Ice hockey at the 2026 Winter Olympics – Men's qualification

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Qualification for the men's ice hockey tournament at the 2026 Winter Olympics was determined by the IIHF World Ranking following the 2023 Men's Ice Hockey World Championships. The host along with the top eight teams in the world ranking receive automatic berths into the Olympics, while all other teams have an opportunity to qualify for the remaining three spots.[1][2]

Qualified teams[edit]

Event Date Location Vacancies Qualified
Hosts 23 May 2023[3] Finland Tampere 1  Italy
2023 IIHF World Ranking[a] 3 March 2020 – 28 May 2023 Finland Tampere and Latvia Riga[b] 8  Canada
 Finland
 Russia[c]
 United States
 Germany
 Sweden
 Switzerland
 Czech Republic
Final qualification tournaments 29 August – 1 September 2024 Slovakia Bratislava 1
Latvia Riga 1
Denmark Aalborg 1
Total 12
Notes
  1. b Tampere and Riga were the sites of the 2023 IIHF World Championship; at the conclusion of the tournament the ranking and direct qualification slots were finalized.
  2. c The participation of Russia is not yet confirmed and depends on if the team is allowed to return to the IIHF World Championship program.

Qualification seeding[edit]

To qualify directly, a nation had to be ranked in the top eight following the 2023 Men's Ice Hockey World Championships. In the IIHF World Ranking system, ranking points from the most recent year are weighted at full value, and points from each preceding year are worth 25% less.

     Qualified directly to Olympic tournament
     Entered in final Olympic qualification
     Entered in pre-qualification round 3
     Entered in pre-qualification round 2
     Entered in pre-qualification round 1 (cancelled)
     Did not enter Olympic qualification
Qualifying seed Team WC2023
(100%)
WC2022
(75%)
OLY2022
(75%)
WC2021
(50%)
WC2020
(25%)
Total
1  Canada 1600 1160 1040 1200 1200 4150
2  Finland 1420 1200 1200 1160 1120 4080
3  Russia 1520 1120 1160 1060 1160 4050
4  United States 1500 1100 1060 1120 1040 3940
5  Germany 1560 1020 940 1100 1020 3835
6  Sweden 1440 1040 1100 960 1100 3800
7   Switzerland 1460 1060 1000 1040 1000 3775
8  Czech Republic 1400 1120 960 1020 1060 3735
9  Slovakia 1360 1000 1120 1000 960 3690
10  Latvia 1520 940 920 920 940 3610
11  Denmark 1340 960 1020 900 900 3500
12  Norway 1280 880 880 880 920 3270
13  France 1300 900 860 840 800 3240
14  Belarus 1260 860 840 840 880 3175
15  Kazakhstan 1320 860 700 940 840 3170
16  Austria 1260 920 800 780 780 3135
17  Slovenia 1220 800 820 740 740 2990
Host  Italy 1160 840 740 820 860 2970
18  Hungary 1240 780 780 720 720 2950
19  Great Britain 1200 820 660 860 820 2945
20  South Korea 1140 740 720 760 760 2805
21  Poland 1180 700 760 700 660 2790
22  Romania 1120 720 640 660 700 2645
23  Lithuania 1100 760 600 680 680 2630
24  Japan 1080 680 680 640 640 2580
25  China 1040 600 900 500 480 2535
26  Ukraine 1060 660 620 600 600 2470
27  Estonia 1020 640 580 620 620 2400
28  Netherlands 1000 580 560 580 560 2285
29  Serbia 980 620 500 560 580 2245
30  Croatia 920 560 540 540 540 2170
31  Spain 960 540 520 520 500 2140
 Israel 880 520 420 460 460 1950
32  Iceland 860 480 480 440 420 1925
 Australia 900 560 480 520 1710
33  Bulgaria 800 420 380 340 340 1655
34  Mexico 740 400 360 400 360 1600
35  Turkey 760 340 460 300 300 1585
36  United Arab Emirates 840 360 320 200 220 1505
 Belgium 820 440 420 440 1470
37  Chinese Taipei 720 300 440 240 240 1455
 New Zealand 780 440 360 400 1390
 Luxembourg 640 280 300 280 260 1280
38  Thailand 660 220 340 140 160 1190
 Turkmenistan 700 320 260 280 1140
39  Kyrgyzstan 600 160 400 100 100 1095
40  Hong Kong 560 220 280 180 180 1070
41  Bosnia and Herzegovina 580 200 260 160 140 1040
42  South Africa 680 240 220 200 1020
43  Kuwait 440 80 240 120 120 770
 Singapore 540 120 40 650
 Malaysia 500 100 80 80 635
44  Georgia 0 460 380 380 630
45  Iran 520 140 625
 Philippines 480 100 60 60 600
 North Korea 360 320 320 510
 Mongolia 460 460
 Indonesia 420 420

Pre-qualification Round 1[edit]

The round was cancelled. It was meant to be held between 8 and 12 November 2023, and consist of two groups of five teams. Teams entered in Group N were United Arab Emirates, Kyrgyzstan, Hong Kong, Kuwait and Georgia, while teams entered in Group O were Chinese Taipei, Thailand, Bosnia and Herzegovina, South Africa and Iran.[2]

Chinese Taipei, Thailand and South Africa accepted invitations to compete in Round 2. Georgia also entered Round 2 after the withdrawal of Mexico.

Pre-qualification Round 2[edit]

Twelve countries played in three tournaments to determine qualifiers for the next round. The three tournament winners were ranked by their qualification seedings and entered the next round as qualifier seven, eight and nine.

