Belarus men's national ice hockey team

Belarus
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Bisons (Зубры / Zubry)
AssociationBelarusian Ice Hockey Association
Head coachCraig Woodcroft
AssistantsDmitri Karpikov
Mikhail Kravets
Vladimir Vorobiev
CaptainYegor Sharangovich
Most gamesOleg Romanov (193)
Top scorerOleg Antonenko (52)
Most pointsAlexei Kalyuzhny (125)
Team colors   
IIHF codeBLR
Ranking
Current IIHF16 Decrease 2 (27 May 2024)[1]
Highest IIHF8 (2009)
Lowest IIHF16 (2024)
First international
Ukraine  4–1  Belarus
(Minsk, Belarus; 7 November 1992)
Biggest win
Belarus  21–1  Lithuania
(Riga, Latvia; 30 August 1996)
Biggest defeat
Finland  11–2  Belarus
(Mikkeli, Finland; 7 April 1997)
Canada  11–2  Belarus
(Lloydminster, Canada; 19 March 1998)
Canada  9–0  Belarus
(Prague, Czech Republic; 14 May 2015)
Olympics
Appearances3 (first in 1998)
IIHF World Championships
Appearances27 (first in 1994)
Best result6th (2006)
International record (W–L–T)
249–237–25

The Belarusian men's national ice hockey team (Belarusian: Зборная Беларусі па хакеі з шайбай; Russian: Сборная Беларуси по хоккею с шайбой) is the national ice hockey team that represents Belarus. The team is controlled by the Belarusian Ice Hockey Association. Belarus was ranked 14th in the world by the IIHF as of the 2021 World Ranking.

The team achieved their best result at the Winter Olympics in the quarter-finals of the 2002 Winter Olympics where they beat Sweden and ultimately finished fourth. At the 2005 and 2006 World Championships their coach was Glen Hanlon, who brought their best-ever result in the IIHF World Championship – 6th place in 2006. He was succeeded by Curt Fraser, who led the team in 2007 and 2008. Hanlon returned to coach the team for the 2009 World Championships in Switzerland.

Due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the International Ice Hockey Federation banned all Belarusian national and club teams from its events indefinitely, and Hockey Canada banned Belarus's "participation in events held in Canada that do not fall under the IIHF’s jurisdiction."[2][3][4] In April 2022, the Federation banned Belarus from participating in the 2023 IIHF World Championship.[5] Despite the ban, the team participated in the 2023 Channel One Cup, alongside Russia and Kazakhstan.[6]

Tournament record

Finland vs. Belarus at the 2002 Winter Olympics.
Belarusian players in 2017.

Olympic Games

Games GP W OTW OTL L GF GA Place
1920–1988 Part of the  Soviet Union
1992 Part of the  Unified Team (EUN)
1994 Did not enter
Japan Nagano 1998 4 0 0 0 4 5 19 7th
United States Salt Lake City 2002 6 1 0 0 5 13 39 4th
2006 Did not qualify
Canada Vancouver 2010 4 1 0 1 2 10 15 9th
2014–2022 Did not qualify
2026 Banned

World Championship

Year Location Result
1993 Minsk,  Belarus Qualifying round for the Group C (3rd in Group 2)
1994 Poprad / Spišská Nová Ves,  Slovakia 22nd place (2nd in Group C1)
1995 Sofia,  Bulgaria 21st place (1st in Group C1, promoted)
1996 Eindhoven,  Netherlands 15th place (3rd in Group B)
1997 Katowice / Sosnowiec,  Poland 13th place (1st in Group B, promoted)
1998 Zürich / Basel,   Switzerland 8th place
1999 Oslo / Lillehammer / Hamar,  Norway 9th place
2000 Saint Petersburg,  Russia 9th place
2001 Cologne / Hanover / Nuremberg,  Germany 14th place (relegated)
2002 Eindhoven,  Netherlands 17th place (1st in D1A, promoted)
2003 Helsinki / Tampere / Turku,  Finland 14th place (relegated)
2004 Oslo,  Norway 18th place (1st in D1A, promoted)
2005 Innsbruck / Vienna,  Austria 10th place
2006 Riga,  Latvia 6th place
2007 Moscow / Mytishchi,  Russia 11th place
2008 Quebec City / Halifax,  Canada 9th place
2009 Bern / Kloten,   Switzerland 8th place
2010 Cologne / Mannheim / Gelsenkirchen,  Germany 10th place
2011 Bratislava / Košice,  Slovakia 14th place
2012 Helsinki / Stockholm,  Finland /  Sweden 14th place
2013 Stockholm / Helsinki,  Sweden /  Finland 14th place
2014 Minsk,  Belarus 7th place
2015 Prague / Ostrava,  Czech Republic 7th place
2016 Moscow / Saint Petersburg,  Russia 12th place
2017 Cologne / Paris,  Germany /  France 13th place
2018 Copenhagen / Herning,  Denmark 15th place (relegated)
2019 Nur-Sultan,  Kazakhstan 17th place (1st in D1A, promoted)
2020 Zürich / Lausanne,   Switzerland Cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic[7]
2021 Riga,  Latvia 15th place
2022 Helsinki / Tampere,  Finland Expelled due IIHF ban on the pretext of enabling of Russia's invasion of Ukraine[8]
2023 Tampere / Riga,  Finland /  Latvia Expelled due IIHF ban on the pretext of enabling of Russia's invasion of Ukraine[9]

