The IIHF today, at their end-of-tournament press conference in Stockholm, Sweden, confirmed a number of items outlined at this week’s IIHF Congress, including the traditional awarding of tournament hosts for future events, and confirmation that the IIHF has submitted plans to the International Olympic Committee to proceed with excluding Russian men’s and women’s hockey teams from the 2026 Olympics, set to begin in nine months in Milan, Italy.
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Tag Archives: Russia
๐ท๐บ Lokomotiv Yaroslavl Captures First Gagarin Cup
One year after being swept in the Gagarin Cup finals, today Lokomotiv Yaroslavl reversed their fortunes with a Game Five overtime win over Traktor Chelyabinsk, winning the club’s first ever Gagarin Cup title.
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๐ท๐บ It’s Officially Official – Ilya Kovalchuk Retires From Hockey At Age 41
After initially claiming his career was over in early March, soon correcting that to clarify he was simply a free agent, Russian winger Ilya Kovalchuk today made it official that, at the age of 41, he would be stepping away from hockey for good, following an illustrious career highlighted by one Olympic and two World Championship titles.
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๐จ๐ฆ ๐ซ๐ฎ ๐ธ๐ช ๐บ๐ธ IHLC To Miss Four Nations Face-Off Final
Just as it was uncertain that the IHLC would even be contended at the Four Nations Face-Off to begin with, necessitating a Finland win with less than a week before the tournament began, the IHLC will now be leaving North America, by virtue of Sweden‘s 2-1 round robin final victory over the United States, meaning that the IHLC will not be paired with the Four Nations title.
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World Cup Of Hockey Set To Return In 2028
On the eve of the inaugural (and potentially only) Four Nations Face-Off, the NHL and NHLPA today announced the return of the World Cup Of Hockey, set to debut in February 2028 as a mid-season, rather than preseason, tournament, and recurring every four years thereafter.
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๐ฏ๐ต ๐ธ๐ช ๐ฉ๐ช Japan, Sweden, Germany Clinch Final Milan 2026 Women’s Olympic Qualifying Spots
After three months of Olympic qualifiers, with 24 teams competing across two rounds of play, came to a conclusion today for the final three spots in Milan, with the spots being clinched locked up by Japan, Sweden and Germany for the 2026 Olympics.
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๐ท๐บ ๐ง๐พ IIHF Extends Russia, Belarus Ban Into 2025-26 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 2025-26 hockey season.
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๐ซ๐ฎ ๐ท๐บ IHLC Classics: Hagman’s Helsinki Heroics
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 Finnish Independence Day (itsenรคisyyspรคivรค), we look back at theย Leijonat’s thrilling home ice Gold Medal victory at the 1998 World Junior Championships, with Niklas Hagman’s overtime snipe securing the title in Helsinki.
๐ซ๐ฎ Finland 2-1 Russia ๐ท๐บ (OT)
World Junior Championship Gold Medal Game
Hartwall Areena, Helsinki ๐ซ๐ฎ
Saturday, 03 January 1998
Finland achieved its first World Junior Championship Gold in 1987, but at that time the rankings were decided by playing in series.
The playoffs only entered the World Junior Championship program for the 1995-96 Games, and what would be more comfortable than to settle World Cup Gold at home in extra time of the final?
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๐บ๐ธ ๐จ๐ฆ ๐ท๐บ Hockey Hall Of Fame Inducts Class Of 2024
The Hockey Hall Of Fame tonight inducted their 2024 Class, inducting five legendary players to their ranks with a number of tremendous international achievements.
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๐จ๐ฆ Tyler Ennis Confirms Retirement From Hockey At 34
After injuries hampered his NHL prospects, sending him to two seasons in Europe, Canadian journeyman winger Tyler Ennis today confirmed his retirement from hockey at age 34, following a 15 year pro career with seven different teams, along with a pair of Gold medals won with Team Canada.
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๐ฑ๐ป ๐ฉ๐ฐ ๐ธ๐ฐ Latvia, Denmark, Slovakia Clinch Final Milan 2026 Men’s Olympic Qualifying Spots
After nearly a year of Olympic qualifiers that began last December, with 30 teams competing across three rounds of play, came to a conclusion today for the final three spots in Milan, with the spots being clinched locked up by Latvia, Denmark and Slovakia for the 2026 Olympics, in a carbon copy clinching scenario from three years earlier.
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Nathan MacKinnon Captures Top Honours At 2024 NHL Awards
The National Hockey League officially closed the 2023-24 season with their NHL Awards ceremony at the Fontainebleau Las Vegas, with eleven IHLC holders representing four countries taking home trophies handed out over the past month, culminating with tonight’s gala.
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๐ท๐บ Pavel Datsyuk Officially Announces Retirement Following Hall Induction
Just a day after being announced as an inductee to the Hockey Hall of Fame this November, Russian forward Pavel Datsyuk, who has been prevented by injury from playing since 2021, officially announced his retirement from the game at age 45.
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Hockey Hall Of Fame Announces Class Of 2024
The Hockey Hall Of Fame today announced the newest members that will join as the Class of 2024 on 11 November, with Pavel Datsyuk, Jeremy Roenick and Shea Weber representing the male players, while Natalie Darwitz and Krissy Wendell become the first pair of women to be inducted in the same year since 2010, all to join the ranks of the Hall in Toronto.
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Florida Panthers Avoid Collapse, Capture Stanley Cup
Capping their thirtieth season in the National Hockey League, the Florida Panthers today avoided an epic, historic collapse in Game Seven the Stanley Cup Final, capturing their first Stanley Cup over the Edmonton Oilers, who forced the decisive game after coming back from a 3-0 series deficit, with a narrow 2-1 victory on home ice.
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๐จ๐ฆ ๐ซ๐ฎ ๐ธ๐ช ๐บ๐ธ 2025 Four Nations Face-Off Schedule Released
The schedule for the NHL’s mid-season 2025 tournament, the Four Nations Face-Off, was announced today prior to the start of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final, with Boston, United States and Montrรฉal, Canada set to host their respective host nations, along with Sweden and Finland, next February, a tune-up to the NHL’s Olympic return at the 2026 Olympics.
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๐ท๐บ Gusev, Nikishin, Nabokov Highlight 2024 KHL Closing Ceremony
The Kontinental Hockey League formally wrapped their sixteenth season tonight in Moscow with their annual Closing Ceremony, awarding the league’s top teams, players and executives for their performance this year, with six IHLC winners, all from Russia, taking home trophies.
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๐ท๐บ Metallurg Magnitogorsk Sweeps To 2024 Gagarin Cup Victory
After a near-elimination in the conference finals, Metallurg Magnitogorsk today completed a four-game sweep of Lokomotiv Yaroslavl in the 2024 Gagarin Cup finals, capturing their third title and first in eight years.
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๐ท๐บ ๐ง๐พ IIHF Extends Russia, Belarus Ban Into 2024-25 Season
During 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 2024-25 hockey season.
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An IHLC Lineage Correction – 1992 Olympics
As part of our continuous improvement to always refine the International Hockey Lineal Championship, we came across an improper lineage in the 1992 season that has now been corrected, impacting in particular lineage during the 1992 Olympics in Albertville, France.
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International Hockey Lineal Championship 