Slovenia men's national ice hockey team

The Slovenia men's national ice hockey team is the ice hockey team representing Slovenia internationally. It is governed by the Ice Hockey Federation of Slovenia. As of May 2024, Slovenia is ranked 19th in the world by the IIHF World Ranking. The team's biggest success is reaching the quarter-finals at the 2014 Winter Olympics.[4] Their best record at the Ice Hockey World Championships is 13th place, achieved in 2002 and 2005.[5]

Slovenia
Nickname(s)Risi (The Lynx)
AssociationIce Hockey Federation of Slovenia
General managerDejan Kontrec
Head coachEdo Terglav
AssistantsGorazd Drinovec
Mitja Robar
Mitja Šivic
CaptainRobert Sabolič
Most gamesTomaž Razingar (212)[1]
Most pointsTomaž Vnuk (171)[2]
Team colors     
IIHF codeSLO
Ranking
Current IIHF19 2 (27 May 2024)[3]
Highest IIHF14 (2014–15)
Lowest IIHF20 (2020–21)
First international
Austria  1–0  Slovenia
(Klagenfurt, Austria; 20 March 1992)
Biggest win
Slovenia  29–0  South Africa
(Ljubljana, Slovenia; 15 March 1993)
Biggest defeat
Finland  12–0  Slovenia
(Tampere, Finland; 28 April 2003)
IIHF World Championships
Appearances30 (first in 1993)
Best result13th (2002 and 2005)
Olympics
Appearances2 (first in 2014)

Six players from Slovenia have been drafted into the National Hockey League (NHL) since 1998; Anže Kopitar and Jan Muršak have played in the league.[6]

History

Before Slovenia's independence, Slovenian hockey players played for the Yugoslavia national team. From 1939, when Yugoslavia took part in its first World Championship, to 1991, when the country disintegrated, 91% of all Yugoslav national team members were Slovenes, including the entire squad that represented Yugoslavia at the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo.[7]

Slovenia declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, and joined the International Ice Hockey Federation the following year.[8] They first played as an independent nation at the 1993 World Championship, hosting the Group C tournament, the lowest tier.[9] They played in the elite division for the first time in 2002,[10] and at their first Winter Olympics in 2014.[11]

Tournament record

Olympic Games
Year Round Position GP W OW OL L GS GA
1964–1991 Part of Yugoslavia
1992Did not enter
1994
1998Did not qualify
2002
2006
2010
2014Quarter-finals7th520031016
2018Playoffs9th40211914
2022Did not qualify
Total0 Titles922141930

