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Latvia men's national ice hockey team

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The Latvian men's national ice hockey team represents Latvia in international ice hockey. The team is ranked 10th in the world by IIHF as of 2023. The team is controlled by the Latvian Ice Hockey Federation. Their best ever finish at the World Championships was in 2023, when they won the bronze medal. Latvia reached the quarterfinals at the 2014 Winter Olympics, losing 2–1 to Canada. Latvia has 7,898 registered players (0.43% of its population).

Latvia
Shirt badge/Association crest
AssociationLatvian Ice Hockey Federation
General managerRūdolfs Kalvītis
Head coachHarijs Vītoliņš
AssistantsLauris Dārziņš
Artūrs Irbe
Petteri Nummelin
Ville Peltonen
Raimonds Vilkoits
CaptainKaspars Daugaviņš
Most gamesRodrigo Laviņš (230)
Top scorerLeonīds Tambijevs (66)
Most pointsLeonīds Tambijevs (150)
Home stadiumArēna Rīga
Team colors   
IIHF codeLAT
Ranking
Current IIHF10 Steady (27 May 2024)[1]
Highest IIHF9 (2005–06, 2014)
Lowest IIHF13 (2018)
First international
Latvia  3–0  Lithuania
(Riga, Latvia; 27 February 1932)[2]
Biggest win
Latvia  32–0  Israel
(Bled, Slovenia; 15 March 1993)[2]
Biggest defeat
Canada  14–0  Latvia
(Davos, Switzerland; 20 January 1935)[2]
IIHF World Championships
Appearances35 (first in 1933)
Best result Bronze: (2023)
IIHF European Championships
Appearances1
Olympics
Appearances6 (first in 1936)
International record (W–L–T)
286–284–28
Medal record
World Championship
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Finland/Latvia

Overview

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Rank Olympics World Championships European Championships
1st
2nd
3rd 2023
4th
5th
6th
7th 1997, 2004, 2009
8th 2014 2000, 2018 1932
9th 2002 1998, 2003, 2005, 2024
10th 1933, 1938, 1939, 2006, 2012, 2017, 2019, 2022
11th 2022 1999, 2002, 2008, 2010, 2013, 2014, 2021
12th 2006, 2010
13th 1936 1935, 1996 (1.B)↑, 2001, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2016
14th 1994 (2.B), 1995 (2.B)
15th
16th
↑: promoted, ↓: relegated, (3.B): (rank.pool)

Tournament record

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Olympic Games

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Games GP W T L GF GA Coach Captain Finish
  1936 Garmisch-Partenkirchen 3 0 0 3 3 27 Arvīds Jurgens Leonīds Vedējs 13
1953–1991 As part of   Soviet Union
  1994 Lillehammer did not qualify
  1998 Nagano
  2002 Salt Lake City 4 2 1 1 20 14 Curt Lindström Harijs Vītoliņš 9
  2006 Turin 5 0 1 4 11 29 Leonīds Beresņevs Kārlis Skrastiņš 12
Games GP W OTW OTL L GF GA Coach Captain Finish
  2010 Vancouver 4 0 0 1 3 6 22 Oļegs Znaroks Kārlis Skrastiņš 12
  2014 Sochi 5 1 0 0 4 9 14 Ted Nolan Sandis Ozoliņš 8
  2018 Pyeongchang did not qualify
  2022 Beijing 4 0 0 0 4 7 14 Harijs Vītoliņš Lauris Dārziņš 11
  2026 Milan/Cortina qualified

