The IIHF has today launched its first ever online auction of limited edition national team jerseys, each one to be worn and signed by one of the members of the 2013 induction class to the IIHF Hall of Fame.

The auction is being conducted through Ebay.com, with all the proceeds going to charity. Fans can view each individual bid item by clicking the links below:  

Peter Forsberg

Danielle Goyette

Paul Henderson

Teppo Numminen

Mats Sundin

You can also view the each item on the IIHF website along with a description of the respective inductee member by clicking here and then selecting the name in the Player Category.

These special commemorative jerseys will be autographed and worn by the five Player inductees (Forsberg, Goyette, Henderson, Numminen, and Sundin) during the induction ceremony.

Each jersey will have a special IIHF Hall of Fame patch with the name of the player, the IIHF Hall of Fame logo, and the date and place of the induction ceremony sewn into the right breast. These special patched jerseys are one-of-a-kind and custom-made just for the occasion.  

In the days leading up to the induction ceremony, the jerseys will be up for auction on Ebay.com.

The auction kicks off Saturday, 11 May at 23:59 (CET) and ends on Tuesday, 21 May at 23:59 (CET).

All of the proceeds from the winning bid will go to the respective player's charity or organization of choice:

Peter Forsberg:      Icebreakers

Danielle Goyette:   Ronald Mcdonald House

Paul Henderson:    Lucknow Minor Hockey Association

Teppo Numminen:  SOS-Childrens Village

Mats Sundin:          Karolinska Hospital

For any issues/technical problems with the auction, please contact office@iihf.com

STOCKHOLM – Sweden advanced to Sunday’s gold medal game with a 3-0 semi-final win over Nordic archrival Finland. The top line clicked nicely as Loui Eriksson scored twice on the power play, with the Sedin brothers assisting on both goals.

Henrik Sedin added an empty-netter in the final minute.

Videos: Highlights, Post-Game Interviews

"I’m really glad that we’re in the final now," said Swedish coach Pär Mårts. "We had a tough opponent. Finland has a defensively well-organized team. It’s hard to beat them, but we found a way. We played a good game, but we need to play better and we can play better.

The Swedes must now prepare to face the winner of the Switzerland-U.S. semi-final. Finland will take on the loser of that game for bronze.

Since arriving to play against Denmark in Sweden’s last round-robin game, the Sedins have been involved in two or more goals in each of their team's games.

"Now we have a power play that is really dangerous," said Sweden's Henrik Tallinder. "We did not have that before the twins showed up."

The Swedes haven’t won World Championship gold since defeating the Czechs 4-0 in the 2006 final. Finland’s last title came in 2011 with a 6-1 romp over Sweden.

Swedish netminder Jhonas Enroth managed to outduel his Finnish counterpart Antti Raanta en route to his second shutout of the tournament. Final shots favoured Sweden 31-30.

"Jhonas is playing great," said Sweden's Simon Hjalmarsson. "He's stopping all of the first shots. We just have to clear the rebounds for him."

"The biggest thing today is that we didn't score," said Finland's Marko Anttila. "We can't win if we can't score. They were better today."

After scoring 27 times in its first eight games, Finland saw its offence dry up at a very inconvenient time.

Finland’s Petri Kontiola entered the game as the tournament points leader (15), but his only contribution on the scoresheet here was a pair of minor penalties.

The teams got two power plays apiece in the evenly played first period, but only Tre Kronor managed to capitalize.

Sweden got its second man advantage when Ilari Melart was sent off at 9:40 for cross-checking Fredrik Pettersson deep in the Finnish end.

Fifty-three seconds later, the Swedes drew first blood when Henrik Sedin’s soft flip shot from the bottom of the right faceoff circle bounced off a screening Eriksson’s right leg and in.

Finland’s best chance of the opening frame went to assistant captain Niklas Hagman, who missed a great opportunity next to Enroth’s right post.

The Swedes went right back to the power play in the first minute of the second, with Kontiola hauling down Henrik Sedin. Midway through the second, Finland briefly carried the play, but Enroth was equal to the task whenever the blue-and-white team tested him from long range.

With under five minutes left in the second period, Kontiola went off again for holding with the Swedes pressing offensively. The Sedin line came through again.

Playing behind the net in Wayne Gretkzy-like fashion, Henrik Sedin stepped up to the goal line and sent a beautiful centering pass to Eriksson, who beat Raanta high to the blocker side for a 2-0 lead at 16:13.

"The Sedins are the difference," said Mårts. "They’re great on the power play. They mean so much for us and gave our team self-confidence the way they played."

The Swedes protected their lead in the third period, even though the Finns picked up their tempo. The crowd chanted "Enroth!", clapping rhythmically.

The Finns pulled Raanta for a sixth attacker with under two minutes left, but it was to no avail.