World Championship
Key
Promoted to higher division
Relegated to lower division
Championship GP W OW T OL L GS GA Coach Captain Finish Rank
1920 – 1992Part of Yugoslavia
1993 Bled and Ljubljana, Pool C 7 5 0 0 0 2 78 16 Rudi Hiti 4th in Pool C 24th
1994 Poprad and Spišská Nová Ves, Pool C 6 2 0 0 0 4 26 27 Rudi Hiti 5th in Pool C 25th
1995 Sofia, Pool C 4 2 0 0 0 2 28 15 Rudi Hiti 7th in Pool C 27th
1996 Jesenice and Kranj, Pool C 7 5 0 0 0 2 41 19 Vladimir Krikunov 3rd in Pool C 23rd
1997 Tallinn and Kohtla-Järve, Pool C 5 3 0 1 0 1 25 8 Pavle Kavčič 2nd in Pool C 22nd
1998 Ljubljana and Jesenice, Pool B 7 5 0 1 0 1 28 15 Pavle Kavčič 2nd in Pool B 18th
1999 Odense and Rodovre, Pool B 7 2 0 1 0 4 14 17 Pavle Kavčič 5th in Pool B 21st
2000 Katowice, Pool B 7 0 0 2 0 5 16 31 Rudi Hiti 7th in Pool B 23rd
2001 Ljubljana, Division IB 5 4 0 1 0 0 44 6 Matjaž Sekelj Winners 17th
2002 Gothenburg, Karlstad, Jönköping 6 3 0 0 0 3 18 26 Matjaž Sekelj Consolation round 13th
2003 Helsinki, Tampere, Turku 6 0 0 1 0 5 12 37 Matjaž Sekelj Consolation round 15th
2004 Gdańsk, Division IB 5 5 0 0 0 0 33 5 Kari Savolainen Tomaž Vnuk Winners 17th
2005 Vienna, Innsbruck 6 2 0 0 0 4 12 32 Kari Savolainen Robert Ciglenečki Relegation round 13th
2006 Riga 6 0 0 2 0 4 14 26 František Výborný Dejan Varl Relegation round 16th
2007 Ljubljana, Division IB 5 5 0 — 0 0 29 5 Ted Sator Marcel Rodman Winners 17th
2008 Quebec City, Halifax 5 0 0 — 1 4 6 22 Mats Waltin Marcel Rodman Relegation round 15th
2009 Vilnius, Division IA 5 4 0 — 0 1 21 7 John Harrington Tomaž Razingar 2nd in Division IA 19th
2010 Ljubljana, Division IB 5 4 1 — 0 0 29 10 John Harrington Tomaž Razingar Winners 18th
2011 Bratislava, Košice 6 1 0 — 1 4 15 24 Matjaž Kopitar Tomaž Razingar Relegation round 16th
2012 Ljubljana, Division IA 5 5 0 — 0 0 17 9 Matjaž Kopitar Tomaž Razingar Winners 17th
2013 Stockholm, Helsinki 7 0 0 — 2 5 12 27 Matjaž Kopitar Tomaž Razingar Preliminary round 16th
2014 Goyang, Division IA 5 4 0 — 0 1 15 6 Matjaž Kopitar Tomaž Razingar Winners 17th
2015 Prague, Ostrava 7 1 0 — 0 6 9 22 Matjaž Kopitar Tomaž Razingar Preliminary round 16th
2016 Katowice, Division IA 5 4 0 — 0 1 18 8 Nik Zupančič Jan Urbas Winners 17th
2017 Cologne, Paris 7 0 0 — 1 6 13 36 Nik Zupančič Jan Muršak Preliminary round 15th
2018 Budapest, Division IA 5 2 0 — 0 3 15 15 Kari Savolainen Jan Urbas 5th in Division IA 21st
2019 Nur-Sultan, Division IA 5 2 0 — 0 3 21 12 Ivo Jan Anže Kopitar 4th in Division IA 20th
2020 Ljubljana, Division IA Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic[12]
2021 Ljubljana, Division IA Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic[13]
2022 Ljubljana, Division IA 4 4 0 — 0 0 22 5 Matjaž Kopitar Mitja Robar Winners 17th
2023 Tampere, Riga 7 0 0 — 0 7 9 27 Matjaž Kopitar Jan Urbas Preliminary round 16th
2024 Bolzano, Division IA 5 3 0 — 0 2 14 8 Edo Terglav Robert Sabolič 2nd in Division IA 18th
2025 Stockholm, Herning

Team

Current roster

Roster for the 2023 IIHF World Championship.[14][15]

Head coach: Matjaž Kopitar

No. Pos. Name Height Weight Birthdate Team
4DAleksandar Magovac1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)88 kg (194 lb) (1991-02-09) 9 February 1991 HK Olimpija
6DMiha Štebih1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)92 kg (203 lb) (1992-04-07) 7 April 1992 Nice hockey Côte d'Azur
8FŽiga Jeglič1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)80 kg (180 lb) (1988-02-24) 24 February 1988 Fischtown Pinguins
12FNik Simšič1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)90 kg (200 lb) (1997-03-12) 12 March 1997 HK Olimpija
14DMatic Podlipnik1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)83 kg (183 lb) (1992-08-09) 9 August 1992 Fischtown Pinguins
15DBlaž Gregorc1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)95 kg (209 lb) (1990-01-18) 18 January 1990 Augsburger Panther
17DŽiga Pavlin – A1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)97 kg (214 lb) (1985-04-30) 30 April 1985 HC Pustertal Wölfe
18FKen Ograjenšek1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)75 kg (165 lb) (1991-08-30) 30 August 1991 Graz 99ers
19FŽiga Pance1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)89 kg (196 lb) (1989-01-01) 1 January 1989 HK Olimpija
21FJan Drozg1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)82 kg (181 lb) (1999-04-01) 1 April 1999 Amur Khabarovsk
24FRok Tičar – A1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)82 kg (181 lb) (1989-05-03) 3 May 1989 EC KAC
26FJan Urbas – C1.92 m (6 ft 4 in)98 kg (216 lb) (1989-01-26) 26 January 1989 Fischtown Pinguins
32GGašper Krošelj1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)86 kg (190 lb) (1987-02-09) 9 February 1987 BK Mladá Boleslav
33GŽan Us1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)78 kg (172 lb) (1996-06-10) 10 June 1996 HK Olimpija
35GLuka Gračnar1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)83 kg (183 lb) (1993-10-31) 31 October 1993 EV Landshut
44DAljoša Crnovič1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)85 kg (187 lb) (1999-04-16) 16 April 1999 HK Olimpija
45FLuka Maver1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)87 kg (192 lb) (1997-10-25) 25 October 1997 Pioneers Vorarlberg
55FRobert Sabolič1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)90 kg (200 lb) (1988-09-18) 18 September 1988 EC VSV
76DKristjan Čepon1.95 m (6 ft 5 in)100 kg (220 lb) (1995-11-12) 12 November 1995 HK Olimpija
81FTadej Čimžar1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)80 kg (180 lb) (1992-04-21) 21 April 1992 HK Olimpija
88FMiha Zajc1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)90 kg (200 lb) (1996-12-08) 8 December 1996 HK Olimpija
91FMiha Verlič1.94 m (6 ft 4 in)85 kg (187 lb) (1991-08-21) 21 August 1991 Fischtown Pinguins
92FAnže Kuralt1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)80 kg (180 lb) (1991-10-31) 31 October 1991 Fehérvár AV19
96DBine Mašič1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)75 kg (165 lb) (2002-11-14) 14 November 2002 Vaasan Sport
98FBlaž Tomaževič1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)75 kg (165 lb) (1997-10-14) 14 October 1997 EC VSV