Group K[edit]

Group K
Tournament details
Host country Iceland
CityReykjavík
Venue(s)1 (in 1 host city)
Dates14–17 December
Teams4
Tournament statistics
Games played6
Goals scored59 (9.83 per game)
Attendance971 (162 per game)
Scoring leader(s)Estonia Robert Arrak (15 points)
Websitewww.iihf.com

The Group K tournament was held in Reykjavík, Iceland, from 14 to 17 December 2023.[4][5]

Pos Team Pld W OTW OTL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Estonia 3 3 0 0 0 36 2 +34 9 Pre-qualification Round 3
2  Iceland (H) 3 2 0 0 1 13 9 +4 6
3  South Africa 3 1 0 0 2 6 19 −13 3
4  Bulgaria 3 0 0 0 3 4 29 −25 0
Source: IIHF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) result against closest best-ranked team outside tied teams; 6) result against second-best ranked team outside tied teams; 7) seeding before tournament.
(H) Host

All times are local (UTC±0).

14 December 2023
15:30
Bulgaria 0–21
(0–3, 0–8, 0–10)
 EstoniaLaugardalur Arena, Reykjavík
Attendance: 72
Game reference
Dimitar Dimitrov
Andrea Karabadjakov
GoaliesVillem-Henrik KoitmaaReferees:
Norway Petter Bakken
Serbia Stefan Pozar
Linesmen:
Lithuania Karolis Janušauskas
Croatia Marko Saković
0–104:25 – Vasjonkin (Arrak, Reinsalu)
0–208:14 – Lovkov (Kookmaa)
0–3Vasjonkin (Appelberg, Arrak)
0–424:02 – Romanov (Fedorovits, Reinsalu)
0–524:22 – Puzakov (Lovkov, Fursa)
0–625:32 – Koll (Novikov, Romanov)
0–727:24 – Arrak (Reinsalu, Ossipov)
0–828:05 – Kiik (Linde, Parras)
0–931:45 – Arrak (Kiik, Novikov)
0–1034:29 – Fursa (Puzakov, Lovkov)
0–1135:30 – Vasjonkin (Arrak, Appelberg)
0–1241:28 – Appelberg (Arrak, Vasjonkin)
0–1345:29 – Appelberg (Vasjonkin, Arrak)
0–1446:46 – Fedorovits (Romanov, Koll)
0–1548:07 – Kiik (Parras)
0–1649:42 – Lovkov (Fursa, Puzakov)
0–1752:25 – Vasjonkin (Arrak, Appelberg)
0–1853:11 – Puzakov (Lovkov, Fursa)
0–1956:51 – Fursa (Kookma, Lovkov)
0–2057:48 – Romanov (Koll, Fedorovits)
0–2159:23 – Kiik (Novikov, Kookmaa)
2 minPenalties2 min
15Shots71
14 December 2023
19:00
Iceland 9–0
(3–0, 3–0, 3–0)
 South AfricaLaugardalur Arena, Reykjavík
Attendance: 211
Game reference
Johan RagnarssonGoaliesAlistair BywaterReferees:
Sweden Mikael Johansson
Croatia Trpimir Piragić
Linesmen:
Norway Knut Braten
Iceland Sindri Gunnarsson
Rúnarsson (B. Jóhannesson, Sverrisson) – 00:541–0
Magnusson (Leifsson) (PP) – 05:202–0
Arason – 15:053–0
Mikaelsson (Magnusson, Skúlason) – 25:134–0
Hafsteinsson (Blöndal) – 27:155–0
Jónsson (Runarsson, Hlynsson) – 39:406–0
B. Jóhannesson (SH) – 52:087–0
Hlynsson – 58:578–0
Hafsteinsson – 59:259–0
8 minPenalties6 min
47Shots9

15 December 2023
15:30
Estonia 9–2
(1–1, 5–1, 3–0)
 South AfricaLaugardalur Arena, Reykjavík
Attendance: 35
Game reference
Conrad MölderGoaliesRyan BoydReferees:
Norway Peter Bakken
Croatia Trpimir Piragić
Linesmen:
Iceland Saemundur Leifsson
Croatia Marko Saković
Appelberg (Ossipov) – 13:081–0
1–116:36 – Kluyts (Schuurman, Venter)
Appelberg – 21:152–1
Lahesalu (Laosma, Linde) – 25:513–1
Koll (Laosma, Romanov) – 27:394–1
Vasjonkin (Arrak, Novikov) – 29:075–1
Arrak (Vasjonkin) – 29:236–1
6–239:53 – Giot (Carelse, Valadas) (PP)
Appelberg – 48:327–2
Appelberg (Vasjonkin)8–2
Fursa (Puzakov, Lovkov) – 59:059–2
6 minPenalties8 min
76Shots12
15 December 2023
19:00
Iceland 4–3
(1–0, 1–2, 2–1)
 BulgariaLaugardalur Arena, Reykjavík
Attendance: 196
Game reference
Jakob JóhannessonGoaliesDimitar DimitrovReferees:
Sweden Mikael Johansson
Serbia Stefan Pozar
Linesmen:
Norway Knut Braten
Lithuania Karolis Janušauskas
Magnusson (Kristjansson) (PP) – 06:051–0
1–121:42 – Atanasov (K. Dikov)
1–228:02 – Atanasov
Arnarsson (Hafsteinsson, Arason) – 39:342–2
2–347:28 – K. Dikov (Hodulov) (PP2)
Blondal (Rúnarsson, Arnarsson) (EA) – 58:343–3
Rúnarsson (Hlysson) – 59:434–3
8 minPenalties18 min
68Shots13

17 December 2023
15:30
South Africa 4–1
(0–0, 1–0, 3–1)
 BulgariaLaugardalur Arena, Reykjavík
Attendance: 93
Game reference
Ryan BoydGoaliesAndrea KarabadjakovReferees:
Norway Petter Bakken
Serbia Stefan Pozar
Linesmen:
Iceland Sindri Gunnarsson
Iceland Saemundur Leifsson
Valadas (Samaai) – 31:261–0
Valadas (Carelse) – 40:412–0
Phakathi – 47:073–0
Carelse (Valadas) (EN) – 56:044–0
4–159:49 – Dilkov
6 minPenalties6 min
34Shots27
17 December 2023
19:00
Estonia 6–0
(3–0, 2–0, 1–0)
 IcelandLaugardalur Arena, Reykjavík
Attendance: 364
Game reference
Villem-Henrik KoitmaaGoaliesJohan Ragnarsson
Jakob Jóhannesson
Referees:
Sweden Mikael Johansson
Croatia Trpimir Piragić
Linesmen:
Norway Knut Braten
Lithuania Karolis Janušauskas
Arrak (Vasjonkin) – 00:511–0
Fedorovits (Romanov) – 02:472–0
Arrak (Vasjonkin, Appelberg) – 09:493–0
Lahesalu – 20:584–0
Arrak (Lahesalu, Appelberg) (PP) – 28:115–0
Arrak – 44:366–0
14 minPenalties8 min
44Shots25

