Slovakia men's national ice hockey team
 | |
| Association | Slovak Ice Hockey Federation |
|---|---|
| General Manager | Róbert Švehla |
| Head coach | Zdeno Cíger |
| Assistants |
Ernest Bokroš Miroslav Miklošovič |
| Captain | Milan Jurčina/Zdeno Chára |
| Most games | Miroslav Šatan (175)1 |
| Top scorer | Miroslav Šatan (85)1 |
| Most points | Miroslav Šatan (162)1 |
| Home stadium | Zimný Štadión Ondreja Nepelu |
| IIHF code | SVK |
| IIHF ranking |
8  |
| Highest IIHF ranking | 3 (2004) |
| Lowest IIHF ranking | 10 (2011) |
| Team colors | |
 | |
| First international | |
 Bohemia 12–0  Slovakia (Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany; 1 February 1940)2 | |
| Biggest win | |
 Slovakia 20–0 Bulgaria  (Poprad, Slovakia; 18 March 1994)2 | |
| Biggest defeat | |
|
Bohemia 12–0 Slovakia (Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany; 1 February 1940)2 | |
| IIHF World Championships | |
| Appearances | 20 (first in 1994) |
| Best result |
 Gold(2002) |
| Olympics | |
| Appearances | 6 (first in 1994) |
| International record (W–L–T) | |
| 243–180–53 | |
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| World Championships | ||
.svg.png){kind=icon} | 2002 Sweden | Team |
.svg.png){kind=icon} | 2000 Russia | Team |
| | 2012 Finland/Sweden | Team |
.svg.png){kind=icon} | 2003 Finland | Team |
The Slovak men's national ice hockey team is the national ice hockey team of Slovakia and is controlled by the Slovak Ice Hockey Federation. As of March 2010, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), the world governing body of hockey, ranks them as the seventh strongest national team in the world. It is one of the most successful national ice hockey teams in the world. The team's general manager is Róbert Švehla and their head coach is Zdeno Cíger.
In the last sixteen years, Slovakia has won four medals at the World Championships, including a gold medal in 2002 in Sweden. In winter Olympic games, Slovakia's highest achievement is 4th place in Vancouver 2010. In the tournament they won against favourites Russia and Sweden, and lost against Canada in the semifinals and against Finland in the bronze medal game.
History
The Slovak national team was formed following the breakup of Czechoslovakia, as the country was split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. For years, the Czechs kept control over how the national team was run, and even had quotas instituted to ensure a minimal participation of Slovak players on the Czechoslovak national team. While the Czechs were allowed to compete at the highest pool (A), the IIHF ruled that because fewer players of the former Czechoslovak team were Slovaks, Slovakia would be required to start international play in Pool C. However, Slovakia's play in the lower pools won it promotion to pool A by 1996. See also Post-Cold War period of the IIHF world championships.
In the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah, the Slovak team was unable to use its National Hockey League (NHL) players in the preliminary round due to a scheduling conflict. This affected all of the smaller countries, but devastated the Slovak team as most of their players were coming from NHL teams. The NHL had decided to only allow their players to participate in the final medal round, and thus Slovakia failed to qualify finishing a disappointing 13th. This turn of events was troubling to the entire hockey community, and the rules were changed for the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Turin, Italy.
Slovak national team members and notable players include Marián Gáborík of the Los Angeles Kings; Marián Hossa of the Chicago Blackhawks; Marcel Hossa; Miroslav Šatan; star goaltender of the New York Islanders Jaroslav Halák and the tallest player in NHL history, Zdeno Chára. In the late 1990s, the St. Louis Blues placed Ľuboš Bartečko, Michal Handzuš, and Pavol Demitra on the same line. This trio became known as the "Slovak Pack," and were able to communicate in their native language without the opposition knowing what they were saying, unless of course they also spoke/understood Slovak.
Tournament record
Olympic Games
| Games | GP | W | OW | T | OL | L | GF | GA | Coach | Captain | Roster | Finish | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920–1992 | Part of Czechoslovakia | ||||||||||||
 1994 Lillehammer |
8 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 35 | 29 | Július Šupler | Peter Šťastný | 6th | ||
 1998 Nagano |
4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 13 | Ján Šterbák | Zdeno Cíger | 10th | ||
 2002 Salt Lake City |
4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 13 | Ján Filc | Miroslav Šatan | 13th | ||
 2006 Turin |
6 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 19 | 11 | František Hossa | Pavol Demitra | roster | 5th | |
 2010 Vancouver |
7 | 3 | 1 | – | 0 | 3 | 22 | 18 | Ján Filc | Zdeno Chára | roster | 4th | |
 2014 Sochi |
4 | 0 | 0 | – | 1 | 3 | 5 | 16 |  Vladimír Vůjtek |
Zdeno Chára | roster | 11th | |
World Championship
Lower divisions
| Division | Championship | GP | W | OW | T | OL | L | GF | GA | Coach | Captain | Finish | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C1 | 1994 Poprad, Spišská Nová Ves |
6 | 4 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 43 | 3 | Július Šupler | Oto Haščák | Winner, Promoted | 1st |
| B | 1995 Bratislava |
7 | 7 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 60 | 15 | Július Šupler | Peter Šťastný | Winner, Promoted | 1st |
Top division
World Cup
| Year | GP | W | OW | T | OL | L | GF | GA | Coach | Captain | Finish | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 3 | 0 | – | 0 | – | 3 | 9 | 19 | Július Šupler | Round 1 | 7th | |
| 2004 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 18 | Ján Filc | Quarter-finals | 8th |
All-time record
The following table shows Slovakia's international record from 1940 – 1945 and since 1993, correct as of 12 May 2015.