World Championship

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Graph shows Latvian results in IIHF World Championship since 1993.
Championships GP W T L GF GA Coach Captain Finish
  1933 Prague 4 1 0 3 3 9 – Arvīds Jurgens Finished in 10th place
  1935 Davos 5 1 0 4 11 25 – Leonīds Vedējs Finished in 13th place
  1938 Prague 4 1 0 3 4 8 Arvīds Jurgens Leonīds Vedējs Finished tied in 10th place
  1939 Zürich/Basel 3 1 0 2 6 21 Larry Marsh Leonīds Vedējs Finished in 10th place
  1993 Bled/Ljubljana (Group C) 7 6 1 0 101 9 Helmuts Balderis Konstantīns Grigorjevs Finished in 21st place (Won Group C)
  1994 Copenhagen/Aalborg (Group B) 7 6 0 1 61 9 Helmuts Balderis Konstantīns Grigorjevs Finished in 14th place (2nd in Group B)
  1995 Bratislava (Group B) 7 6 0 1 65 16 Ēvalds Grabovskis Aleksandrs Beļavskis Finished in 14th place (2nd in Group B)
  1996 Eindhoven (Group B) 7 6 1 0 41 16 Leonīds Beresņevs Oleg Znarok Finished in 13th place (Won Group B)
  1997 Helsinki/Tampere/Turku 8 4 2 2 37 23 Leonīds Beresņevs Normunds Sējējs Finished in 7th place
  1998 Zürich/Basel 6 3 1 2 21 18 Leonīds Beresņevs Oleg Znarok Finished in 9th place
  1999 Oslo/Hamar/Lillehammer 6 2 0 4 24 22 Leonīds Beresņevs Oleg Znarok Finished in 11th place
  2000 Saint Petersburg 7 3 1 3 15 17 Haralds Vasiļjevs Harijs Vītoliņš Finished in 8th place
  2001 Nuremberg/Cologne/Hanover 6 3 1 2 19 13 Haralds Vasiļjevs Harijs Vītoliņš Finished in 13th place
  2002 Gothenburg/Karlstad/Jönköping 6 1 0 5 11 18 Curt Lindström Harijs Vītoliņš Finished in 11th place
  2003 Helsinki/Tampere/Turku 6 3 0 3 14 16 Curt Lindström Harijs Vītoliņš Finished in 9th place
  2004 Prague/Ostrava 7 2 2 3 12 14 Curt Lindström Sergejs Žoltoks Finished in 7th place
  2005 Vienna/Innsbruck 6 2 1 3 10 21 Leonīds Beresņevs Kārlis Skrastiņš Finished in 9th place
  2006 Riga 6 2 1 3 12 24 Petr Vorobiev Aleksandrs Semjonovs Finished in 10th place
Championships GP W OTW OTL L GF GA Coach Captain Finish
  2007 Moscow 6 2 0 1 3 20 22 Oleg Znarok Rodrigo Laviņš Finished in 13th place
  2008 Halifax/Quebec City 6 2 0 0 4 11 19 Oleg Znarok Rodrigo Laviņš Finished in 11th place
  2009 Bern/Kloten 7 2 2 0 3 15 23 Oleg Znarok Kārlis Skrastiņš Finished in 7th place
  2010 Cologne/Mannheim/Gelsenkirchen 6 2 0 0 4 15 18 Oleg Znarok Herberts Vasiļjevs Finished in 11th place
  2011 Bratislava/Košice 6 2 0 2 2 18 19 Oleg Znarok Herberts Vasiļjevs Finished in 13th place
    2012 Helsinki/Stockholm 7 2 0 0 5 11 19 Ted Nolan Jānis Sprukts Finished in 10th place
    2013 Stockholm/Helsinki 7 2 0 1 4 14 25 Ted Nolan Lauris Dārziņš Finished in 11th place
  2014 Minsk 7 3 0 0 4 20 24 Ted Nolan Herberts Vasiļjevs Finished in 11th place
  2015 Prague/Ostrava 7 0 2 1 4 11 25 Aleksandrs Beļavskis Kaspars Daugaviņš Finished in 13th place
  2016 Moscow/Saint Petersburg 7 1 0 3 3 13 22 Leonīds Beresņevs Kaspars Daugaviņš Finished in 13th place
    2017 Cologne/Paris 7 3 0 1 3 14 18 Bob Hartley Kaspars Daugaviņš Finished in 10th place
  2018 Copenhagen/Herning 8 3 1 2 2 18 19 Bob Hartley Roberts Bukarts Finished in 8th place
  2019 Bratislava/Košice 7 3 0 0 4 21 20 Bob Hartley Lauris Dārziņš Finished in 10th place
2020 Cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic[3]
  2021 Riga 7 2 0 3 2 15 16 Bob Hartley Lauris Dārziņš Finished in 11th place
  2022 Helsinki/Tampere 7 2 1 0 4 14 20 Harijs Vītoliņš Rodrigo Ābols Finished in 10th place
    2023 Tampere/Riga[4][5] 10 4 3 0 3 30 25 Harijs Vītoliņš Kaspars Daugaviņš Finished in 3rd place
  2024 Prague/Ostrava 7 1 3 0 3 19 29 Harijs Vītoliņš Kaspars Daugaviņš Finished in 9th place
    2025 Stockholm/Herning Harijs Vītoliņš