Group L[edit]

Group L
Tournament details
Host country Netherlands
CityTilburg
Venue(s)1 (in 1 host city)
Dates15–17 December
Teams4
Tournament statistics
Games played6
Goals scored74 (12.33 per game)
Attendance2,385 (398 per game)
Scoring leader(s)Netherlands Danny Stempher (13 points)
WebsiteWebsite

The Group L tournament was held in Tilburg, Netherlands, from 15 to 17 December 2023.[6][7] Mexico was entered into this group but withdrew and was replaced by Georgia.[2][8]

Pos Team Pld W OTW OTL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Spain 3 3 0 0 0 24 6 +18 9 Pre-qualification Round 3
2  Netherlands (H) 3 2 0 0 1 34 7 +27 6
3  Georgia 3 1 0 0 2 13 13 0 3
4  Thailand 3 0 0 0 3 3 48 −45 0
Source: IIHF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) result against closest best-ranked team outside tied teams; 6) result against second-best ranked team outside tied teams; 7) seeding before tournament.
(H) Host

All times are local (UTC+1).

15 December 2023
16:30
Spain 15–2
(6–0, 6–2, 3–0)
 ThailandIJssportcentrum, Tilburg
Attendance: 150
Game reference
Raul Barbo
Sergi Reina
GoaliesBenjamin KleineschayReferees:
Republic of Ireland Vytautas Lukosevicius
Germany Nikolas Neutzer
Linesmen:
Bulgaria Martin Boyadjiev
Netherlands Jeroen Klijberg
Rubio (González) (PP) – 04:401–0
Granell (González, De Bonilla) (PP) – 09:362–0
Granell (Hernández) – 12:293–0
Capillas (Burgos, Torralba) – 16:404–0
Granell (Hernández)5–0
– 17:306–0
Donath (Muratet) – 17:397–0
Muratet (García) (PP) – 22:288–0
Carbonell (Burgos) (PP2) – 24:309–0
Hernández (García) (PP) – 25:1910–0
10–131:21 – Lampson (Kitayama, Isaksson)
González (Carbonall, De Bonilla) (PP) – 27:1711–1
11–236:47 – Lampson
Carbonell (Rubio, Encinar) – 33:2712–2
Hernández (Donath) – 46:5913–2
Zaballa (Rubio) – 48:4014–2
Donath (O'Hare) – 54:1815–2
6 minPenalties41 min
41Shots9
15 December 2023
20:00
Netherlands 8–2
(2–1, 2–1, 4–0)
 GeorgiaIJssportcentrum, Tilburg
Attendance: 416
Game reference
Matijn OosterwijkGoaliesMikhail FofanovReferees:
Belgium Niki De Herdt
Czech Republic Roman Mrkva
Linesmen:
Estonia Savva Azarov
Spain Carlos Trobajo
De Hondt (Stempher) (PP) – 06:171–0
De Bonth (Hessels) – 12:352–0
2–113:42 – Kireev
Stempher (De Hondt) – 30:113–1
3–235:31 – Dziov (Kochkin)
Bison (Hofland) (SH) – 38:134–2
De Bonth (Hofland, Borgman) – 40:455–2
Muller (Verkiel) (PP) – 44:316–2
Van Nes (Gerretsen, De Hondt) – 50:387–2
Stempher (Van Nes) – 58:048–2
8 minPenalties12 min
50Shots10

16 December 2023
16:30
Thailand 1–23
(1–6, 0–7, 0–10)
 NetherlandsIJssportcentrum, Tilburg
Attendance: 565
Game reference
Benjamin Kleineschay
Pattarapol Ungkulpattanasuk
GoaliesMatijn OosterwijkReferees:
Belgium Niki De Herdt
Germany Nikolas Neutzer
Linesmen:
Estonia Savva Azarov
Bulgaria Martin Boyadjiev
0–103:23 – Verkiel (Stempher, De Hondt)
0–204:40 – De Bonth (Stempher, Hofland)
0–312:06 – De Hondt (Stempher)
Thanakroekkiat (Forstner, Kindborn) (PP) – 13:111–3
1–415:14 – Van Nes (De Hondt, Stempher)
1–515:23 – Bison (Timmer, Oosterveld) (SH)
1–617:01 – Hofland (De Bonth)
1–720:57 – Stempher (De Hondt) (SH)
1–827:04 – Bison (Verkiel) (PP)
1–927:41 – Nordemann (Doop, Huisman)
1–1028:25 – Timmer (Verkiel, Bison) (PP)
1–1132:21 – De Bonth (Stempher, Hofland)
1–1233:30 – Van Elten (Huisman)
1–1334:55 – Borgman (Van Nes, Stempher)
1–1440:51 – Verkiel
1–1543:16 – Huisman (De Ruiter, Van Elten)
1–1645:56 – Timmer (Nordemann, Bison)
1–1748:17 – Stempher (Van Nes, Gerretsen)
1–1848:59 – Huisman (Van Gorp, Hofland)
1–1952:48 – Nordemann
1–2053:31 – De Hondt (Stempher, Van Gorp) (PP)
1–2153:43 – De Bonth (Hofland, Borgman)
1–2258:07 – De Ruiter (Doop, Gerretsen)
1–2358:16 – Timmer
10 minPenalties4 min
7Shots76
16 December 2023
20:00
Spain 5–1
(1–0, 3–1, 1–0)
 GeorgiaIJssportcentrum, Tilburg
Attendance: 222
Game reference
Raul BarboGoaliesIvan StarostinReferees:
Republic of Ireland Vytautas Lukosevicius
Czech Republic Roman Mrkva
Linesmen:
Netherlands Jeroen Klijberg
Netherlands Bram Zwarthoed
Torralba (De Bonilla, O'Hare) – 16:021–0
O'Hare (Burgos, Baldris) (PP) – 24:312–0
Baldris (Burgos, O'Hare) (PP) – 29:223–0
3–131:20 – Kozyulin (Dziov, Obolgogiani) (PP)
González (Carbonell) – 36:004–1
Donath (Zaballa) (SH) – 53:185–1
14 minPenalties12 min
34Shots8

