendar saw the United States capture their first back-to-back world title in 2025, followed by the emergence of Sweden dominating across three tournaments, capping the calendar year off with a commanding performance at the 2026 World Junior Championship.
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IHLC 2025 In Review – Men’s
The 2025 international hockey men’s calendar saw the title competed over in six different countries over two continents in five tournaments, with seven different countries capturing the International Hockey Lineal Championship in only a three month-span of competition.
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IHLC 2025 In Review – Women’s
2025 saw a continuation of closer parity in international women’s hockey, with the juggernauts of the United States and Canada continuing to set the tone in the lead-up to the 2026 Milan Olympics, competing for World Championship, Rivalry Series and International Hockey Lineal Championship glory.
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IHLC Preview – 2026 World Junior Championship
The eyes of the hockey world are looking just beyond the holiday season, with Boxing Day marking the kickoff of the fiftieth annual IIHF World Junior Championship, this time being hosted by the defending champion Americans in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, with the home team looking to “three-peat” for the first time in history.
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🇫🇮 IIHF Names Tampere & Turku As 2028 World Junior Championship Host
Today the International Ice Hockey Federation announced that hosting rights for the 2028 World Juniors have been awarded to Tampere and Turku, Finland, with the tournament set to begin on 26 December 2027.
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🇳🇴 Norway Promoted To World Junior Top Division In 2027
After a two-year stint in Division IA, Norway will be returning to the World Junior Championship Top Division, thanks to a late Kazakh comeback victory over Austria, locking up their spot in the Top Division even before their final match against hosts Slovenia at the Division IA tournament in Bled.
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IIHF Hall Of Fame Announces 2026 Inductees
The IIHF has announced the Hall Of Fame Class of 2026, to be inducted at May’s World Championships in Zürich, with six players from four different nationalities highlighting the class.
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🇨🇭 Surgery Forces Simon Moser Into Retirement At 36
Swiss forward Simon Moser, a mainstay of both the Swiss National League and national team, confirmed that he would be forced to retire from hockey at age 36, following a career-ending surgery, capping a two-decade plus career highlighted by a pair of World Championship Silver medals.
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🇨🇦 🇷🇺 🇸🇰 🇺🇸 Hockey Hall Of Fame Inducts Class Of 2025
The Hockey Hall Of Fame tonight inducted their 2025 Class, inducting six legendary players to their ranks with a number of tremendous international achievements.
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IIHF Confirms Women’s World Championships Moving To November As Of 2026
At today’s IIHF Semi-Annual Congress in Nice, France, it was confirmed that the 2026 Women’s World Championships would be hosted by Denmark, but more consequentially would be held in November, confirmed to be a permanent shift in moving the typical spring tournament to early November going forward, just prior to the start of the Professional Women’s Hockey League pro seasons.
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🇫🇮 Juuso Hietanen Announces Retirement From Hockey At 40
Finnish defender Juuso Hietanen confirmed his retirement from hockey at the age of 40, following a 20-plus year pro career spanned across Finland, Sweden, Russia and Switzerland, highlighted by being a backstop of Finland’s historic “Golden double” in 2022.
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International Hockey Lineal Championship 