European Championship

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Games GP W T L GF GA Coach Captain Finish Rank
  1932 Berlin 4 1 0 3 5 13 – Arvīds Jurgens Consolation Round 8th

Team

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Current roster

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Roster for the 2024 IIHF World Championship.[6][7]

Head coach: Harijs Vītoliņš

No. Pos. Name Height Weight Birthdate Team
2 D Kārlis Čukste 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 98 kg (216 lb) (1997-06-17) 17 June 1997 (age 27)   Brynäs IF
6 D Markuss Komuls 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) 84 kg (185 lb) (1998-01-04) 4 January 1998 (age 26)   Trois-Rivières Lions
9 F Renārs Krastenbergs 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) 84 kg (185 lb) (1998-12-26) 26 December 1998 (age 25)   Graz 99ers
13 F Rihards Bukarts 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) 84 kg (185 lb) (1995-12-31) 31 December 1995 (age 28)   Vítkovice Ridera
16 F Kaspars Daugaviņš – C 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) 101 kg (223 lb) (1988-05-18) 18 May 1988 (age 36)   Dukla Michalovce
17 F Mārtiņš Dzierkals 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) 84 kg (185 lb) (1997-04-04) 4 April 1997 (age 27)   Skellefteå AIK
18 F Rodrigo Ābols – A 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) 93 kg (205 lb) (1996-01-05) 5 January 1996 (age 28)   Rögle BK
20 F Raivis Ansons 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) 84 kg (185 lb) (2002-01-29) 29 January 2002 (age 22)   Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
27 D Oskars Cibuļskis 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 96 kg (212 lb) (1988-04-09) 9 April 1988 (age 36)   Herning Blue Fox
29 D Ralfs Freibergs 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in) 84 kg (185 lb) (1991-05-17) 17 May 1991 (age 33)   Mountfield HK
30 G Elvis Merzļikins 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) 87 kg (192 lb) (1994-04-13) 13 April 1994 (age 30)   Columbus Blue Jackets
34 F Eduards Tralmaks 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) 85 kg (187 lb) (1997-02-17) 17 February 1997 (age 27)   Rytíři Kladno
35 G Ēriks Vītols 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 84 kg (185 lb) (2001-07-17) 17 July 2001 (age 23)   JYP Jyväskylä
36 F Martins Laviņš 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) 80 kg (180 lb) (2003-04-10) 10 April 2003 (age 21)   New Hampshire Wildcats
50 G Kristers Gudļevskis 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in) 97 kg (214 lb) (1992-07-31) 31 July 1992 (age 32)   Fischtown Pinguins
55 D Roberts Mamčics 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) 105 kg (231 lb) (1995-04-06) 6 April 1995 (age 29)   Nové Zámky
65 D Arvils Bergmanis 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in) 79 kg (174 lb) (1999-12-29) 29 December 1999 (age 24)   Alaska Nanooks
70 F Miks Indrašis 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) 89 kg (196 lb) (1990-09-30) 30 September 1990 (age 34)   Brynäs IF
71 F Roberts Bukarts – A 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) 84 kg (185 lb) (1990-06-27) 27 June 1990 (age 34)   Vítkovice Ridera
72 D Jānis Jaks 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) 86 kg (190 lb) (1995-08-22) 22 August 1995 (age 29)   HC Litvínov
77 D Kristaps Zīle 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 86 kg (190 lb) (1997-12-24) 24 December 1997 (age 26)   HC Litvínov
82 F Fēlikss Gavars 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) 82 kg (181 lb) (2002-05-15) 15 May 2002 (age 22)   St. Lawrence Saints
85 F Dans Ločmelis 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 81 kg (179 lb) (2004-01-21) 21 January 2004 (age 20)   UMass Minutemen
95 F Oskars Batņa 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) 106 kg (234 lb) (1995-05-07) 7 May 1995 (age 29)   Mikkelin Jukurit
97 F Haralds Egle 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) 95 kg (209 lb) (1996-05-11) 11 May 1996 (age 28)   MHk 32 Liptovský Mikuláš