17 December 2023
16:30
Netherlands 3–4
(1–0, 2–3, 0–1)
 SpainIJssportcentrum, Tilburg
Attendance: 857
Game reference
Cedrick AndreeGoaliesRaul BarboReferees:
Czech Republic Roman Mrkva
Germany Nikolas Neutzer
Linesmen:
Bulgaria Martin Boyadjiev
Netherlands Jeroen Klijberg
Stempher (Borgman, Van Nes (PP) – 19:031–0
1–121:23 – González (García)
1–229:23 – Burgos (O'Hare) (PP)
1–332:09 – Donath
Van Nes (De Ruiter, Van Gorp) – 35:022–3
Huisman (Borgman, Van Gorp) – 36:533–3
3–447:39 – Baldris (Burgos, O'Hare) (PP)
6 minPenalties12 min
30Shots21
17 December 2023
20:00
Georgia 10–0
(3–0, 4–0, 3–0)
 ThailandIJssportcentrum, Tilburg
Attendance: 175
Game reference
Ivan Starostin
Mikhail Fofanov
GoaliesBenjamin KleineschayReferees:
Belgium Niki De Herdt
Republic of Ireland Vytautas Lukosevicius
Linesmen:
Spain Carlos Trobajo
Netherlands Bram Zwarthoed
Kurbatov (Vasilchenko) – 08:071–0
Dziov (Romanov, Marov) – 10:182–0
Romanov (Kochkin, Bukiya) (PP) – 19:053–0
Romanov (Ermoshenko, Dziov) – 21:424–0
Dziov (Bukiya) – 26:285–0
Obolgogiani (Bukiya, Kurbatov) – 29:466–0
Kochkin (Dziov) – 34:207–0
Kurbatov (Kochkin, Romanov) (PP) – 53:258–0
Kharizov (Vasilchenko, Kurbatov) – 53:579–0
Bukiya – 59:5310–0
10 minPenalties10 min
36Shots15

Group M[edit]

Group M
Tournament details
Host country Serbia
CityBelgrade
Venue(s)1 (in 1 host city)
Dates14–17 December
Teams4
Tournament statistics
Games played6
Goals scored34 (5.67 per game)
Attendance1,335 (223 per game)
Scoring leader(s)Croatia Jan Smolec (6 points)
WebsiteWebsite

The Group M tournament was held in Belgrade, Serbia, from 14 to 17 December 2023.[9][10]

Pos Team Pld W OTW OTL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Serbia (H) 3 3 0 0 0 15 0 +15 9 Pre-qualification Round 3
2  Croatia 3 2 0 0 1 12 7 +5 6
3  Chinese Taipei 3 1 0 0 2 4 13 −9 3
4  Turkey 3 0 0 0 3 3 14 −11 0
Source: IIHF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) result against closest best-ranked team outside tied teams; 6) result against second-best ranked team outside tied teams; 7) seeding before tournament.
(H) Host

All times are local (UTC+1).

14 December 2023
15:30
Croatia 6–1
(0–0, 3–0, 3–1)
 Chinese TaipeiPionir Ice Hall, Belgrade
Attendance: 17
Game reference
Ivan RužićGoaliesHsiao Pu-yuReferees:
Slovakia Michal Klejna
Poland Paweł Kosidło
Linesmen:
Serbia Aleksandar Đokić
Iceland Oli Gunnarsson
Vedlin (Smolec) (PP) – 25:501–0
Idžan (Smolec, Fičur) (PP) – 32:262–0
Bebek (Puzić, Čanić) – 39:013–0
Vedlin (Fičur) – 56:014–0
Mirić (Fičur, Cavlović) – 56:325–0
Dobrić (Smolec) – 57:046–0
6–158:38 – Yang (Lin H., Lin Y.c.)
10 minPenalties12 min
62Shots12
14 December 2023
19:00
Serbia 5–0
(1–0, 1–0, 3–0)
 TurkeyPionir Ice Hall, Belgrade
Attendance: 367
Game reference
Arsenije RankovićGoaliesTolga BozacıReferees:
Hungary Daniel Rencz
United Kingdom Joe Sewell
Linesmen:
Austria Christoph Barnthaler
Netherlands Lodewijk Beelen
M. Mladenović (Racić, Gvozdenović) – 08:281–0
Racić (Anić, Dragović) – 33:472–0
Vučurević (Podunavac) – 50:383–0
Podunavac (Subotić) – 52:564–0
Podunavac (Novaković, Mitrović) – 57:215–0
2 minPenalties4 min
39Shots17