"I think we played pretty well today," said Finnish coach Jukka Jalonen. "We had the same amount of scoring chances, but we didn’t put the puck into the net and if you don’t score you don’t win. Sweden was very efficient on the power play. That made a big difference."

Swedish defenceman Alexander Edler missed this game, as he is suspended until the end of the tournament for an illegal hit on Canada’s Eric Staal in the quarter-final.

International hockey legends like Sweden’s Peter Forsberg, Mats Sundin, Nicklas Lidström and former Russian national team coach Viktor Tikhonov were in attendance. Periodically, Russian fans chanted "Rossiya!" as if it would somehow magically conjure up their team on the ice. The Russians fell 8-3 to the U.S. in the quarter-finals.

Finland’s three best players of the tournament were named: Antti Raanta, Sami Lepistö, and Petri Kontiola. For Sweden, it was Jhonas Enroth, Daniel Sedin, and Henrik Sedin.

Sweden holds a solid overall head-to-head advantage versus Finland at the Worlds (37-12-15).

LUCAS AYKROYD

STOCKHOLM – Switzerland’s status as a top hockey nation is historically a rather short one. But the men’s national team collected seven World Championship and two Olympic medals among other international success stories.

As a founding member of the International Ice Hockey Federation in 1908, Switzerland can look back at a long history in hockey before the game was played in countries such as Finland and Russia.

The aforementioned medals were all claimed in the old days with black-and-white pictures and hockey still played in fresh air. The first medals were awarded at the 1928 Olympic Winter Games on home ice in the mountain resort of St. Moritz and for the last time when the 1953 Worlds ended in Basel.

A few years later, team sports came to a standstill in Switzerland. During three decades the national team mostly played in lower divisions. It was similar with the football national team, now a regular World Cup and Euro participant, which was away for 28 years. The reason was that the country’s two favourite team sports remained amateur sports in Switzerland until the 1980s despite their popularity. Since then, Switzerland has caught up and now produces some world-class talent.

Let’s have a look at some of Switzerland’s best moments in international men’s ice hockey.

European champion in Davos 1926

Switzerland was among the first nations to play international games. With the limited number of nations participating, that also meant they were one of the top nations. In the 6th IIHF European Championship in 1922, the Swiss won their first medal, a bronze, on home ice, in St. Moritz. They repeated the placing in Italy in 1924 and in Czechoslovakia in 1925.

In 1926 the Swiss hosted the European Championship – which was a stand-alone event from 1910 to 1932 – for the third time. As long as the event may date back, as surprising was the gold medal since the Swiss had a terrible record in international competition before: 1W-2T-19L. It took 14 years to get the first victory in IIHF hockey, at the 1924 IIHF European Championship, 12-0 vs. Spain.

In 1926 the team’s fortunes changed. The Swiss managed to beat the top European hockey nations of that time including Czechoslovakia, Great Britain, and Austria to claim gold. Heinrich Meng of local HC Davos (12 goals) and Louis Dufour of HC Rosey Gstaad (11) were the stars of the first Swiss moment of glory.

Olympic medal premier in St. Moritz 1928

It was the third international tournament with the world’s top hockey nations, and for the first time the event was hosted in Switzerland. Two years after being crowned European champion the Swiss again made use of their home-ice advantage, just a few kilometres from Davos in St. Moritz.

It was tight and competitive clashes that brought the Swiss to the podium. The host nation tied Austria 4-4 and defeated Germany 1-0 to win their preliminary-round group.

In the final round they started with a 4-0 victory against Great Britain, but in their second game they lost to Sweden by the same score. Thanks to the victory Sweden won its first medal, silver, while the Swiss had to settle with bronze after losing to eventual winner Canada, represented by the University of Toronto Graduates, 13-0. But the upside was that the Swiss won their first “global” medal.

Silver at 1935 Worlds

The next big highlight for Switzerland came seven years later. Again it was a tournament where they seemed to make perfect use of the mountain air in the Grisons, this time at the 1935 World Championship in Davos with 14 participants.

The Swiss topped their group with Sweden (6-1 win), Hungary (1-1) and the Netherlands (4-0). They also won the secondary-round group where they played Austria (1-1), France (5-1) and Great Britain (1-0) to make the “Final Four”.

The Swiss took over their points from the win against Great Britain and swept Czechoslovakia, 4-0.

In their last game against Canada, represented by the Winnipeg Monarchs, the Swiss had the chance to claim gold. Despite missing some of their top players for the last game due to flu, they were surprisingly close. In front of 5,000 fans at the full open-air rink, Canada defeated the Swiss, 4-2.

The 1930s were the birth of the most successful offensive line in Swiss hockey history. The “ni-line” with Richard “Bibi” Torriani and the Cattini brothers, Ferdinand and Hans, all played for the local HC Davos team and were later inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame. During this era the Swiss won six medals at Worlds and Olympics.