Team

Current roster

Roster for the 2021 IIHF World Championship.[10]

Head coach: Mikhail Zakharov[11]

No. Pos. Name Height Weight Birthdate Team
2 D Ilya Solovyov 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in) 90 kg (200 lb) (2000-07-20) 20 July 2000 (age 24) Belarus Dinamo Minsk
7 D Stepan Falkovsky 2.05 m (6 ft 9 in) 112 kg (247 lb) (1996-12-18) 18 December 1996 (age 27) Belarus Dinamo Minsk
8 D Ilya Shinkevich 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 85 kg (187 lb) (1989-09-01) 1 September 1989 (age 35) Belarus Dinamo Minsk
9 F Stanislav Lopachuk 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) 78 kg (172 lb) (1992-02-16) 16 February 1992 (age 32) Belarus Yunost Minsk
10 D Nick Bailen 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in) 81 kg (179 lb) (1989-12-12) 12 December 1989 (age 34) Russia Traktor Chelyabinsk
12 F Aliaksei Protas 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 97 kg (214 lb) (2001-01-06) 6 January 2001 (age 23) United States Hershey Bears
13 F Mikhail Stefanovich 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) 95 kg (209 lb) (1989-11-27) 27 November 1989 (age 34) Ukraine Donbass Donetsk
14 D Yevgeni Lisovets 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) 86 kg (190 lb) (1994-11-12) 12 November 1994 (age 29) Russia Salavat Yulaev Ufa
15 F Artem Demkov 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in) 80 kg (180 lb) (1989-09-26) 26 September 1989 (age 35) Belarus Dinamo Minsk
16 F Geoff Platt – A 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in) 80 kg (180 lb) (1985-07-10) 10 July 1985 (age 39) Russia Salavat Yulaev Ufa
17 F Yegor Sharangovich – C 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) 92 kg (203 lb) (1998-06-06) 6 June 1998 (age 26) Canada Calgary Flames
18 D Kristian Khenkel – A 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) 88 kg (194 lb) (1995-11-07) 7 November 1995 (age 28) Russia Ak Bars Kazan
19 F Nikita Komarov 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 92 kg (203 lb) (1988-06-28) 28 June 1988 (age 36) Russia Avangard Omsk
21 F Vladislav Kodola 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in) 80 kg (180 lb) (1996-10-30) 30 October 1996 (age 28) Russia Severstal Cherepovets
22 F Francis Paré 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) 86 kg (190 lb) (1987-06-30) 30 June 1987 (age 37) Belarus Dinamo Minsk
30 G Konstantin Shostak 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in) 81 kg (179 lb) (2000-03-28) 28 March 2000 (age 24) Russia Severstal Cherepovets
31 G Danny Taylor 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) 85 kg (187 lb) (1986-04-28) 28 April 1986 (age 38) Belarus Dinamo Minsk
40 G Alexei Kolosov 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) 85 kg (187 lb) (2002-01-04) 4 January 2002 (age 22) Belarus Dinamo Minsk
73 D Dmitri Znakharenko 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) 91 kg (201 lb) (1993-08-04) 4 August 1993 (age 31) Belarus Dinamo Minsk
74 F Sergei Kostitsyn 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) 88 kg (194 lb) (1987-03-20) 20 March 1987 (age 37) Slovakia Bratislava Capitals
81 F Sergei Drozd 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) 79 kg (174 lb) (1990-04-14) 14 April 1990 (age 34) Belarus Yunost Minsk
85 D Andrei Antonov 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) 85 kg (187 lb) (1985-04-27) 27 April 1985 (age 39) Belarus Yunost Minsk
88 F German Nesterov 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) 95 kg (209 lb) (1991-08-31) 31 August 1991 (age 33) Belarus HK Gomel
89 D Dmitry Korobov 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in) 108 kg (238 lb) (1989-03-12) 12 March 1989 (age 35) Russia Salavat Yulaev Ufa
90 F Danila Klimovich 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 85 kg (187 lb) (2003-01-09) 9 January 2003 (age 21) Belarus Minskie Zubry
92 F Shane Prince 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) 85 kg (187 lb) (1992-11-16) 16 November 1992 (age 31) Russia Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg
93 F Andrei Belevich 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 95 kg (209 lb) (1997-08-27) 27 August 1997 (age 27) Belarus Dinamo Minsk
94 D Vladislav Yeryomenko 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) 90 kg (200 lb) (1999-04-23) 23 April 1999 (age 25) Belarus Dinamo Minsk

