The 2015 IIHF World Championship was the 79th event hosted by the
International Ice Hockey Federation
The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF; french: Fédération internationale de hockey sur glace; german: Internationale Eishockey-Föderation) is a worldwide governing body for ice hockey. It is based in Zurich, Switzerland, and has 83 m ...
(IIHF), held from 1–17 May 2015 in
Prague
Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...
and
Ostrava
Ostrava (; pl, Ostrawa; german: Ostrau ) is a city in the north-east of the Czech Republic, and the capital of the Moravian-Silesian Region. It has about 280,000 inhabitants. It lies from the border with Poland, at the confluences of four rive ...
,
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
. It broke the historical
attendance record of IIHF World Championships.
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
won their 25th title by defeating
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
6–1 in the championship final game. Canada went undefeated at the tournament to win its first IIHF championship since 2007. With the win, Canadian captain
Sidney Crosby
Sidney Patrick Crosby (born August 7, 1987) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre and captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League (NHL). Nicknamed "Sid the Kid" and dubbed " The Next One", he was selected first o ...
became a member of the
Triple Gold Club
The Triple Gold Club is the group of ice hockey players and coaches who have won an Ice hockey at the Olympic Games, Olympic Games gold medal, a Ice Hockey World Championships, World Championship gold medal, and the Stanley Cup, the championship t ...
and the first to be the team captain for all three events. For winning all of its tournament games in regulation, the Canadian team earned the new Infront Team Jackpot award of one million Swiss francs. The Russians on the other hand were fined 80,000
CHF for most Russian players walking out from the medal ceremony before the Canadian anthem was played after the final game.
The
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
won the bronze medal, defeating
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
3–0 in the bronze medal final game. Czech player
Jaromír Jágr
Jaromír Jágr (; born 15 February 1972) is a Czech professional ice hockey right winger for and the owner of Rytíři Kladno of the Czech Extraliga (ELH). He previously played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Pittsburgh Penguins, ...
(at 43 years of age) was the
MVP
In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...
of the tournament, and announced his retirement from international competition afterwards.
Bids
On 21 May 2010, the Czech bid was successful and got 84 votes in the race for hosting the 2015 IIHF World Championship. The application beat out that from
Kyiv
Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...
,
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
(22 votes).
The two venues for the tournament were the
O2 Arena O2 Arena may refer to:
*The O2 Arena (London)
*O2 Arena (Prague)
*The 3Arena
The 3Arena (originally The O2) is an indoor amphitheatre located at North Wall Quay in the Dublin Docklands in Dublin, Ireland. The venue opened as The O2 on 16 Decem ...
(formerly Sazka Arena) in Prague and
ČEZ Aréna in Ostrava, the same two venues that co-hosted the
2004 IIHF World Championship
The 2004 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship was held between 24 April and 9 May 2004 in Prague and Ostrava, Czech Republic.
It was the 68th ice Hockey World Championships, and was run by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF).
Qualific ...
. Before Ostrava was announced,
Plzeň
Plzeň (; German and English: Pilsen, in German ) is a city in the Czech Republic. About west of Prague in western Bohemia, it is the Statutory city (Czech Republic), fourth most populous city in the Czech Republic with about 169,000 inhabita ...
,
Brno
Brno ( , ; german: Brünn ) is a city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava and Svratka rivers, Brno has about 380,000 inhabitants, making it the second-largest city in the Czech Republic ...
,
Pardubice
Pardubice (; german: Pardubitz) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 89,000 inhabitants. It is the capital city of the Pardubice Region and lies on the Elbe River. The historic centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monu ...
, and even
Bratislava
Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approxim ...
,
Slovakia
Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
, were considered.
Venues
Mascots:
Bob and Bobek
Participants
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Format
Of the 16 teams in the tournament Czech Republic qualified as host while Austria and Slovenia qualified through the
2014 IIHF World Championship Division I, the rest qualified after a top 14 placement at the 2014 IIHF World Championship. The teams were divided into two groups of which the four best from each advanced to the quarterfinals. Here they met cross-over as indicated in the section below.
In the group round, points are awarded as follows:
*3 points for a win in regulation time (W)
*2 point for a team that drew in regulation time but won the following overtime (OTW) or game winning shots (GWS)
*1 point for a team that drew and lost the above-mentioned competition (OTL)
*0 points for a team that lost in regulation time (L)
If two or more teams finished with an equal number of points in the same group, their standings were determined by the following
tiebreaking formula:
#Points in games between the tied teams
#
Goal difference
Goal difference, goal differential or points difference is a form of tiebreaker used to rank sport teams which finish on equal points in a league competition. Either "goal difference" or "points difference" is used, depending on whether matches ar ...
in games between the tied teams
#Goals scored in games between the tied teams
#Results against the closest best-ranking team outside the original group of tied teams
#Results against the next highest ranking team outside the original group of tied teams
#Tournament seedings
Final ranking: places 1–4 are determined by the medal games. Other places are determined by playoff positioning, group play positioning in the group, number of points, goal difference, goals scored, and tournament seeding. The two lowest ranking teams overall are relegated to Division I A.
Seeding
The seeding in the preliminary round was based on the 2014
IIHF World Ranking
The IIHF World Ranking is a ranking of the performance of the national ice hockey teams of member countries of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). It is based on a formula giving points for each team's placings at IIHF-sanctioned tour ...