15 December 2023
15:30
Croatia 6–2
(0–1, 3–1, 3–0)
 TurkeyPionir Ice Hall, Belgrade
Attendance: 14
Game reference
Vito NikolićGoaliesTolga BozacıReferees:
Poland Paweł Kosidło
Hungary Daniel Rencz
Linesmen:
Austria Christoph Barnthaler
Serbia David Perduv
0–119:01 – Bakal (Bingöl, Savaş) (PP)
0–225:33 – Meydanci (Solak)
Vedlin (Puzić) (SH) – 27:221–2
Smolec (Novotny) (SH) – 28:152–2
Smolec (Idžan) – 38:333–2
Puzić (Čanić, Dobrić) – 44:454–2
Idžan (Čanić, Smolec) (PP2) – 52:105–2
Dimitrijević (Fičur) – 57:516–2
33 minPenalties10 min
28Shots12
15 December 2023
19:00
Chinese Taipei 0–6
(0–3, 0–1, 0–2)
 SerbiaPionir Ice Hall, Belgrade
Attendance: 428
Game reference
Li Yi-chengGoaliesArsenije Ranković
Lazar Ilić
Referees:
Slovakia Michal Klejna
United Kingdom Joe Sewell
Linesmen:
Netherlands Lodewijk Beelen
Iceland Oli Gunnarsson
0–110:28 – Racić (Subotić)
0–214:13 – Dinić (Podunavac, Dragović)
0–319:47 – M. Mladenović (Zwick)
0–434:54 – Vučurević (K. Mladenović, Zwick)
0–547:36 – M. Mladenović (Kravljanac, Španjević)
0–656:30 – Zwick (PS,SH)
6 minPenalties11 min
22Shots42

17 December 2023
15:30
Turkey 1–3
(0–1, 1–2, 0–0)
 Chinese TaipeiPionir Ice Hall, Belgrade
Attendance: 21
Game reference
Oğulcan KızılkayaGoaliesHsiao Po-yuReferees:
Poland Paweł Kosidło
United Kingdom Joe Sewell
Linesmen:
Serbia Aleksandar Đokić
Serbia David Perduv
0–104:50 – Lin J. (Lin Y.k., Shen)
Meydancı (Solak) – 21:191–1
1–226:06 – Lin Y.c. (Lin H., Sang) (PP)
1–331:58 – Lin H. (SH)
10 minPenalties4 min
31Shots28
17 December 2023
19:00
Serbia 4–0
(1–0, 0–0, 3–0)
 CroatiaPionir Ice Hall, Belgrade
Attendance: 488
Game reference
Arsenije RankovićGoaliesVito NikolićReferees:
Slovakia Michal Klejna
Hungary Daniel Rencz
Linesmen:
Austria Christoph Barnthaler
Netherlands Lodewijk Beelen
Novaković (Dragović) (PP2) – 15:441–0
Racić (M. Mladenović) – 41:162–0
Španjević (Vučurević) (PP) – 55:473–0
Dinić (Podunavac, Dragović) – 57:154–0
8 minPenalties12 min
26Shots24

Pre-qualification Round 3[edit]

Twelve countries played in three tournaments to determine qualifiers for the next round. Each tournament winner was ranked by their qualification seeding and entered the next round as qualifier four, five, or six. The tournaments were played between 8 and 11 February 2024.

Group G[edit]

Group M
Tournament details
Host country Hungary
CityBudapest
Venue(s)1 (in 1 host city)
Dates8–10 February
Teams4
Tournament statistics
Games played6
Goals scored42 (7 per game)
Attendance5,659 (943 per game)
Scoring leader(s)Hungary János Hári (6 points)
WebsiteWebsite

The tournament was held in Budapest, Hungary.

Pos Team Pld W OTW OTL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Japan 3 3 0 0 0 14 8 +6 9 Final qualification
2  Hungary (H) 3 2 0 0 1 15 6 +9 6
3  Lithuania 3 1 0 0 2 7 13 −6 3
4  Spain 3 0 0 0 3 6 15 −9 0
Source: IIHF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) result against closest best-ranked team outside tied teams; 6) result against second-best ranked team outside tied teams; 7) seeding before tournament.
(H) Host

All times are local (UTC+1).

8 February 2024
15:00
Lithuania 4–6
(2–0, 1–3, 1–3)
 JapanTüskecsarnok, Budapest
Attendance: 77
Game reference
Elvinas KarlaGoaliesYuta NarisawaReferees:
Poland Michał Baca
Latvia Emīls Druseiks
Linesmen:
Hungary Barna Kis-Király
Finland Luka Mäkinen
Kaleinikovas (Ališauskas) – 00:141–0
Noreika (Kaleinikovas, Gintautas) (PP) – 10:282–0
Krakauskas (Bendžius) – 24:303–0
3–129:41 – Isogai (Otsu, T. Nakajima)
3–229:58 – K. Sato (Irikura)
3–338:05 – Hirano (Minoshima, Ishida)
3–443:34 – T. Nakajima (S. Nakajima) (PP)
3–547:57 – Takagi (Halliday)
3–654:33 – K. Sato
Gintautas (Krakauskas) – 58:554–6
4 minPenalties10 min
32Shots39
8 February 2024
18:00
Hungary 7–3
(3–0, 3–0, 1–3)
 SpainTüskecsarnok, Budapest
Attendance: 1,453
Game reference
Ádám VayGoaliesRaul BarboReferees:
Czech Republic Roman Mrvka
Slovenia Gregor Režek
Linesmen:
Lithuania Aleksej Sascenkov
Sweden Andreas Svensson
Mihály (Terbócs, Hadobás) – 01:441–0
Mihály (Sofron) – 07:512–0
Galló (Hári, Erdély) – 18:303–0
Galló (Erdély, Hári) – 23:384–0
Stipsicz (Sebők) – 36:115–0
Fejes (Hári, Galló) – 39:376–0
6–142:20 – Donath (Encinar, Ferrández)
6–245:41 – Capillas (Baldris) (PP)
Terbócs (Nagy) – 58:077–2
7–358:15 – Donath (O'Hare)
2 minPenalties6 min
37Shots18

