Pavol Demitra lead the 2010 Olympics in scoring with 10 points. (3 goals and 7 assists). More importantly than his stats was the way Demitra played. He was dominant in every game, and in my mind, clearly the best player in the tournament.
….an aside on Pavol Demitra
During the 2010 Olympics I remember being completely inspired by Demitra’s play. He carried Slovakia on his back and nearly lead them to an upset of Canada in the Semi-Finals. That semi-final game in Vancouver is one of the best hockey games I have ever seen. Never before had I seen an athlete truly give everything he had for his country quite like Demitra did that night in 2010.
Tragically, Pavol Demitra was a victim in one of sport’s greatest tragedies, less than two years later. He along with all of his Locomotiv Yaroslavl teammates and coaches died in a plane crash en route to their first game of the season on September 7th, 2011.
Other notable names of the 44 victims who perished alongside Demitra in this unthinkable tragedy were: Karel Rachunek, Ruslan Salei, Karlis Skrastins, Josef Vasicek, as well as coaches Igor Koralev and Brad McCrimmon.
Team Slovakia: Performance History in Best-on-Best Tournaments
Following the break-up of Czechoslovakia, the International Ice Hockey Federation incorrectly assigned Slovakia to the World’s 3rd Division, and placed the new Czech Republic in the World’s top Division.
As part of the political arrangement to separate the country into 2 distinct nations, it was negotiated that the Czech Republic would keep Czechoslovakia’s sporting history. This political decision had a critical affect on how the hockey world perceived Slovakia, and lead to a series of injustices that have dramatically tainted the way hockey fans should view this elite hockey nation. In reality, Slovaks were always a big part of the Czechoslovakian national teams.
The following is how Slovakia’s Men’s National Team has performed since becoming an independent nation in the 3 most important tournaments. At the highest level of best-on-best competition are the Winter Olympics. Second, there have been 3 World Cups of Hockey since Slovakia became an independent country. Thirdly, the annual IIHF World Championships are known as a semi-best-on-best tournament.
*The World Championships are strange because they run at the same time of year as the NHL’s playoffs. Most of the World’s best players represent their countries, as long as they are not involved in the NHL’s playoffs. Often times, players eliminated from the NHL Playoffs will go join their National Teams mid-tournament.
|
Winter Olympics |
Slovakia’s Final Result |
Information/ Context |
|
1994 (Norway) |
6th Place |
Made IIHF debut. *Had to win a qualification tournament to get 12th and final spot. Finished ahead of USA. |
|
1998 (Japan) |
*10th Place/ DNQ* |
*Only nation comprised of NHL players forced to play in a preliminary tournament without their real team. DNQ for real tournament. |
|
2002 (United States) |
*13th Place/ DNQ* |
*Only nation comprised of NHL players forced to play in a preliminary tournament without their real team. DNQ for real tournament. *Won the 2002 World Championships a few months later. |
|
2006 (Italy) |
5th Place |
Entered Olympics ranked #3 in the world. Went 5-0 in the group stage. |
|
2010 (Canada) |
4th Place |
Narrowly lost 3-2 to Canada in the Semi-Finals. Lost 5-3 to Finland in the Bronze Medal Game. |
|
2014 (Russia) |
9th Place |
|
|
World Cup of Hockey |
Slovakia’s Final Result |
Information/ Context |
|
1996 (Canada/ U.S.A/ Europe) |
7th Place |
Finished ahead of the Czech Republic. |
|
2004 (Canada/ U.S.A./ Europe) |
7th Place |
|
|
2016 (Canada) |
2nd Place – Silver Medal* |
*Formed the nucleus of the new Team Europe. Comprised 40-45% of the team. Scored 8 of the team’s 12 goals and Jaroslav Halak was the only goalie to play for Europe. |
|
IIHF World Championships |
Slovakia’s Final Result |
Information/ Context |
|
1994 |
Win Group C1 |
Went undefeated. Promoted to Group B for 1995 |
|
1995 |
Win Group B |
Went undefeated. Promoted to Group A for 1996 |
|
1996 |
10th Place |
|
|
1997 |
9th Place |
|
|
1998 |
7th Place |
Finished ahead of the USA. |
|
1999 |
7th Place |
|
|
2000 |
2nd Place |
SILVER MEDAL |
|
2001 |
7th Place |
|
|
2002 |
1st Place- World Champions |
GOLD MEDAL *Were not permitted to bring real team (of NHL players) to the Olympics a few months earlier. |
|
2003 |
3rd Place |
BRONZE MEDAL |
|
2004 |
4th Place |
Narrowly lost to Canada 2-1 in the Semi-Final. Narrowly lost 1-0 to the USA in the Bronze Medal Game. |
|
2005 |
5th Place |
|
|
2006 |
8th place |
|
|
2007 |
6th Place |
Finished ahead of the Czech Republic. |
|
2008 |
13th Place |
|
|
2009 |
10th Place |
|
|
2010 |
12th Place |
|
|
2011 |
10th Place |
|
|
2012 |
2nd Place |
SILVER MEDAL |
|
2013 |
8th Place |
|
|
2014 |
9th Place |
|
|
2015 |
9th Place |
|
|
2016 |
9th Place |
|
Slovakia’s performance history shows without any doubt that there is major gap between themselves and the 8th best hockey nation during the modern era. Switzerland, Germany, and the other smaller hockey nations have not had a fraction of the major success the Slovakians have achieved.
Slovakia has produced a multitude of elite NHL players over the years, and most importantly; always has a chance to win when they play any of the Big Six nations. Over the years, Slovakia has achieved many best-on-best victories over Finland, Sweden, Russia, Czech Republic, and the USA.
It’s long overdue that the hockey universe alters its perception of the existence of a ‘Super Six’, and acknowledges that Slovakia belongs in international hockey’s ‘Super Seven’.