, which ended at the conclusion of the 2014 IIHF World Championship. Slovakia and Switzerland swapped their slots between their groups to optimize the seeding for the Czech organizers.
Group A (Prague)
* (1)
* (4)
* (5)
* (7)
* (9)
* (12)
* (13)
* (16)
Group B (Ostrava)
* (2)
* (3)
* (6)
* (8)
* (10)
* (11)
* (14)
* (15)
Rosters
Each team's roster consisted of at least 15 skaters (
forwards and
defencemen
Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the latter a reference to ...
) and two
goaltender
In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near t ...
s, and at most 22 skaters and three goaltenders. All 16 participating nations, through the confirmation of their respective national associations, had to submit a roster by the first IIHF directorate meeting.
Officials
The IIHF selected 16 referees and 16 linesmen to work the tournament.
Preliminary round
The schedule was released on 21 August 2014.
''All times are local (
UTC+2
UTC+02:00 is an identifier for a time offset from UTC of +02:00. In ISO 8601, the associated time would be written as 2020-11-08T23:41:45+02:00. This time is used in:
As standard time (year-round)
''Principal cities: Cairo, Pretoria, Cape ...
).''
Group A
Group B
Playoff round
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Bronze medal game
Gold medal game
Ranking and statistics
Tournament Awards
*Best players selected by the directorate:
**Best
Goaltender
In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near t ...
:
Pekka Rinne
Pekka Rinne (; born 3 November 1982) is a Finnish former professional hockey goaltender. Drafted by the Nashville Predators in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, Rinne became their starting goaltender during the 2008–09 season and quickly established ...
**Best
Defenceman
Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from Goal (ice hockey), scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the la ...
:
Brent Burns
Brent Burns (born March 9, 1985) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League (NHL). Drafted as a right wing (20th overall) at the 2003 NHL Entry Draft by the Minnesota Wild, he wa ...
**Best
Forward
Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward.
Forward may also refer to:
People
* Forward (surname)
Sports
* Forward (association football)
* Forward (basketball), including:
** Point forward
** Power forward (basketball)
** Sm ...
:
Jason Spezza
Jason Rocco Anthony Spezza (born June 13, 1983) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. Spezza played 19 career seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 2002 to 2022, and is currently a part of the Toronto Maple Leafs' fr ...
**
Most Valuable Player
In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...
:
Jaromír Jágr
Jaromír Jágr (; born 15 February 1972) is a Czech professional ice hockey right winger for and the owner of Rytíři Kladno of the Czech Extraliga (ELH). He previously played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Pittsburgh Penguins, ...
Source
IIHF.com
/small>
*Media All-Star Team:
**Goaltender: Connor Hellebuyck
Connor Charles Hellebuyck ( ; born May 19, 1993) is an American professional ice hockey goaltender for the Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Jets in the fifth round, 130th overall, of the 2012 NHL Entry Dra ...
**Defence: Brent Burns, Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Oliver Oscar Emanuel Ekman-Larsson (; born 17 July 1991) is a Swedish professional ice hockey defenceman and alternate captain for the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League (NHL). Known by his initials "OEL", Ekman-Larsson was original ...
**Forwards: Taylor Hall
Taylor Hall (born November 14, 1991) is a Canadian professional ice hockey left winger for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was the first overall pick in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft selected by the Edmonton Oilers. He has ...
, Jaromír Jágr, Jason Spezza
Source
IIHF.com
/small>
Final ranking
The official IIHF final ranking of the tournament:
Scoring leaders
List shows the top skaters sorted by points, then goals.
''GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/− = Plus/minus; PIM = Penalties in minutes; POS = Position''
Source
IIHF.com
/small>
Leading goaltenders
Only the top five goaltenders, based on save percentage, who have played at least 40% of their team's minutes, are included in this list.
''TOI = Time on Ice (minutes:seconds); SA = Shots against; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average
Goals against average (GAA) also known as "average goals against" or "AGA" is a statistic used in field hockey, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, and water polo that is the mean of goals allowed per game by a goaltender or goalkeeper (depending on s ...
; Sv% = Save percentage; SO = Shutout
In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball.
Shutouts are usuall ...
s''
Source
IIHF.com
/small>
Notes
References
External links
Official website
{{Authority control
2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...
1
IIHF World Championship
The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF; french: Fédération internationale de hockey sur glace; german: Internationale Eishockey-Föderation) is a worldwide Sport governing body, governing body for ice hockey. It is based in Zürich, Zur ...
2015 IIHF World Championship
IIHF World Championship
The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF; french: Fédération internationale de hockey sur glace; german: Internationale Eishockey-Föderation) is a worldwide Sport governing body, governing body for ice hockey. It is based in Zürich, Zur ...
2015 IIHF World Championship
2015 IIHF World Championship
IIHF World Championship
The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF; french: Fédération internationale de hockey sur glace; german: Internationale Eishockey-Föderation) is a worldwide Sport governing body, governing body for ice hockey. It is based in Zürich, Zur ...
IIHF World Championship
The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF; french: Fédération internationale de hockey sur glace; german: Internationale Eishockey-Föderation) is a worldwide Sport governing body, governing body for ice hockey. It is based in Zürich, Zur ...