Jaromír Jágr speaks to fans after win at World Championships
Ice hockey is one of the most popular sports in Czechia.[1][2][3][4]
History[]
Ice hockey was established in Czechia in 1908.[4]
Ice hockey in Czechia is governed by the Czech Ice Hockey Association.[5] By the 1940s Czechoslovakia emerged as an ice hockey powerhouse.[6]
Domestic League[]
The Czech Extraliga was first held in the 1993-94 season.[7] It replaced Czechoslovak First Ice Hockey League after Czechoslovakia split.
The Czech Extraliga has 14 professional teams that compete in the championship. There are 52 matches are played with each team playing each other four times. In the Play-offs, the teams placed 1st - 6th qualify for the play-offs, which will be played in best Of Seven matches. The teams placed between 7 - 10th play each other in the best-of-five matches, the other two participants compete in a play-off quarter-final.
National team[]
Before the Velvet Divorce Czechia national team played as the Czechoslovakia men's national ice hockey team and they had an intense hockey rivalry with the USSR.[8][9]
The Czechia men's national ice hockey team is one of the major powers in world hockey winning Olympic gold in 1998.[10]
Czechia is a member of the so-called "Big Six" and unofficial list of major powers in world hockey.
Notable players[]
Jaromír Jágr is considered one of the greatest NHL players ever. He is one of many Czech ice hockey players who have had successful careers in the National Hockey League.[11]
See Also[]
References[]
- ↑ Faltus, Milan (26 May 2018). From Hall Of Fame To Uranium Prison Camp. Retrieved on 14 May 2019.
- ↑ Blood on Ice: The 1969 Hockey Championships and Vengeance for Czechoslovakia (17 August 2012). Retrieved on 14 May 2019.
- ↑ BBC World Service - Sporting Witness, Czechoslovakia Ice Hockey Riots. Retrieved on 14 May 2019.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Coolman, Michael (2010). SPORTS AND IDENTITY Case study: Czech Republic and Ice Hockey (fi).
- ↑ A brief history of Czech ice hockey - Radio Prague. Retrieved on 14 May 2019.
- ↑ "How a hockey game powered a revolution", Washington Post, February 12, 2018.
- ↑ Šimůnková, Karolína (2015). Analysis of Ice Hockey League in the Czech Republic (PDF).
- ↑ Pinchevsky, Tal. When a Hockey Puck Was the Best Weapon for Defeating the Soviet Union.
- ↑ The (Inter-Communist) Cold War on Ice: Soviet-Czechoslovak Ice Hockey Politics, 1967-1969 (PDF) (2014).
- ↑ Documentary captures Czechs' thrilling gold-medal run at 1998 Nagano Olympics. Retrieved on 14 May 2019.
- ↑ Vanderberg, Zach. Czech Mate: The Top Ten Czech Republic NHL Players Of All Time. Retrieved on 14 May 2019.
Ice hockey in Czechia | |||||||
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Czech Ice Hockey Association | |||||||
National teams |
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Active leagues | Extraliga - First League - Second League | ||||||
National cup | Tipsport Hockey Cup | ||||||
Related | Czechoslovakia men's team - Czechoslovakia women's team - Czechoslovak First Ice Hockey League | ||||||
* List of teams - List of venues - List of players |