Seven wins at 1939 Worlds

It was Switzerland’s winningest World Championship campaign until 2013. The Swiss played ten games and had a 7-1-2 record to claim the bronze medal.

Again the success was celebrated on home ice but this time not in the thin mountain air but at the big open ice rinks in Zurich and Basel, the biggest cities in the German-speaking area of the country.

Switzerland swept its group in Zurich without conceding a single goal against Latvia (12-0), Yugoslavia (23-0) and Czechoslovakia (1-0).

In the secondary round in Basel the winning streak continued against Poland (4-0), the United States (3-2) and Hungary (5-2).

The streak ended in the final round when Switzerland faced Canada, represented by the Trail Smoke Eaters, and lost 7-0. The home team also lost its second game against Team USA, 2-1.

The last game against Czechoslovakia became virtually a bronze medal game. But nobody scored, neither after 60 minutes nor after three overtime periods. It ended with a 0-0 tie.

Three weeks later, it was decided to play a rematch. Czechoslovakia travelled back to Basel. In front of 15,000 fans at the classic outdoor St. Margarethen rink, which still exists not far from the central station, Switzerland won 2-0 for their fifth medal and third European Championship.

Second Olympic bronze in St. Moritz 1948

Switzerland hosted the Olympic Winter Games twice – and both times it won the bronze medal at high altitude.

This time the team captained by Torriani for the last time in his career was even more impressive. The 6-2 record was one of the best tournaments until this year.

It was the first Winter Olympics in 12 years and the first after World War II. And for the first time the athletes were represented at the opening ceremony by and ice hockey player, national hero Torriani.

The Swiss started with six straight victories against the U.S. (5-4), Italy (16-0), Austria (11-2), Great Britain (12-3), Sweden (8-2) and Poland (14-0) before falling to Czechoslovakia (7-1) and Canada (3-0). In this nine-team round robin tournament it meant bronze for Switzerland.

Last bronze, in 1953, a breeze for Swiss

In 1953 the Swiss men’s national team won its last medal in a World Championship or Olympic tournament before falling down the ranking and to lower divisions in the years to come.

It was the second World Championship hosted in Zurich – this time at the indoor arena Hallenstadion – and Basel. It was one of the more unusual tournaments. Due to conflicts Canada and the U.S. didn’t send a team in 1953. The Soviet Union was thinking about playing their first IIHF tournament but waited until 1954.

As a result, the World Championship consistent of only four teams in the top division and five teams who played a Group B on their own.

By the records it wasn’t a successful tournament for the Swiss. In five games Switzerland had only one win, 3-2 against West Germany. But the Czechoslovak team travelled home during the tournament following the news about the death of the country’s President Klement Gottwald. Therefore their games were nullified and Switzerland was awarded the bronze medals as third-ranked team.

Switzerland’s “Prague Spring”, 1992

After several years in lower divisions, Switzerland made it to the top division of the World Championship in 1987 for one year and came back in 1991.

The team, coached by Bill Gilligan and John Slettvoll, was not considered a top team, by far not, when they travelled to the 1992 World Championship in Czechoslovakia. The World Championship was just extended from eight to 12 participants playing in two groups.

In their first three games in Bratislava, Switzerland earned ties against powerhouses Russia (2-2) and Canada (1-1) before defeating France 6-5. After beating Norway in Prague 3-1 and losing 2-0 to Czechoslovakia, the Swiss ended the group in third place.

It was the first generation of professional Swiss players that succeeded such as captain and scoring leader Jörg Eberle, long-time national team goalies Renato Tosio and Reto Pavoni, and forward Felix Hollenstein, whose son Denis plays here in Stockholm.

In the quarter-finals Switzerland faced archrival Germany, which also had a strong preliminary round, and won the game 3-1. The medal dreams ended with a 4-1 loss to Sweden in the semi-finals. Czechoslovakia defeated Switzerland 5-2 in the bronze-medal game.

But the fourth-place finish was a sensation for Switzerland where it was called the “Prague Spring” – a term than anywhere else refers to the Czechoslovak reformation processes in 1968 that were stopped by the occupation of Soviet troops.

With the same coaching duo the Swiss finished in last place one year later and were relegated same as in 1995 when they came back for one year. But the future would become brighter for Swiss hockey.

Krueger’s Miracle of Basel, 1998

Thanks to the extension of the World Championship from 12 to 16 teams, Switzerland, seeded only 15th, made it to the 1998 World Championship – on top of the fact that the team was set anyway since the country hosted the event in Zurich and Basel.

Switzerland hired a new coach, Ralph Krueger, and the expectations were rather modest after years of struggle. Nobody could have thought that Krueger would stay for 13 years and lead Switzerland to a fourth-place finish in his first try.

The high placing also included some luck. In a format that looked almost tailor-made for Switzerland’s scores, the host nation just needed two wins and one tie in six games to make the semi-finals.