9 February 2024
16:30
Spain 3–6
(2–0, 0–3, 1–3)
 JapanTüskecsarnok, Budapest
Attendance: 116
Game reference
Marco HernándezGoaliesEiki Sato
Yuta Narisawa
Referees:
Czech Republic Roman Mrvka
Finland Janne Wuorenheimo
Linesmen:
Hungary Barna Kis-Király
Lithuania Aleksej Sascenkov
Capillas (Guerra, De Bonilla) – 01:261–0
O'Hare (Baldris) – 05:502–0
2–128:52 – S. Nakajima (Yoneyama)
2–233:37 – Hitosato (Takagi, Irikura)
2–337:49 – Yamada (Suzuki, Ishida)
2–445:12 – K. Sato (H. Sato, Irikura)
Torralba (Burgos, Capillas) – 46:213–4
3–554:55 – Yamada (Irikura, Nakayashiki)
3–659:00 – Ishida (Yamada, Irikura) (EA)
2 minPenalties27 min
20Shots41
9 February 2024
20:00
Hungary 7–1
(4–1, 0–0, 3–0)
 LithuaniaTüskecsarnok, Budapest
Attendance: 1,907
Game reference
Bence BálizsGoaliesElvinas KarlaReferees:
Poland Michał Baca
Slovenia Gregor Režek
Linesmen:
Sweden Andreas Svensson
France Quentin Ugolini
0–108:15 – Kaleinikovas (PP)
Galló (Stipsicz, Fejes) – 10:081–1
Mihály (Terbócs, Sebők) – 13:332–1
Nemes (Terbócs, Németh) – 16:143–1
Hári (Erdély) – 18:414–1
Hári – 46:485–1
Sofron (Hári, Galló) (PP) – 54:476–1
Kiss (Ortenszky, Sebők) – 56:307–1
10 minPenalties4 min
44Shots18

10 February 2024
16:30
Lithuania 2–0
(1–0, 1–0, 0–0)
 SpainTüskecsarnok, Budapest
Attendance: 177
Game reference
Elvinas KarlaGoaliesRaul BarboReferees:
Latvia Emīls Druseiks
Slovenia Gregor Režek
Linesmen:
Hungary Barna Kis-Király
Lithuania Aleksej Sascenkov
Dumcius (Noreika, Četvertak) – 16:261–0
Čižas (Gusevas, Kaleinikovas) – 26:232–0
8 minPenalties4 min
22Shots32
10 February 2024
20:00
Japan 2–1
(0–0, 0–1, 2–0)
 HungaryTüskecsarnok, Budapest
Attendance: 1,929
Game reference
Yuta NarisawaGoaliesBence BálizsReferees:
Czech Republic Roman Mrvka
Finland Janne Wuorenheimo
Linesmen:
Finland Luka Mäkinen
France Quentin Ugolini
0–136:51 – Sofron (Stipsicz, Erdély) (PP)
S. Nakajima (Hirano) (PP) – 43:321–1
Halliday (Suzuki, Osawa) – 45:342–1
12 minPenalties12 min
20Shots37

Group H[edit]

Group H
Tournament details
Host country Great Britain
CityCardiff
Venue(s)1 (in 1 host city)
Dates8–11 February
Teams4
Tournament statistics
Games played6
Goals scored56 (9.33 per game)
Attendance8,537 (1,423 per game)
Scoring leader(s)United Kingdom Liam Kirk
United Kingdom Cade Neilson (10 points)
WebsiteWebsite

The tournament was held in Cardiff, Great Britain.

Pos Team Pld W OTW OTL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Great Britain (H) 3 3 0 0 0 28 5 +23 9 Final qualification
2  Romania 3 2 0 0 1 14 8 +6 6
3  China 3 1 0 0 2 9 21 −12 3
4  Serbia 3 0 0 0 3 5 22 −17 0
Source: IIHF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) result against closest best-ranked team outside tied teams; 6) result against second-best ranked team outside tied teams; 7) seeding before tournament.
(H) Host

All times are local (UTC+0).

8 February 2024
16:00
Romania 4–0
(0–0, 3–0, 1–0)
 SerbiaIce Arena Wales, Cardiff
Attendance: 352
Game reference
Zoltán TőkeGoaliesArsenije RankovićReferees:
Denmark Kenneth Nielsen
Sweden Alexander Österberg
Linesmen:
Netherlands Lodewijk Beelen
United Kingdom Daniel Beresford
Skachkov (Péter, Haaranen) (PP) – 20:441–0
Bors (S. Rokaly) – 32:122–0
Farkas (Részegh, Skachkov) – 39:303–0
Skachkov (Rokaly, Részegh) – 42:584–0
2 minPenalties8 min
32Shots17
8 February 2024
20:00
Great Britain 10–1
(2–0, 5–0, 3–1)
 ChinaIce Arena Wales, Cardiff
Attendance: 1,860
Game reference
Ben BownsGoaliesSun ZehaoReferees:
Poland Krzysztof Kozłowski
Czech Republic Robin Šír
Linesmen:
France Clément Goncalves
Finland Joni Pekkala
Kirk (Dowd, Neilson) – 03:321–0
Richardson (Lake, Curran) – 16:452–0
Kirk (Halbert, Neilson) – 25:533–0
Critchlow (Norris, Lachowicz) – 27:024–0
Critchlow (Lachowicz) – 30:075–0
Curran (Lake, Phillips) – 32:536–0
Neilson (Kirk, Halbert) (PP) – 38:397–0
Dowd (Neilson, Richardson) – 43:348–0
8–143:47 – Zuo
Davies (Kirk, Jones) – 56:129–1
Halbert – 58:5310–1
2 minPenalties8 min
47Shots10