Retired numbers

All-time record

As of 7 May 2023.[12]
Opponent Played Won Drawn Lost GF GA GD
 Austria 22 16 1 5 83 49 +34
 Belgium 1 1 0 0 10 0 +10
 Bulgaria 1 1 0 0 13 1 +12
 Canada 19 1 1 17 27 111 -84
 Croatia 3 3 0 0 20 3 +17
 Czech Republic 17 1 0 16 21 72 −51
 Denmark 29 14 2 13 90 72 +18
 Estonia 3 3 0 0 31 4 +27
 Finland 18 2 0 16 25 71 −46
 France 32 22 1 9 101 59 +42
 Germany 29 16 2 11 80 73 +7
 Great Britain 6 4 0 2 32 17 +15
 Hungary 15 13 1 1 75 27 +48
 Italy 6 5 0 1 22 10 +12
 Japan 7 5 1 1 27 14 +13
 Kazakhstan 20 15 1 4 72 41 +31
 Latvia 40 18 3 19 99 106 -7
 Lithuania 4 4 0 0 35 7 +28
 Netherlands 4 4 0 0 35 10 +25
 Norway 39 23 4 12 114 91 +23
 Poland 17 13 0 4 77 38 +39
 Romania 1 1 0 0 5 3 +2
 Russia 23 3 1 19 42 90 −48
 Slovakia 37 12 1 24 72 107 -35
 Slovenia 24 17 0 7 83 60 +23
 South Korea 3 2 0 1 19 10 +9
 Sweden 17 2 0 15 28 63 −35
  Switzerland 40 13 1 26 77 119 -42
 Ukraine 25 14 5 6 90 49 +41
 United States 9 1 0 8 18 42 −24
Total 511 249 25 237 1 524 1 422 +102

Uniform evolution

  • National team jerseys
  • From 1993 to 1995, the Reebok-made jersey featured the Pahonia coat of arms[9]
    From 1993 to 1995, the Reebok-made jersey featured the Pahonia coat of arms[13]
  • IIHF jerseys 1998–2000
    IIHF jerseys 1998–2000
  • former IIHF jerseys
    former IIHF jerseys
  • 2014–2017 IIHF jerseys
    2014–2017 IIHF jerseys
  • 2017–2021 IIHF jerseys
    2017–2021 IIHF jerseys
  • 2021– IIHF jerseys
    2021– IIHF jerseys

References

  1. ^ "IIHF Men's World Ranking". IIHF. 27 May 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  2. ^ "IIHF suspends Russia and Belarus from international play amid Ukraine invasion - Sportsnet.ca". sportsnet.ca.
  3. ^ "Ice Hockey Federation bans Russia and Belarus from all competition, strips Russia of 2023 World Juniors". infobae.
  4. ^ "Russia, Belarus Suspended From International Soccer, Hockey Over Ukraine Attacks". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty.
  5. ^ "Russia and Belarus barred from 2023 IIHF World Championship". insidethegames.biz. 28 May 2022.
  6. ^ "Официальный сайт Кубка Первого канала по хоккею 2022" (in Russian). Archived from the original on 11 December 2022.
  7. ^ Steiss, Adam. "2020 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship cancelled". IIHF. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
  8. ^ "IIHF Council takes definitive action over Russia, Belarus". IIHF. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
  9. ^ "IIHF Council takes definitive action over Russia, Belarus". IIHF. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
  10. ^ "Хоккеисты сборной Беларуси определились с игровыми номерами" (in Russian). hockey.by. 18 May 2021.
  11. ^ "Team Roster Belarus" (PDF). IIHF. 21 May 2021.
  12. ^ "Ice Hockey in Belarus". National Teams of Ice Hockey. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
  13. ^ Масловский, Андрей (13 February 2020). "У сборной Беларуси по хоккею была шикарная форма с «Погоней»: дизайн придумал Бережков, благодаря Захарову есть фото (его сразу послали Лукашенко)" [The Belarus hockey team had a stylish jersey with the Pahonia: Berezhkou created the design and there's a picture thanks to Zakharau]. by.tribuna.com (in Russian). Retrieved 2 July 2023.
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