In the first round in Zurich the Swiss started with losses against Team USA (5-2) and Sweden (4-2). Because the Americans surprisingly lost to France for the first time in World Championship history, Switzerland still had the chance to claim second place in the group in a three-team tie but it needed to win by a margin of at least four goals in the last game against France.

The Swiss got a 4-1 lead with 3:13 left in regulation time and France desperately needed to score a goal to keep their chances for a better placing alive. They pulled the goalie in the last few minutes and Marcel Jenni, who had already scored the fourth goal, shot the puck into the empty net. The red-and-white team got the 5-1 win it needed and would travel to Basel next morning to play Russia.

The Swiss capitalized on the momentum, and despite the tight timing the organizers didn’t have issues to sell out the arena for the three Switzerland games of the secondary round.

One day after their lucky advancing against France, the Swiss had an impressively efficient game against Russia. The Swiss got an unbelievable 4-0 lead and eventually earned a 4-2 victory. It was the first win against the Russians/Soviets in the 13th game at the Olympic Games and World Championships. The Swiss continued with a 3-1 loss to the Czech Republic and a 1-1 tie against Slovakia. Again it was barely enough for second place and a berth in the semi-finals.

As it was six years earlier, the Swiss lost in the semis to Sweden and saw the Czechs taking bronze. The Swiss repeated their upset against Russia two years later when the Worlds were hosted on the opponent’s ice in St. Petersburg.

After 82 years: Swiss stun Canada in Turin 2006

When Switzerland played the first official game against Canada at the 1924 Olympics the players were taught a lesson. They were steamrollered, 33-0, by an amateur team representing Canada, the Toronto Granites.

Some 82 years later Switzerland played against the best possible Canadian team composed of NHL stars. That was in the 2006 Olympic Winter Games in Turin, Italy.

The Swiss didn’t manage to beat Canadian teams with weaker lineups for 82 years in an Olympic or World Championship game but in Turin the Swiss reached a milestone.

Martin Gerber, who has also had a strong tournament here in Stockholm, earned a shutout with 49 saves while Canada-born Paul DiPietro, who still plays in Switzerland at age 42, scored a pair of goals for Switzerland’s 2-0 victory.

The Swiss also upset the Czech Republic, 3-2, and ended the Olympic tournament in sixth place. Four years later, Switzerland earned its first-ever win against Canada at a World Championship too.

Zurich beats giants Chicago and Metallurg, 2009

While stakeholders in Europe are sitting together to revive a top-notch European club competition, Switzerland’s ZSC Lions Zurich has remained as the last European club champion after winning the Champions Hockey League in 2009.

In the preliminary round the Swiss champion earned two wins against Sweden’s Linköpings HC and had a 1-1 record against Slavia Prague from the Czech Republic to win its group and make it to the semi-finals where they eliminated Finland’s Espoo Blues with two wins, 6-3 and 4-1.

Coached by now-national team coach Sean Simpson, the successful campaign peaked in the home-and-away finals against Russian giant and defending European club champion Metallurg Magnitogorsk.

In the first leg in the Russian steel city, the visiting team silenced the crowd with two first-period goals. Metallurg came back and the game ended in a 2-2 tie.

Everything was open for the second game in Switzerland but this time Simpson’s team played perfect hockey from the first to the last second and swept Magnitogorsk 5-0 for the biggest international success ever by a Swiss club team.

A few months later, the ZSC Lions Zurich represented Europe in the Victoria Cup where the team captained by Mathias Seger defeated eventual Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks 2-1.

Streak of Stockholm, 2013

Switzerland broke many of its past records at the 2013 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship. A streak of eight consecutive victories made Switzerland the top-seeded team in their group going into the final round for the first time ever.

And, after edging the Czechs 2-1 in the quarter-finals, the Swiss made it to the semi-finals for the first time since 1998. Will the undefeated Swiss be able to play in a gold medal game for the first time ever or at least to end their medal drought? Soon we will know.

Note: While the Swiss men’s national team has been waiting for a medal for decades, the country did win some world championship medals in other categories in the last 15 years with the U20 (bronze 1998), U18 (silver 2001) and women’s national teams (bronze 2012).

MARTIN MERK

STOCKHOLM – Playing in a hockey-mad city like Vancouver, Daniel and Henrik Sedin are accustomed to facing daily pressure. Can these two former NHL scoring champions help Sweden end the infamous “home ice curse” of the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship?

The 32-year-old brothers have represented their native land many times before, and they didn’t hesitate when asked to come to Stockholm as late roster additions.

But what makes 2013 particularly intriguing is that this is arguably the first case where the two Vancouver Canucks superstars are unequivocally expected to lead the national team to victory.

