Release from 21.05.2026

ICE ranks second behind NHL in players at World Championship

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The Ice Hockey World Championship in Switzerland is in full swing. Crucial days lie ahead for the four league nations Austria, Hungary, Slovenia, and Italy. A total of 65 players from the win2day ICE Hockey League are competing in the tournament in Fribourg and Zurich — only the NHL has more representatives.

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Currently, 80 players from the world’s top league are taking part in the World Championship in Switzerland. With 65 players, the win2day ICE Hockey League provides the second-highest number of participants. The majority of them represent the league nations Austria, Hungary, Slovenia, and Italy, all of whom are battling for key points in the coming days.



Three wins already for Austria
Austria got off to a flying start, winning its first three games at a top-division World Championship for the first time in history. With nine points from four games, the ÖEHV team currently sits third in Group A and is in a strong position to reach the quarterfinals again. A highly anticipated clash with Germany awaits on Saturday evening in Zurich. Thimo Nickl (KAC) and Peter Schneider (Salzburg) lead the team’s scoring with five points each.

Hungary may have narrowly lost the league-internal matchup against Austria, but responded with a convincing 5–0 victory over Great Britain, likely securing their place in the top division. István Terbócs (Fehérvár) and Krisztián Nagy (FTC-Telekom) both scored twice, while Budapest goalie Bence Bálizs recorded a shutout. Hungary faces Germany on Friday.

Slovenia the surprise package
In Group B in Fribourg, Slovenia has been one of the standout teams so far. They opened with an overtime win against Czechia and also picked up a point against Slovakia. Six of Slovenia’s seven goals so far have been scored by players from the win2day ICE Hockey League, with Pustertal’s Rok Tičar currently on five points. Slovenia will face record world champions Canada on Friday, followed by a crucial matchup with Denmark on Saturday, who currently sit seventh without a point. The final group game will see the league nations Slovenia and Italy go head-to-head.

Italy remains without a point after four games and sits at the bottom of the standings. On Wednesday, however, the blue Team came close to a major upset: after a goal by Pustertal’s Nick Saracino, they led Czechia 1–0 for a long stretch before ultimately falling 1–3. Italy will take on Sweden on Saturday, followed by a key game against Denmark on Sunday.