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

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]   Tampere 1   Italy
2023 IIHF World Ranking[a] 3 March 2020 – 28 May 2023   Tampere and   Riga[b] 8   Canada
  Finland
  Russia[c]
  United States
  Germany
  Sweden
  Switzerland
  Czech Republic
Final qualification tournaments 29 August – 1 September 2024   Bratislava 1
  Riga 1
  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)  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:
  Petter Bakken
  Stefan Pozar
Linesmen:
  Karolis Janušauskas
  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:
  Mikael Johansson
  Trpimir Piragić
Linesmen:
  Knut Braten
  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:
  Peter Bakken
  Trpimir Piragić
Linesmen:
  Saemundur Leifsson
  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:
  Mikael Johansson
  Stefan Pozar
Linesmen:
  Knut Braten
  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:
  Petter Bakken
  Stefan Pozar
Linesmen:
  Sindri Gunnarsson
  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:
  Mikael Johansson
  Trpimir Piragić
Linesmen:
  Knut Braten
  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)  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:
  Vytautas Lukosevicius
  Nikolas Neutzer
Linesmen:
  Martin Boyadjiev
  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:
  Niki De Herdt
  Roman Mrkva
Linesmen:
  Savva Azarov
  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:
  Niki De Herdt
  Nikolas Neutzer
Linesmen:
  Savva Azarov
  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:
  Vytautas Lukosevicius
  Roman Mrkva
Linesmen:
  Jeroen Klijberg
  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:
  Roman Mrkva
  Nikolas Neutzer
Linesmen:
  Martin Boyadjiev
  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:
  Niki De Herdt
  Vytautas Lukosevicius
Linesmen:
  Carlos Trobajo
  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)  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:
  Michal Klejna
  Paweł Kosidło
Linesmen:
  Aleksandar Đokić
  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:
  Daniel Rencz
  Joe Sewell
Linesmen:
  Christoph Barnthaler
  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:
  Paweł Kosidło
  Daniel Rencz
Linesmen:
  Christoph Barnthaler
  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:
  Michal Klejna
  Joe Sewell
Linesmen:
  Lodewijk Beelen
  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:
  Paweł Kosidło
  Joe Sewell
Linesmen:
  Aleksandar Đokić
  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:
  Michal Klejna
  Daniel Rencz
Linesmen:
  Christoph Barnthaler
  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)  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:
  Michał Baca
  Emīls Druseiks
Linesmen:
  Barna Kis-Király
  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:
  Roman Mrvka
  Gregor Režek
Linesmen:
  Aleksej Sascenkov
  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:
  Roman Mrvka
  Janne Wuorenheimo
Linesmen:
  Barna Kis-Király
  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:
  Michał Baca
  Gregor Režek
Linesmen:
  Andreas Svensson
  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:
  Emīls Druseiks
  Gregor Režek
Linesmen:
  Barna Kis-Király
  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:
  Roman Mrvka
  Janne Wuorenheimo
Linesmen:
  Luka Mäkinen
  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)  Liam Kirk
  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:
  Kenneth Nielsen
  Alexander Österberg
Linesmen:
  Lodewijk Beelen
  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:
  Krzysztof Kozłowski
  Robin Šír
Linesmen:
  Clément Goncalves
  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:
  Kenneth Nielsen
  Michal Kleijna
Linesmen:
  Daniel Beresford
  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:
  Alexander Österberg
  Robin Šír
Linesmen:
  Lodewijk Beelen
  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:
  Michal Kleijna
  Krzysztof Kozłowski
Linesmen:
  Daniel Beresford
  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:
  Alexander Österberg
  Robin Šír
Linesmen:
  Herman Johansen
  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)  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:
  Martin Jobbágy
  Alexey Roshchyn
Linesmen:
  Attila André
  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:
  Paweł Kosidło
  Nikolas Neutzer
Linesmen:
  Tomáš Gegáň
  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:
  Martin Jobbágy
  Dániel Rencz
Linesmen:
  Norbert Muzsik
  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:
  Nikolas Neutzer
  Alexey Roshchyn
Linesmen:
  Tomáš Gegáň
  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  
Fraszko  
Wałęga  
Kolusz  
Pasiut  
Shootout  Peresunko
  Trakht
  Korenchuk
  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:
  Paweł Kosidło
  Dániel Rencz
Linesmen:
  Attila André
  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:
  Martin Jobbágy
  Nikolas Neutzer
Linesmen:
  Jeroen Klijberg
  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.