Thursday’s 3-2 quarter-final win over an offensively stacked Canadian roster revealed both the beauty and the beast of the Sedins’ game. Their savvy passing led to Tre Kronor’s two power play goals in regulation time. Yet when their names were called during the shootout, neither was able to solve Canadian goalie Mike Smith, leaving Fredrik Pettersson to play the hero for Sweden.

The Sedins’ effectiveness is usually based more on a process of gathering points, simply doing what they do, rather than on stepping up in key moments. Will they step up to get their team past archrival Finland in the semi-finals and go for gold at the Globen?

No host team has won this tournament since the Soviet Union did it in Moscow in 1986. Back then, the red-haired twins were just five years old.

They’ve accomplished a ton of things in the years since with their unique brand of intuitive playmaking.

They made their mark on the NHL record books by becoming the first brothers to win the Art Ross Trophy as NHL scoring kings. Henrik potted 112 points in 2009-10 and Daniel had 104 the following season. Henrik also got the Hart Trophy as league MVP in 2010, and his ironman streak of 629 consecutive regular season games is second only to that of Jay Bouwmeester (635).

Internationally, they chipped in four points apiece in eight games when Tre Kronor marched to gold at the 2006 Olympics in Turin, Italy.

But they’ve also faced a ton of criticism – some of it justified, some of it not. The Sedins were ineffective when the Canucks lost to the Boston Bruins in seven games in the 2011 Stanley Cup final. Daniel recorded a goal and three assists, while Henrik was limited to a single goal. Since then, their club has suffered first-round exits against the Los Angeles Kings (2012) and San Jose Sharks (2013).

The twins also didn’t shine on home ice in the 2010 Olympics, where Sweden exited in the quarter-finals against Slovakia. There were, of course, plenty of other stars who shared responsibility there, such as Nicklas Lidström, Henrik Zetterberg, and Nicklas Backström.

So far, the Sedins have only garnered a little hardware from the Worlds: a pair of bronze medals in 1999 and 2001. They’ve come a long way in terms of strength, speed, maturity, and accomplishments since those days.

So coming through in two must-win games against Finland and the winner of the U.S.-Switzerland semi-final would do much to enhance their image as clutch performers. Conversely, allowing themselves to be outmuscled or whiffing on glorious scoring opportunities will not do them any favours.

Swedish fans need something to cheer about – they haven’t won gold at this tournament since 2006, and the sting of losing 6-1 to Finland in the 2011 final remains fresh.

And with due respect to Loui Eriksson and Gabriel Landeskog, this isn’t the deepest or most talented Swedish team we’ve seen at the Worlds in recent years. That makes it all the more urgent for Daniel and Henrik Sedin to outduel the likes of Petri Kontiola and Juhamatti Aaltonen – a mission that they should be capable of accomplishing.

LUCAS AYKROYD

STOCKHOLM – Rob Zamuner flew into town a few days ago as part of the NHLPA contingent which more or less hammered out a framework for participation of the NHL in Sochi next February. It provided occasion for him to reflect on a life in hockey that has been both successful and varied.

Drafted 45th overall by the Rangers in 1987, Zamuner continued to play in the OHL with Guelph until 1989. He was never a top prospect and got to the NHL through determination and hard work. He started in the IHL, moved up to the AHL, and made his NHL debut in 1992. That summer, he signed with Tampa Bay as a free agent and developed into a fine two-way player, capable offensively but also highly respected for his defensive play.

Zamuner stayed with the Lightning for seven years, and it was during this period that he had his international success as well, starting with Canada’s World Championship team which won gold in 1997.

“It was in Helsinki,” he started, before adding with a chuckle, “and it’s a nauseating cliché, but playing for your country in a great honour. At the beginning of the tournament, the Swedes pounded us; it was an eye-opener. You kind of have the attitude that you play in the NHL and that’s the be all and end all. The guys came together and we ended up winning the tournament, but it’s a very difficult tournament. Until you play in it, you don’t realize the skill level of the teams and the players. With no disrespect, you don’t know the names on their jerseys, but you quickly find out there are a lot of really good players from around the globe.”

His reputation as a two-way player, and his success at the Worlds, was enough for general manager Bob Clarke to name Zamuner to Canada’s Olympic team for Nagano 1998. It was a decision that sparked much dialogue because clearly Zamuner wasn’t one of the nation’s best players in terms of offence or skill, but within the role Clarke had in mind for him, there were few better options.

Zamuner scored one goal in Nagano, a beautiful re-direction of a sensational Wayne Gretzky pass in the team’s 4-1 win over the United States.

“Anybody could have scored that goal! I had taken a penalty the shift before, and I was watching from the box as Patrick Roy made I don’t know how many saves. I came out of the box and went to the net, and I think Sakic took the puck up and gave it to Gretzky. It was a ridiculously easy goal, but I’ll take it. It was quite a memory.”