10 February 2024
15:00
Romania 6–1
(1–1, 1–0, 4–0)
 ChinaIce Arena Wales, Cardiff
Attendance: 420
Game reference
Attila AdorjánGoaliesSun ZehaoReferees:
Denmark Kenneth Nielsen
Slovakia Michal Kleijna
Linesmen:
United Kingdom Daniel Beresford
Norway Herman Johansen
0–111:05 – Wang J. (Chen Z.)
Imre (Péter) (SH) – 05:371–1
Részegh (Péter) (SH) – 20:292–1
Sándor-Székely (N. Rokaly, Gajdó) – 42:083–1
Teamriuc – 50:384–1
Gajdó (N. Rokaly, Sándor-Székely) – 57:405–1
Kovács (Cășăneanu) – 58:066–1
6 minPenalties4 min
37Shots11
10 February 2024
19:00
Serbia 0–11
(0–1, 0–8, 0–2)
 Great BritainIce Arena Wales, Cardiff
Attendance: 2,900
Game reference
Arsenije Ranković
Lazar Ilić
GoaliesJackson WhistleReferees:
Sweden Alexander Österberg
Czech Republic Robin Šír
Linesmen:
Netherlands Lodewijk Beelen
France Clément Goncalves
0–103:20 – Dowd (Halbert)
0–220:57 – Perlini (Kirk)
0–323:46 – Dowd (Kirk, Richardson)
0–426:14 – Shudra (O'Connor, Davies)
0–530:37 – Dowd (Neilson)
0–632:01 – Critchlow (Lachowicz)
0–734:37 – B. Whistle (Davies, Shudra)
0–835:39 – Perlini (Mosey, Norris)
0–937:31 – Jones (Davies, Kirk)
0–1040:29 – Halbert (Neilson, Kirk)
0–1145:01 – Neilson (Dowd, Richardson)
6 minPenalties4 min
12Shots71

11 February 2024
19:00
China 7–5
(3–2, 0–2, 4–1)
 SerbiaIce Arena Wales, Cardiff
Attendance: 368
Game reference
Sun ZehaoGoaliesArsenije RankovićReferees:
Slovakia Michal Kleijna
Poland Krzysztof Kozłowski
Linesmen:
United Kingdom Daniel Beresford
France Clément Goncalves
0–111:28 – Podunavac (Subotić)
0–213:36 – Dragović (SH)
Zheng (Wang J.) – 16:441–2
Zhang Z. (PS) – 17:172–2
Guo (Zhang Y.) – 19:483–2
3–329:13 – Dragović (PP)
3–437:08 – Leštarić (Racić, Dragović)
Yan – 40:424–4
Zhang P. (Hou, Wang J.) – 41:115–4
Zong (Wang J.) – 50:016–4
6–553:36 – Mladenović (Tomašević, Dragović)
Guo (Zheng) (EN) – 58:487–5
8 minPenalties8 min
34Shots21
11 February 2024
19:00
Great Britain 7–4
(2–1, 3–1, 2–2)
 RomaniaIce Arena Wales, Cardiff
Attendance: 2,637
Game reference
Ben BownsGoaliesZoltán TőkeReferees:
Sweden Alexander Österberg
Czech Republic Robin Šír
Linesmen:
Norway Herman Johansen
Finland Joni Pekkala
Perlini (Lake) – 08:071–0
1–108:29 – Sándor-Székely (Gajdó, N. Rokaly)
Lake (O'Connor, Jones) – 18:172–1
Perlini (Lake, O'Connor) – 22:043–1
3–228:21 – Skachkov (N. Rokaly, S. Rokaly) (PP)
Jones (Neilson, Kirk) – 36:444–2
Ruopp (Norris, Mosey) – 37:325–2
Kirk (Dowd, Neilson) – 44:326–2
6–345:30 – Gecse (Zagidullin, Péter)
Neilson (Dowd) – 47:067–3
7–455:50 – Haaranen (S. Rokaly) (PP)
33 minPenalties31 min
40Shots22

Group J[edit]

Group J
Tournament details
Host country Poland
CitySosnowiec
Venue(s)1 (in 1 host city)
Dates8–11 February
Teams4
Tournament statistics
Games played6
Goals scored32 (5.33 per game)
Attendance4,771 (795 per game)
Scoring leader(s)South Korea Hong Jung-wook (4 points)
WebsiteWebsite

The tournament was held in Sosnowiec, Poland.

Pos Team Pld W OTW OTL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Ukraine 3 2 1 0 0 12 5 +7 8 Final qualification
2  South Korea 3 1 1 0 1 7 8 −1 5[a]
3  Poland (H) 3 1 0 2 0 8 6 +2 5[a]
4  Estonia 3 0 0 0 3 5 13 −8 0
Source: IIHF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) result against closest best-ranked team outside tied teams; 6) result against second-best ranked team outside tied teams; 7) seeding before tournament.
(H) Host
Notes:
  1. ^ a b South Korea 3–2 Poland

All times are local (UTC+1).

8 February 2024
16:30
Poland 4–0
(0–0, 2–0, 2–0)
 EstoniaZagłębiowski Park Sportowy, Sosnowiec
Attendance: 930
Game reference
David ZabolotnyGoaliesVillem-Henrik KoitmaaReferees:
Slovakia Martin Jobbágy
Spain Alexey Roshchyn
Linesmen:
Romania Attila André
Hungary Norbert Muzsik
Komorski (Michalski, Zieliński) – 27:351–0
Michalski (Kolusz, Zieliński) – 31:022–0
Paś (Jaśkiewicz, Ciura) – 41:223–0
Wanacki (Kolusz) – 59:074–0
4 minPenalties6 min
33Shots11
8 February 2024
20:00
South Korea 0–4
(0–1, 0–1, 0–2)
 UkraineZagłębiowski Park Sportowy, Sosnowiec
Attendance: 231
Game reference
Lee Yeon-seung
Ha Jung-ho
GoaliesEduard ZakharchenkoReferees:
Poland Paweł Kosidło
Germany Nikolas Neutzer
Linesmen:
Slovakia Tomáš Gegáň
Poland Andrzej Nenko
0–114:10 – Mazur (Lialka, Morozov)
0–222:10 – Vorona (Borodai, Kutsevych)
0–349:31 – Denyskin (Pangelov-Yulda, Vorona)
0–450:03 – Trakht (Peresunko, Merezhko) (PP)
2 minPenalties8 min
31Shots22

