“They’re as cold as ice..willing to sacrifice!” IIHF World Championship 2023 preview

If hockey’s your thing, then you’re in for an absolute treat over the next couple of weeks as this sport’s big guns bring the heat to the icy arenas of Finland and Latvia as the IIHF World Championship gets underway once again.

With a thrilling group stage jam-packed with crunch clashes, as well as those all important play-offs, in store, you can bet your bottom dollar that this is one tournament that’ll have us all on the edge of our seats.

What’s more, the start of this tournament also brings with it a whole host of talking points, such as will Finland take full advantage of playing on home soil to retain their title? Will Canada add yet another gold medal to their collection? Have the USA got enough depth to go the distance? Will there any dark horses emerge?

So, without further ado, let’s take a look at what the IIHF World Championship has in store for us over the coming weeks.

The race for gold

When it comes to the favourites to bring home the bacon in this tournament, most of the bookies and experts are plumping for co-hosts Finland and Canada, which is quite apt given that they’ve squared off in both of the last 2 finals.

Although the Finns can’t quite match the Canadians in terms of historical pedigree as they’ve only won this competition 4 times in their entire history, they’ve become an absolute force to be reckoned with over the past few years. They’ve won 2 of the last 4 editions of this tournament, in 2019 and 2022 respectively, as well as managing to bag a silver medal back in 2021.

What’s more, in addition to the steady stream of talent they produce year after year, Finland will also be able to take advantage of playing on home soil for the second tournament in a row. 

The question is: have they got what it takes to channel the spirit of last year’s triumph to bring home gold yet again?

One team who’ll be hoping that Finland don’t have what it takes are their main rivals to be crowned champions, Canada, who many are touting as favourites to take home gold at this tournament. 

Interestingly, the last time the Canadians had to recover from finishing 2nd at this tournament (in 2019 when Finland pipped them to gold), they responded in trademark fashion by picking up a 27th gold medal, which took them level with Russia in the gold medal stakes. With the Russians missing at this tournament, the Canadians will no doubt view this as the ideal opportunity to set a new record by avenging the pain of last year’s final defeat.

The chasing pack

Will this be the year the United States finally bring home gold? That’s the question that’ll be on American hockey fan’s lips right now as their boys limber up to hit the ice. 

Whilst the NHL is arguably the “be all and end all” of hockey leagues, the United States have traditionally never quite managed to translate the success of their domestic league to the international stages as they’ve picked up gold on just 2 occasions in the entire history of this competition, with their last triumph coming way back in 1960.

Somewhat ironically, the NHL is actually somewhat to blame for the American’s record in this tournament as it takes place during the NHL post-season, meaning some of their best talent choose to prioritise the Stanley Cup over the IIHF World Championship. What’s more, this could be set to happen again this year as the NHL play-offs have left them with a talented squad that lacks the depth of their rivals.

Another team who’ll be hoping to shake off somewhat disappointing performances in recent years will be Sweden. The Swedes have a strong record in this tournament with 11 gold, the last 2 of which came in 2017 and 2018, and have plenty of talent to call upon.

What’s more, they’ll have plenty of fans cheering them on in the standards, given that this tournament is so close to home for them. However, it remains to be seen whether this if all of the above will be enough to spur them onto victory here.

Potential dark horses

Last but not least, the likes of Czechia and Germany will also no doubt fancy their chances of being potential dark horses in this competition.

The Czechs picked up a bronze in this competition last year and have also have a solid Euro Hockey Tour campaign behind them heading into this tournament, whereas the Germans finished 4th in 2021 and will be eager to improve on their disappointing 7th place finish last time around. 

Whilst it might be a bit of a stretch to suggest either team will be crowned champions here, both of them should have enough to make it out of group A.

Meanwhile over in Group B, Switzerland and Latvia could be the two teams capable of upsetting the apple cart. The Swiss warmed up for this tournament in style with back-to-back wins over Finland and Czechia in the Euro Hockey League over the weekend and will be keen to take this winning momentum with them, whereas the Latvians will also be desperate to take full advantage of playing on home soil and giving their fans something to cheer about.

Whatever happens, this looks set to be a thrilling tournament that’ll have us all glued to the edge of our seats.