Zamuner is too humble. While everyone on ice, in the building, and at home watching were expecting Gretzky to fire a shot on goal, Zamuner had the presence of mind to keep his stick on the ice and expect the unexpected.

“Everyone was looking at him,” Zamuner recalled. “I was just hoping he could see me. People talk about him having eyes in the back of his head. That was another example. The game against the Americans was quite an emotional one because they had beaten us in the World Cup in 1996, so the game in Nagano was quite intense. Unfortunately, we didn’t finish the deal. We came up against a really hot goaltender in Hasek.”

Later that year, Zamuner played in the 1998 World Championship as well. At the start of the next season he was named Tampa Bay captain, but he was soon traded to Ottawa and then moved on to Boston. His NHL career pretty much ended with the lockout, but he still had two years of hockey left in Europe, starting in Switzerland.

“A lot of players were talking about whether to stay at home or play somewhere else,” he explained. “I was at a point in my career when I was older and I needed to play. Luckily enough, Basel thought I could help. I had two kids, aged five and four, and my wife was four months pregnant. She was a trooper. I asked her if she wanted to go, and she was all for it. Our daughter was born in Switzerland, and it was a wonderful experience. We were in the B level, and we played Lausanne in the playoffs and won. I didn’t understand the enormity or the difficulty of going from B to A. And I hear Lausanne only made it to the A this year. That’s a long time.”

From there he played in Italy. “My dad was born and raised in Italy,” he started. “He always wanted me to go there and play. He’s from the north, so I chose Bolzano because I thought it would be cool to play in my father’s home country. He came over and was really proud. He was more excited for me playing in Italy than my 13 years in the NHL.”

After a brief time there, he moved to, of all places, Australia, and that is where he played his final professional games.

“I knew some friends who had played there,” he explained. “A guy called me. He was persistent, and I thought this was an opportunity to grow the game in an untraditional place. I did some youth camps there. I ended up being a part-time coach and played at the same time. We lived south of Brisbane in a place called Burleigh Head, which was big on surfing. It was a tremendous experience. I tried surfing, but I wasn’t very good. I always try to do what the locals do whenever we travel.”

Once retired, in 2006, Zamuner then kept his feet in hockey and landed a job with the NHLPA thanks to his hockey connections.

“After retiring, I did a couple of things. I was an assistant coach for the Mississauga Ice Dogs. I did some radio and TV. And then Eric Lindros called me. He was working at the Players’ Association and asked if I’d be interested in doing some work there, and I thought why not. It allowed me to stay in the game and also learn the business of the game.”

Learn it he did, the hard way. The 2012-13 season was cut in half as the league and players tried to hammer out an agreement. “This negotiation was exhausting but very rewarding,” Zamuner explained. “I went through them as a player, but it was much different as a staff member. We have several former players at the PA, and I think it’s very helpful in explaining to our lawyers and various people what the players are going through.”

And just a few days ago, all parties agreed to move forward in the understanding that the NHL will shut down and sent its players to Sochi. Good news all around.

“I don’t think it’s a secret that players love to play for their country, but it’s obviously an issue that has to be agreed upon among all parties. Don Fehr made it clear what the players would like, so all sides are working towards getting the players there. It’s the best for the game, obviously. I’m biased, because I played at the Olympics. It’s the greatest experience in the world.”

ANDREW PODNIEKS

STOCKHOLM – The IIHF Independent Disciplinary Panel has suspended Swedish defenceman Alexander Edler for a knee-on-knee hit against Canadian forward Eric Staal. Edler will miss the remainder of the 2013 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship.

The incident occurred at 15:52 in the first period. Edler collided with Staal at centre ice, a hit which had Staal immediately fall down to the ice, favoring his leg and visibly in pain.

Team Canada’s captain had to be helped off the rink and did not return.  

After reviewing the video evidence and the respective reports, including the Game Supervisor Report, the Referee Supervisor Report, the verbal medical report and the report from the hearing with the player, the panel has determined that Edler should have been penalized with a match penalty as he was in clear violation of the playing rule 536b (Kneeing).

On the play, Edler was assessed a major penalty and game misconduct.

The disciplinary panel deemed Edler’s action as reckless, dangerous and that it was in disregard to the vulnerability of his opponent and for that he must be held accountable.

It is the 26th suspension in the men’s IIHF World Championship since 2010.

Any additional suspension, exceeding the duration of the tournament, will be handled by the disciplinary panel to the IIHF Disciplinary Committee.

STOCKHOLM – The 2013 IIHF Annual Congress assigned 28 tournaments of the 2014 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship program. The tournaments will take place in 22 different countries.

The biggest tournament with the venue not previously known is the 2014 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship Division I Group A where the two teams promoted to the 2015 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship in the Prague and Ostrava, Czech Republic, will be determined.