9 February 2024
16:30
Estonia 2–4
(1–1, 0–1, 1–2)
 South KoreaZagłębiowski Park Sportowy, Sosnowiec
Attendance: 251
Game reference
Lee Yeon-seungGoaliesHenrik VirroReferees:
Slovakia Martin Jobbágy
Hungary Dániel Rencz
Linesmen:
Hungary Norbert Muzsik
Poland Andrzej Nenko
Lovkov (Kulintsev, Luht) – 09:331–0
1–111:59 – Nam (Kim Sang-w.)
1–220:21 – Lee Cong-m. (Hong)
1–348:11 – Ahn (Hong, Nam) (PP)
Vitanen (Rooba) (PP) – 49:442–3
2–450:42 – Shin (Kim Sang-w.)
8 minPenalties4 min
21Shots43
9 February 2024
20:15
Poland 2–3 GWS
(1–0, 1–1, 0–1)
(OT: 0–0)
(SO: 0–1)
 UkraineZagłębiowski Park Sportowy, Sosnowiec
Attendance: 1,817
Game reference
Maciej MiarkaGoaliesBogdan DyachenkoReferees:
Germany Nikolas Neutzer
Spain Alexey Roshchyn
Linesmen:
Slovakia Tomáš Gegáň
Netherlands Jeroen Klijberg
Górny (Fraszko, Pasiut) – 07:151–0
1–122:22 – Borodai (Hrebenyk, Korenchuk)
Kolusz (Dziubiński, Jeziorski) – 33:452–1
2–243:43 – Ratushny (Korenchuk, Cholach)
Dziubiński GOAL
Fraszko MISS
Wałęga MISS
Kolusz MISS
Pasiut MISS
ShootoutMISS Peresunko
MISS Trakht
GOAL Korenchuk
GOAL Vorona
6 minPenalties2 min
34Shots32

11 February 2024
16:30
Ukraine 5–3
(3–0, 1–2, 1–1)
 EstoniaZagłębiowski Park Sportowy, Sosnowiec
Attendance: 441
Game reference
Bogdan DyachenkoGoaliesVillem-Henrik KoitmaaReferees:
Poland Paweł Kosidło
Hungary Dániel Rencz
Linesmen:
Romania Attila André
Slovakia Tomáš Gegáň
Mazur (Merezhko, Trakht) (PP) – 02:291–0
Pangelov-Yulda (Denyskin, Hrebenyk) – 15:592–0
Lialka – 17:173–0
3–123:29 – Arrak (Fursa, Rooba)
Fadyeyev (Peresunko, Ratushny) – 24:334–1
4–226:41 – Vasjonkin (Vitanen)
4–355:53 – Vitanen
Peresunko (Lialka) – 57:405–3
6 minPenalties4 min
21Shots24
11 February 2024
20:15
South Korea 3–2 OT
(0–0, 1–0, 1–2)
(OT: 1–0)
 PolandZagłębiowski Park Sportowy, Sosnowiec
Attendance: 1,101
Game reference
Lee Yeon-seungGoaliesDavid ZabolotnyReferees:
Slovakia Martin Jobbágy
Germany Nikolas Neutzer
Linesmen:
Netherlands Jeroen Klijberg
Hungary Norbert Muzsik
Hong (Lee Cong-m.) – 35:081–0
1–147:30 – Paś (Zygmunt)
Hong (PS) – 49:352–1
2–250:02 – Wanacki (Dziubiński, Dronia)
Song (Kim Sang-w., Shin) – 63:583–2
2 minPenalties4 min
31Shots39

Final Olympic qualification[edit]

Twelve countries will play in three tournaments to determine the qualifying teams for the Olympic tournament. The tournaments will be played between 29 August and 1 September 2024. On February 12, 2024, the IIHF announced that Belarus was disqualified from Olympic qualification forcing the redrawing of the final round and admitting the best second place finisher from the previous round, Hungary.[11][12]

Group D[edit]

The tournament will be held in Bratislava, Slovakia.

Pos Team Pld W OTW OTL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Slovakia (H) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2026 Winter Olympics
2  Kazakhstan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3  Austria 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4  Hungary 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: 29 August 2024. Source: [citation needed]
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) result against closest best-ranked team outside tied teams; 6) result against second-best ranked team outside tied teams; 7) seeding before tournament.
(H) Host

Group E[edit]

The tournament will be held in Riga, Latvia.

Pos Team Pld W OTW OTL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Latvia (H) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2026 Winter Olympics
2  France 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3  Slovenia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4  Ukraine 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: 29 August 2024. Source: [citation needed]
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) result against closest best-ranked team outside tied teams; 6) result against second-best ranked team outside tied teams; 7) seeding before tournament.
(H) Host

Group F[edit]

The tournament will be held in Aalborg, Denmark.

Pos Team Pld W OTW OTL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Denmark (H) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2026 Winter Olympics
2  Norway 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3  Great Britain 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4  Japan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: 29 August 2024. Source: [citation needed]
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) result against closest best-ranked team outside tied teams; 6) result against second-best ranked team outside tied teams; 7) seeding before tournament.
(H) Host

References[edit]

  1. ^ "2026 Olympic men's qualifiers set". IIHF. 31 October 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "2026 MEN'S OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES & QUALIFICATION TOURNAMENT PROGRAM" (PDF). blob.iihf.com. 2023-10-31. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2023-10-31. Retrieved 2023-11-01.
  3. ^ "And 2027 goes to …". IIHF. 26 May 2023. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  4. ^ Group K official website
  5. ^ Group K statistics
  6. ^ Group L official website
  7. ^ Group L statistics
  8. ^ Micola von Fürstenrecht, Danny (10 November 2023). "Georgië is de nieuwe tegenstander van Oranje". IJshockey Nederland (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 November 2023.
  9. ^ Group M official website
  10. ^ Group M statistics
  11. ^ "IIHF upholds ban on Russia, Belarus for 2024-25 season". tsn.ca. 12 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
  12. ^ "Big change in Olympic qualification! Slovakia will have new opponents, a big derby awaits us (in Slovak)". Šport.sk. 12 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.