Canada tops latest IIHF men’s hockey rankings

Oh Canada.

After winning the gold medal for the 28th time in World Hockey Championship history – the all time record – Canada has passed Finland for first place in the IIHF Men’s Hockey Rankings released this week.

The latest ranking is based on a formula that takes into account World Championship performances between 2020 and 23, as well as the 2022 Winter Olympics and the Olympic qualifying round for teams that missed out.

A full breakdown of how points are awarded can be found here. A full list of 58 teams can also be found here.

Canada have a 70-point barrier over 2022 World Championship winner Finland. The Finns finished seventh in the World Championship after losing to Canada in the quarter-finals, a rematch of the previous three medal matches. ‘gold.

Canada has never been lower than second place since 2015, occupying the top spot most of the time.

Finland slipped one place to second, while Russia – who have not competed since the 2022 Olympics – are third with 4,050 points. The United States is second with 3,940, while Germany moved up four spots to fifth after reaching the gold medal game for the first time in tournament history.

Sweden fell to sixth place, a tough end for a side that looked strong a decade ago. It’s been a downward slope for them, holding the top spot from 2013 to 2014 and remaining in the top three throughout the late 2010s. Since 2020, the Swedes haven’t moved past fourth place.

Other significant moves include Czechia dropping from sixth to eighth place, Slovenia moving up two places to 17th, Britain falling two places to 20th despite being promoted and the United Arab Emirates moving up four places. at the 39th. Outside the top 50, Singapore moved up the most four places to 51st.

The biggest losers were Georgia (-12 to 53rd) and North Korea (-11 to 56th), but they haven’t played since 2019.

Mongolia and Indonesia both made the list for the first time at 57th and 58th respectively after making their IIHF World Championship debuts.

IIHF Rankings help determine future World Championship and Olympic Group rankings, as well as show the long-term success – or lack of success – of a nation’s program. The IIHF will announce the updated women’s hockey rankings at the end of the Summer World Championship tournaments, with Canada currently holding the top spot.