Korea will host the tournament which also includes Austria, Slovenia, Hungary, Japan and Ukraine in Seoul under the slogan “Beyond the New Horizons”.

“It is a great honour and pleasure for us. We want to host the 2014 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship Division I Group A since we are preparing for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games,” said Kim Sangwoo, Vice President of the Korea Ice Hockey Association.

“We want to make ice hockey a highlight of the Winter Games in PyeongChang. For this need experience in hosting ice hockey events at that level early on and we’re welcoming everybody in Korea next year.”

The proposed venue is the Mokdong Ice Rink. The arena offers an ice sheet of 61 x 30 metres and a second ice sheet, eight dressing rooms and a capacity for 6,000 fans.

Also the tier below, the 2014 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship Division I Group B, will go to a big venue. Lithuania plans to host the event at the Zalgiris Arena in Kaunas, the second-biggest city of the country. It’s the largest indoor arena in the Baltic countries built in 2011 for the European Basketball Championship and it’s constructed for ice making.

“Lithuania is very hungry for international competitions. It’s a newly built arena with 13,500 seats for ice hockey,” said Lithuanian delegate Petras Nauseda.

Some international events will also coincide with anniversaries like the 100-year anniversary of British ice hockey and Serbia’s 75-year anniversary.

For future events in Mexico a new ice rink Icedrom is currently under construction in the south of Mexico City. Opening at the end of June, it will offer 4,000 seats and seven dressing rooms.

Several national ice hockey associations expressed their interest for hosting the U18 World Championship between 2017 and 2019 with Slovakia (Kosice & Poprad), Russia (Chelyabinsk & Magnitogorsk) and Canada. The previous editions will be in Lappeenranta and Imatra, Finland, in 2014, in Switzerland in 2015 and in the United States in 2016.

In other news the membership status of the United Arab Emirates has been changed from associate member to full member.

MARTIN MERK

2014 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championships (Men’s Category)

Top Division, in Minsk, Belarus, 9-25 May 2014
Belarus, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Norway, Russia, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, USA. (The seeding and the two groups will be known after the 2013 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship.)

Division I Group A, in Seoul, Korea, end of April 2014 (dates TBD)
Austria, Slovenia, Hungary, Japan, Korea, Ukraine

Division I Group B, in Kaunas, Lithuania, 20-26 April 2014
Great Britain, Poland, Netherlands, Romania, Lithuania, Croatia

Division II Group A, in Belgrade or Novi Sad, Serbia, 9-15 April 2014
Estonia, Belgium, Iceland, Australia, Serbia, Israel

Division II Group B, in Jaca, Spain, 5-11 April 2014
Spain, New Zealand, Mexico, China, Turkey, South Africa

Division III, in Luxembourg, Luxembourg, 6-12 April 2014
Bulgaria, DPR Korea, Luxembourg, United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong

2014 IIHF Ice Hockey U20 World Championships

World Junior Championship, in Malmö, Sweden, 26 December 2013 to 5 January 2014
Group A: USA, Canada, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany
Group B: Sweden, Russia, Switzerland, Finland, Norway.

Division I Group A, in Sanok, Poland, 15-21 December 2013
Latvia, Belarus, Denmark, Slovenia, Austria, Poland

Division I Group B, in Dumfries, Great Britain, 9-15 December 2013
France, Kazakhstan, Italy, Ukraine, Great Britain, Japan

Division II Group A, in Debrecen, Hungary, 15-21 December 2013
Croatia, Hungary, Romania, Netherlands, Lithuania, Estonia

Division II Group B, in Jaca, Spain, 11-17 January 2014
Spain, Korea, Serbia, Australia, Iceland, China

Division III, in Izmir, Turkey, 12-18 January 2014
Belgium, Bulgaria, New Zealand, Mexico, Turkey, South Africa

2014 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 World Championships

Top Division, in Lappeenranta and Imatra, Finland, 17-27 April 2014
Group A: Canada, Russia, Sweden, Germany, Slovakia
Group B: USA, Finland, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Denmark

Division I Group A, in Nice, France, 13-19 April 2014
Latvia, Norway, Italy, Belarus, France, Kazakhstan

Division I Group B, in Szekesfehervar, Hungary, 13-20 April 2014
Slovenia, Japan, Austria, Poland, Ukraine, Hungary

Division II Group A, in Dumfries, Great Britain, 24-30 March 2014
Korea, Croatia, Romania, Great Britain, Lithuania, Netherlands

Division II Group B, in Tallinn, Estonia, 13-19 April 2014
Estonia, Spain, Serbia, Belgium, Iceland, China

Division III Group A, in Sofia, Bulgaria, 24-30 March 2014
Australia, New Zealand, Chinese Taipei, Bulgaria, Israel, Mexico

Division III Group B, in Izmit, Turkey, 9-15 February 2014
South Africa, Turkey, Hong Kong

2014 IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championships

Note: There is no stand-alone 2014 IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship in the top division in Olympic years.

