Top 10 Hockey Teams in the World

*Overview of the best according to the editorial board. About the selection criteria. This material is subjective, not an advertisement and does not serve as a guide to purchase. You should consult with an expert before buying.

Hockey is a true people’s game. Everybody loves it – from young and old, from students to businessmen, even the Russian President plays it, and quite successfully. A larger community of fans and fans is formed here, and there are clubs in every city.

But who to root for so that you don’t have to worry about losing?? For fans who only want to cheer for their favorite team, we’ve ranked the top 10 hockey teams in the world.

The source of the information is the IIHF World Scoring Rankings for 2016-2019, which includes four World Championships and one Olympics. Both men’s and women’s teams are taken into account.

Rating of best hockey teams in the world

10th place: Switzerland, women, 3,415 points

Ranking: 4.1

The Swiss women’s ice hockey team boasts a very unique history. She made her first appearance at the 1987 World Championships, when she crushed Canada by a score of 0-10. She currently holds an honorable fifth place in the world ranking of women’s teams.

On the other hand, it has never reached the top of the world championships. Maxed out at the 2013 competition, when the team took home a bronze medal to Switzerland. She also performed well at the 2014 Winter Olympics, held in the Russian city of Sochi. There, she also took home a bronze medal.

The team ranked fifth in the IIHF world rankings in points. She shows good, but not outstanding results. So, at the World Championships after 2012 they are in 5th-7th place, similarly they are in the Olympics.

9th place: Czech Republic, men, 3,465 points

Ranking: 4.2

The Czech men’s hockey team is best known for winning the Olympic Games in 1998. She also has six world championships to her credit. The team is very strong and plays on the same level as Canadians, Russians and other representatives of the “big six in hockey.

But ninth place in the current rankings is due to less-than-successful performances at recent championships. After several successful games (gold medal of the World Championships 2010, bronze medal of the World Championships 2011 and 2012) the Czechs began to fall in the standings. They don’t have any “fresh” awards – since 2013 they have been ranked 4-7.

And that’s surprising, since the coaching staff hasn’t changed. In 2010, the Czechs were “managed” by Vladimir Ruzicka and won the gold medal. In 2014 and 2015 under his control – only 4th place. In 2011 and 2012, under Alis Gadamchik, the Czechs got a bronze medal, and in 2013, they dropped to 7th place in the standings. The same place they ranked at the 2014 Winter Olympics.

8th place: Russia, women, 3,560 points

Ranking: 4.3

Women’s hockey in Russia is not too widespread. Professional female athletes in particular, as of 2018, have a total of 2,376. On the other hand, it is becoming more and more popular – also thanks to the success of the Russian women’s hockey team. In 2014 in particular, there were only 562 professional athletes.

And the Russian women’s hockey team has a lot to brag about. She has two “fresh” bronze medals from the World Championships in 2013 and 2016. It performed well at the Olympics, too. It placed 6th in Sochi in 2014 (though the result was annulled), and 4th in Pyeongchang in 2018 (but it did not compete under the Russian flag, but as representatives of the Olympic athletes from Russia).

The Russian women’s team shows well at other international championships. For example, in 2014 she won gold at the Four Nations Tournament, in 2015 and 2017 at the Five Nations Tournament, and in 2018 at the Meco Cup.

7th place: Sweden, men, 3,615 points

Rating: 4.4

The Swedish men’s hockey team plays on a par with Canada and Russia and boasts a huge number of awards. She has eleven gold medals from the World Championships and two from the Olympics. And the others are not in number.

That’s why the IIHF has put it in the 4th place in the global ranking of men’s teams. But since our piece features not only the men’s but also the women’s lineups, Sweden ranks a respectable 7th.

Unlike its predecessors, the Swedes perform well in modern games. So, they have gold medals from the 2013, 2017 and 2018 World Championships, as well as silver from the 2014 Olympics. This is due to the very strong composition. On the current team, almost all of the players play for NHL clubs.

The Swedish men’s hockey team is also known as “Tre Kroonur” because of its logo. It features three crowns. In addition, the logo is also displayed on the uniforms colored yellow and blue.

6th place: Finland, men, 3,615 points

Rating: 4.5

The Finns love hockey! According to recent research, there are 5,2597 registered players in this country. And that, by the way, is practically 1% of Finland’s total population. Therefore, it is no surprise that the men’s team of this country is in the “Big Six” and in the IIHF world ranking for 2019 ranks 3.

On the other hand, she can’t boast a whole stock of awards. She has only three gold medals from the World Cup – in 1995, 2011 and 2019. In the Olympics, it did not occupy a leadership position at all, the maximum was “silver. In the 2014 games she even got “bronze”.

At the same time, she has shown very good results in the last few years. At the 2014 and 2016 championships, she finished second. In other “fresh” competitions, it has never fallen below line 5 in the standings. She even took gold and silver at the latest Euro Hockey Tour Championships.