Retired numbers

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Coaching history

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Coach GP W T L GD P-ts
1939   Larry Marsh[9][10] 3 1 0 2 6:21 n/a
1992–1994   Helmuts Balderis -- -- - -- --- --
1995   Ēvalds Grabovskis -- -- - -- --- --
1996–1999   Leonīds Beresņevs 56 36 7 13 275:143 79
1999–2001   Haralds Vasiļjevs 32 12 8 12 81:76 32
2001–2004   Curt Lindström 65 32 8 25 202:161 72
2005–2006   Leonīds Beresņevs 32 25 3 14 112:113 53
2006   Petr Vorobiev 11 4 1 6 25:35 9
2007–2011   Oleg Znarok 37 15 0 22 98:126 41
2011–2014   Ted Nolan 26 11 0 15 57:65 35
2015   Aleksandrs Beļavskis 7 0 2 5 11:25 5
2016   Leonīds Beresņevs 7 1 3 3 13:22 6
2016   Haralds Vasiļjevs 3 2 0 1 13:5 6
2017–2021   Bob Hartley 29 11 7 11 68:73 41
2021–present   Harijs Vītoliņš 24 7 7 10 73:69 36

All-time record

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Exhibition game Latvia - Finland (April 2024)
As of September 1st 2024.[11]
Opponent Played Won Drawn Lost GF GA GD
  Austria 25 21 0 4 98 56 +42
  Belarus 40 19 3 18 106 97 +9
  Belgium 2 2 0 0 31 4 +27
  Canada 23 1 1 21 28 119 -91
  China 1 1 0 0 22 0 +22
  Czech Republic 19 1 1 17 34 66 −32
  Czechoslovakia 2 0 0 2 0 16 −16
  Denmark 38 24 0 14 131 93 +38
  Estonia 5 5 0 0 32 6 +26
  Finland 33 4 2 27 61 128 −67
  France 56 36 4 16 191 114 +77
  Germany 41 13 4 24 91 111 -20
  Great Britain 11 6 1 4 44 39 +5
  Hungary 6 4 1 1 31 12 +19
  Israel 1 1 0 0 32 0 +32
  Italy 19 14 1 4 71 30 +41
  Japan 13 12 0 1 79 26 +53
  Kazakhstan 15 10 0 5 54 31 +23
  Lithuania 5 5 0 0 45 2 +43
  Netherlands 6 6 0 0 45 6 +39
  North Korea 1 1 0 0 4 0 +4
  Norway 42 25 0 17 138 109 +29
  Poland 21 16 0 5 72 50 +22
  Romania 8 6 0 2 49 7 +42
  Russia 22 6 1 15 38 83 −45
  Slovakia 35 11 2 22 73 116 -43
  Slovenia 13 11 0 2 44 23 +21
  South Korea 3 3 0 0 38 2 +36
  Sweden 29 3 1 25 50 120 −70
   Switzerland 41 9 3 29 73 128 -55
  Ukraine 20 14 1 5 67 49 +18
  United States 19 4 2 13 38 61 −23
  Yugoslavia 2 2 0 0 10 0 +10
Total 598 286 28 284 1 868 1 648 +220

Uniform evolution

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  • National team jerseys
  •  
    1996-2005 IIHF jerseys
  •  
    former IIHF jerseys
  •  
    2014 Winter Olympics
  •  
    2018–2021 IIHF jerseys
  •  
    2022– Winter Olympics and IIHF

References

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  1. ^ "IIHF Men's World Ranking". IIHF. 27 May 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Includes Olympics, World Championships, World Cups, Canada Cups and Summit Series.
  3. ^ Steiss, Adam. "2020 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship cancelled". iihf.com. IIHF. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
  4. ^ "IIHF to move 2023 World Championship". iihf.com. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
  5. ^ Merk, Martin. "Tampere/Riga candidate for 2023". IIHF. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
  6. ^ "Paziņots Latvijas nacionālās izlases sastāvs Pasaules čempionātam Ostravā un Prāgā" (in Latvian). lhf.lv. 7 May 2024.
  7. ^ "Team roster: Latvia" (PDF). iihf.com. 10 May 2024.
  8. ^ "LHF iemūžina Žoltoka 33. Numuru un godina viņa piemiņu". 24 April 2019.
  9. ^ "Ted Nolan to coach Latvia". webarchive.iihf.com. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  10. ^ Zariņš, Viesturs (4 May 2006). "Latvia's hockey history spans a century". Latvians Online. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  11. ^ "Latvia - National Teams of Ice Hockey". nationalteamsoficehockey.com. 7 August 2016. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
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