Coaching history

NHL Entry Draft

Players from Slovenia selected in the NHL Entry Draft.

YearNameOverallTeam
1998Edo Terglav249th overallBuffalo Sabres
2000Jure Penko203rd overallNashville Predators
2001Marcel Rodman282nd overallBoston Bruins
2005Anže Kopitar11th overallLos Angeles Kings
2006Jan Muršak182nd overallDetroit Red Wings
2017Jan Drozg152nd overallPittsburgh Penguins

References
  1. "Rekorder Tomaž Razingar se vrača v reprezentanco" (in Slovenian). Siol. 15 March 2022. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
  2. Mavrič, Petra (15 May 2016). "Uspehi, s katerimi so nas od osamosvojitve razvajali slovenski hokejisti" (in Slovenian). Siol. Retrieved 13 May 2022. Največ točk v dresu Slovenije je dosegel Tomaž Vnuk, 171.
  3. "IIHF Men's World Ranking". IIHF. 27 May 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  4. Gruden, Toni (26 February 2014). "Risi v Sočiju - največji uspeh slovenskih reprezentanc" (in Slovenian). RTV Slovenija. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  5. "Hokejski palček, ki kljubuje zakonitostim" (in Slovenian). RTV Slovenija. 25 April 2008. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  6. Lisjak, Mitja (24 June 2017). "Po 11 letih na naboru Lige NHL spet izbran Slovenec" (in Slovenian). RTV Slovenija. Retrieved 24 June 2017.
  7. Manninen, Henrik (4 February 2014). "A Slovenian send-off". IIHF. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  8. "IIHF Member National Association Slovenia". IIHF. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
  9. "Breakup of old Europe creates a new hockey world". IIHF. 2008. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  10. Mavrič, Petra (21 April 2021). "20 let od sanjskega večera, ko Golica kar ni nehala doneti" (in Slovenian). Siol. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
  11. Uroševič, Siniša (19 December 2013). "Slovenski hokejisti prvič po Sarajevu vrnili plošček na OI". Delo (in Slovenian). Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  12. Steiss, Adam (17 March 2020). "IIHF cancels Division I tournaments". IIHF. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
  13. Steiss, Adam (18 November 2020). "IIHF Council announces more cancellations". IIHF. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
  14. "Risi uspešno tudi čez prezadnjo pripravljalno preizkušnjo". hokej.si (in Slovenian). Ice Hockey Federation of Slovenia. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
  15. "Team Roster Slovenia" (PDF). IIHF. 17 May 2023. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
  16. "Kari Savolainen je novi selektor risov". hokej.si (in Slovenian). Ice Hockey Federation of Slovenia. 26 June 2017. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  17. "Zupančič sprejel izziv in postal novi selektor risov" (in Slovenian). RTV Slovenija. 29 May 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  18. "Uradno: Ivo Jan je novi selektor hokejske reprezentance" (in Slovenian). Siol. 6 August 2018. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  19. "Matjaž Kopitar bo novi slovenski hokejski selektor". Dnevnik (in Slovenian). 20 June 2019. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  20. "Matjaž Kopitar ne bo več selektor risov" (in Slovenian). RTV Slovenija. 27 July 2023. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
  21. "Nazaj med svetovno elito bo skušal rise popeljati Edo Terglav" (in Slovenian). RTV Slovenija. 17 October 2023. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
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