Source:[1]
| Opponent | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Austria | 29 | 23 | 2 | 4 | 123 | 50 | +73 |
 Belarus | 28 | 16 | 1 | 11 | 77 | 49 | +28 |
| Bulgaria | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 0 | +20 |
| Canada | 49 | 22 | 4 | 23 | 157 | 142 | +15 |
| Czech Republic | 60 | 13 | 7 | 40 | 129 | 212 | −83 |
 Denmark | 13 | 9 | 0 | 4 | 59 | 29 | +30 |
 Finland | 29 | 6 | 3 | 20 | 59 | 88 | −29 |
 France | 22 | 16 | 3 | 3 | 103 | 42 | +61 |
 Germany | 49 | 27 | 1 | 21 | 126 | 114 | +12 |
 Great Britain | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 4 | +10 |
 Hungary | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 46 | 18 | +28 |
| Italy | 17 | 12 | 1 | 4 | 72 | 41 | +31 |
| Japan | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 12 | +27 |
 Kazakhstan | 9 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 42 | 15 | +27 |
 Latvia | 25 | 15 | 3 | 7 | 84 | 57 | +27 |
 Netherlands | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 4 | +20 |
| Norway | 27 | 19 | 2 | 6 | 105 | 54 | +51 |
 Poland | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 36 | 10 | +26 |
 Romania | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 3 | +36 |
| Russia | 30 | 9 | 5 | 16 | 79 | 91 | −12 |
 Slovenia | 11 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 42 | 18 | +24 |
 Switzerland | 60 | 25 | 7 | 28 | 146 | 134 | +12 |
 Sweden | 33 | 10 | 3 | 20 | 75 | 102 | −27 |
 Ukraine | 10 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 49 | 18 | +31 |
| United States | 21 | 7 | 3 | 11 | 53 | 73 | −20 |
| Finland olympic | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 |
| Russia B | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 9 | −1 |
| Sweden Vikings | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 8 | −3 |
| Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12 | −12 |
 Wiener EG | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | −2 |
| Switzerland B | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
 Yugoslavia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 |
 Croatia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | +5 |
 Bucharest | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | +2 |
| Total | 560 | 282 | 49 | 229 | 1826 | 1417 | +409 |
- Overtime and penalty shots victories and losses are counted towards wins/losses.
Team
Current roster
Roster for 2015 IIHF World Championship.[2]
Head coach: Vladimír Vůjtek
| No. | Pos. | Name | Height | Weight | Birthdate | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | D | Jánošík, AdamAdam Jánošík | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | 80 kg (180 lb) | 7 September 1992 (aged 22) | HC Košice |
| 7 | D | Baranka, IvanIvan Baranka | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | 92 kg (203 lb) | 19 May 1985 (aged 29) | HC Slovan Bratislava |
| 8 | D | Sersen, MichalMichal Sersen | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | 92 kg (203 lb) | 28 December 1985 (aged 29) | HC Slovan Bratislava |
| 12 | F | Gáborík, MariánMarián Gáborík | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | 91 kg (201 lb) | 14 February 1982 (aged 33) | Los Angeles Kings |
| 13 | F | Jurčo, TomášTomáš Jurčo | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | 85 kg (187 lb) | 28 December 1992 (aged 22) | Detroit Red Wings |
| 14 | D | Meszároš, AndrejAndrej Meszároš | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | 99 kg (218 lb) | 13 October 1985 (aged 29) | Buffalo Sabres |
| 19 | F | Miklík, MichelMichel Miklík | 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) | 90 kg (200 lb) | 31 July 1982 (aged 32) | Amur Khabarovsk |
| 22 | F | Dravecký, VladimírVladimír Dravecký | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) | 90 kg (200 lb) | 3 June 1985 (aged 29) | HC Oceláři Třinec |
| 25 | F | Viedenský, MarekMarek Viedenský | 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in) | 88 kg (194 lb) | 18 August 1990 (aged 24) | HPK |
| 26 | D | Mikuš, JurajJuraj Mikuš | 1.94 m (6 ft 4 in) | 100 kg (220 lb) | 30 November 1988 (aged 26) | HC Sparta Praha |
| 28 | F | Pánik, RichardRichard Pánik | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | 92 kg (203 lb) | 7 February 1991 (aged 24) | Toronto Maple Leafs |