5th place: Russia, men, 3,640 points

Rating: 4.6

According to the 2019 IIHF world rankings, the Russian hockey team ranks a solid second among men’s teams, behind only its regular rival, Canada. And the silver came with good reason.

The Russian men’s hockey team has a lot of awards. So it makes sense to consider only the latest, the most “fresh” and for the biggest competitions:

1. 2010 – silver at the World Cup, lost to the Czech Republic 1:2;
2. 2012 – gold at the World Cup, defeating Slovakia 6-2;
3. 2014 – gold at the World Cup, defeating Finland 5-2;
4. 2015 – silver at the World Cup, lost to Canada by a score of 1-6;
5. 2016 – bronze at the World Cup;
6. 2017 – bronze at the World Cup;
7. 2018 gold at the Olympics, defeating Germany 4-3;
8. 2019 – bronze at the World Cup.

It is worth noting that in the 2018 Olympics, the team did not perform under the Russian flag. Because of the doping scandals, the athletes were to be permanently suspended. But in the end they were admitted, but not under the tricolor, but as representatives of the Russian Olympic athletes (OSR).

4th place: Finland, women, 3,675 points

Ranking: 4.7

The Finnish women’s ice hockey team has a solid, good game – even if it’s “out of the sky. She has consistently brought back bronze medals from World Championships – and only once a silver medal.

So, the team has 12 medals from the World Cup. Bronze of those, eleven of them. The most “fresh” awards are third place at the World Championships 2011 and 2015, second place at the World Cup 2019, and third place at the Olympics 2018 (in which they had to face the Olympic athletes from Russia).

On the other hand, she also has a huge number of “regional” awards – that is, for victories in tournaments between European countries. That’s why the IIHF federation gave her a respectable third place in the women’s lineup rankings.

In their native Finland, the hockey team is called the “lionesses. This is due to the fact that the team logo features a heraldic lion. She is much loved – as, in principle, is everything related to hockey in this country – and actively monitored for every achievement.

3rd place: Canada, men, 3705 points

Ranking: 4.8

Canadian hockey players are the strongest in the ranking among the teams consisting of men. And in principle, they are known as very powerful players, regularly taking home gold and silver medals from championships. So far they have 35 major sporting achievements to their credit, that is, victories at the World Championships and Olympic Games.

What’s more, Canada is considered one of the progenitors of ice hockey as a professional sport. It has been a member of the IIHF International Federation since 1920. The Maple Leafs’ roster is made up solely of players from NHL member clubs. So there’s no surprise in their leadership.

One of the Canadians’ biggest accomplishments in recent memory was their first-place finish at the 2014 Olympics, held in the city of Sochi. The athletes also did not lose face at the next Winter Games, bringing a bronze medal from PyeongChang to Canada.

Speaking of recent World Championships, it is worth noting that it was the Canadians who took away the “gold” from the competition in 2015 and 2016. And in 2017 and 2019, they got silver. In total, the team has competed in 68 World Cups, and won prizes in 50 of them.

2nd place: Canada, women, 3730 points

Ranking: 4.9

Canadian female athletes keep up with their male counterparts, showing successful performances at a huge number of championships. According to IIHF they have been ahead of the “strong sex” in points for the last several years. Although, in principle, this is not surprising – back in 2011, there were 85,600 professional hockey players in Canada. The sport, though brutal or even violent, is very popular with these northern women.

From the most recent and current sports achievements of the Canadians it is worth to single out the “gold” at the Olympics in 2014. They have been top-ranked at other Winter Games as well, bringing home gold medals in 2002, 2006 and 2010. And in PyeongChang 2018 they got silver, which, in principle, is also a not insignificant achievement.

Their World Cup performances are also very successful, although not as impressive. The Canadiens brought silver medals from the 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017 competitions, and in 2019 in Finland got a “bronze”. “They also have the gold, but it’s not very long ago – from 1990 till 2004.

1st place: USA, women, 3,900 points

Rating: 5.0

The Americans are the strongest team in existence. And not only in the IIHF rating points (although it is also a very important indicator), but simply by the results. If you look at recent sporting achievements, you will find that the team brought “gold” in the World Championships in 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, in Sochi 2018 also became the champion.

And the Americans have not been playing for very long. They were first included in the World Championship teams only in 1990. And their very first appearance was in 1987, where they had to fight the Canadians (though, they lost with a score of 2:1 in favor of their “neighbors to the north”).

Speaking of the World Championships, the American women competed in 19 events. And each of them brought at least some, but a medal. 10 silver and 9 gold medals. Thus, the Americans are the only team that has brought home a medal from every championship and are simply the strongest at the moment.

The U.S. Olympic Committee twice gave out their special regalia. In 1998 the American women were named Team of the Year, and in April 2015 they were named Team of the Month.