| 42 | G | Konrád, BranislavBranislav Konrád | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | 85 kg (187 lb) | 10 October 1987 (aged 27) | HC Dukla Trenčín |
| 43 | F | Surový, TomášTomáš Surový | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | 98 kg (216 lb) | 24 September 1981 (aged 33) | HC ’05 Banská Bystrica |
| 50 | G | Laco, JánJán Laco | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | 86 kg (190 lb) | 1 December 1981 (aged 33) | Barys Astana |
| 51 | D | Graňák, DominikDominik Graňák – A | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) | 81 kg (179 lb) | 11 June 1983 (aged 31) | HC Fribourg-Gottéron |
| 55 | F | Bližňák, MárioMário Bližňák | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | 89 kg (196 lb) | 6 March 1987 (aged 28) | HC Plzeň |
| 56 | F | Daňo, MarkoMarko Daňo | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) | 90 kg (200 lb) | 30 November 1994 (aged 20) | Chicago Blackhawks |
| 61 | F | Bartovič, MilanMilan Bartovič – A | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) | 88 kg (194 lb) | 9 April 1981 (aged 34) | HC Slovan Bratislava |
| 68 | D | Jurčina, MilanMilan Jurčina | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) | 110 kg (240 lb) | 7 June 1983 (aged 31) | Dinamo Riga |
| 71 | D | Ďaloga, MarekMarek Ďaloga | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) | 83 kg (183 lb) | 10 March 1989 (aged 26) | HC Sparta Praha |
| 79 | F | Hudáček, LiborLibor Hudáček | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | 75 kg (165 lb) | 7 September 1990 (aged 24) | HC Slovan Bratislava |
| 82 | F | Kopecký, TomášTomáš Kopecký – C | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) | 95 kg (209 lb) | 5 February 1982 (aged 33) | Florida Panthers |
| 88 | G | Hudáček, JúliusJúlius Hudáček | 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) | 84 kg (185 lb) | 9 August 1988 (aged 26) | Örebro |
| 90 | F | Tatar, TomášTomáš Tatar | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | 80 kg (180 lb) | 1 December 1990 (aged 24) | Detroit Red Wings |
| 97 | F | Lušňák, PatrikPatrik Lušňák | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | 85 kg (187 lb) | 6 November 1988 (aged 26) | Yunost Minsk |
2002 World Championship
Goalies
Defensemen |
Forwards |
2012 World Championship
GoaliesDefensemen |
Forwards |
2015 World Championship
GoaliesDefensemen |
Forwards |
Player statistics
- As of 12 May 2015
Players in bold are still active.
Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games Played; G = Goals; GPG = Goal per game;
|
|
Head coaches
This table shows all Slovakia national team head coaches and their record at the IIHF World Championships, World Cup of Hockey and Winter Olympic Games.
Source:[3]
| Name | Years | G | W | OW | T | OL | L | GF | GA | W% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Július Šupler | 1993–1996 | 29 | 16 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 7 | 160 | 92 | .552 |
| Jozef Golonka | 1996–1997 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 20 | 23 | .375 |
| Ján Šterbák | 1997–1999 | 16 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 44 | 46 | .313 |
| Ján Filc | 1999–2002 | 29 | 16 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 106 | 75 | .552 |
| František Hossa | 2002–2006 | 38 | 24 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 133 | 68 | .632 |
| Ján Filc[note 1] | 2004 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 18 | .000 |
| Július Šupler | 2006–2008 | 12 | 5 | 1 | – | 0 | 6 | 42 | 35 | .417 |
| Ján Filc | 2008–2010 | 13 | 4 | 2 | – | 2 | 5 | 34 | 42 | .308 |
| Glen Hanlon | 2010–2011 | 12 | 4 | 0 | – | 0 | 8 | 29 | 34 | .333 |
| Vladimír Vůjtek | 2011–2015 | 36 | 14 | 2 | – | 5 | 15 | 94 | 99 | .389 |
| Zdeno Cíger | 2015 — |
- Notes
- ↑ Managed the team during 2004 World Cup of Hockey
As of after the 2015 World Championship.
Retired numbers
- 38 – Pavol Demitra The legend of Slovakian Ice Hockey
See also
References
- ↑ "SLOVENSKO verzus SVET" (in Slovak). SZLH. 20 May 2013. Retrieved 19 August 2013.
- ↑ 2015 Roster
- ↑ "Slovenských hokejistov povedie Čech Vladimír Vůjtek" (in Slovak). 17 August 2011. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
External links
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