Division I Group A, in Prerov, Czech Republic, 6-12 April 2014
Czech Republic, Denmark, Slovakia, Austria, Norway, France

Division I Group B, in Ventspils, Latvia, 14-22 April 2014
Latvia, Netherlands, DPR Korea, China, Kazakhstan, Hungary

Division II Group A, in Asiago, Italy, 6-12 April 2014
Great Britain, Italy, Australia, New Zealand, Poland, Korea

Division II Group B, in Reykjavik, Iceland, 24-30 April 2014
Slovenia, Spain, Croatia, Iceland, Belgium, Turkey

Division II Group B Qualification, in Mexico City, Mexico, 8-11 April 2014
South Africa, Bulgaria, Hong Kong, Mexico

2014 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Women’s World Championships

Top Division, venue and dates TBD in Sep./Oct. 2013
Group A: Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, Japan
Group B: USA, Sweden, Hungary, Russia

Division I, in Füssen, Germany, 29 March to 4 April 2014
Germany, Switzerland, France, Norway, Slovakia, Great Britain

Division I Qualification, in Poland (city TBA), 17-23 March 2014
Austria, Italy, China, Kazakhstan, Poland

2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia, 7-23 February 2014

Olympic men’s ice hockey tournament
Group A: Russia, Slovakia, USA, Slovenia
Group B: Finland, Canada, Norway, Austria
Group C: Czech Republic, Sweden, Switzerland, Latvia

Olympic women’s ice hockey tournament
Group A: Canada, USA, Finland, Switzerland
Group B: Sweden, Russia, Germany, Japan

STOCKHOLM – The 2013 IIHF Annual Congress allocated the 2017 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship to Cologne (Germany) and Paris (France).

The German-French bid received 63 votes from the delegates. The other bid with Copenhagen (Denmark) and Riga (Latvia) got 45 votes.

Video: Presentation Germany-France 2017

“It was quite a battle but the Danish and Latvian delegation always offered a fair competition. It was a nice experience to work together,” said Franz Reindl, the General Secretary of the German Ice Hockey Association, who is set to assume the same role in the Organizing Committee as he did in 2010.

“We are really proud about the work done and we left a great bid behind us and hope they will bid next year,” said Luc Tardif, President of the French Ice Hockey Federation and an IIHF Council member.

The committee of the Danish-Latvian bid congratulated the winners as it now refocuses to the future.

“Germany and France were strong opponents. Sometimes 100 per cent is not enough. The team behind our bid did an incredible job. We will continue and look forward,” said Henrik Bach Nielsen, President of the Danish Ice Hockey Association and an IIHF Council member.

“We were very close to winning. I wish Germany and France good luck and success,” said Kirovs Lipmans, President of the Latvian Ice Hockey Federation. “We will meet again in Riga. I’m sure about that.”

Germany and France bid together under the slogan “together for 2017”.

Cologne is a well-known venue for international hockey fans. The Lanxess Arena played host to the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championships in 2001 and 2010. The 1998-opened arena is the largest venue for indoor sports by capacity in Europe offering 18,500 seats for hockey.

The gold medal game in 2010 took place there in a highly successful World Championship for Germany. Currently placed tenth in the most recent World Ranking, the Germans finished in fourth place with the support of the home crowd. Something the Germans wouldn’t mind to repeat in the city of one million inhabitants.

“Both countries have a long hockey history and the federations are working closely together. A World Championship in Paris and Cologne offers a great chance to develop our sport in France, Germany and Europe,” said Uwe Harnos, President of the German Ice Hockey Association. “We are looking forward to create an outstanding event for all teams and their fans with a unique atmosphere.”

Cologne as the main venue will host one preliminary-round group, two quarter-final games, the semi-finals and medal games. The arena is in the city centre and linked to the old town and the station by train and subway.

Cologne will also host the 2017 IIHF Annual Congress while Paris is proposed as the host of the 2016 IIHF Semi-Annual Congress.

Cologne can be reached from the Cologne-Bonn airport and the nearby airports of Düsseldorf and Frankfurt offer further connections.


The Lanxess Arena in Cologne with the old town in the background. Photo courtesy of DEB

For Germany it will be the eighth World Championship on home ice while French fans haven’t seen the world tourney on their soil for a long time. France has hosted the event twice, in Chamonix 1930 and in Paris 1951 in addition to three Olympic Winter Games (1924, 1968 1992) and recent events in lower divisions.

France was away from the top division for almost four decades, but has been among the elite nations regularly since 1992 and hasn’t been relegated since getting back in 2008. France is currently ranked 14th in the IIHF World Ranking.

In France, games will be played in the most famous indoor sports venue of the country, the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy in downtown Paris with a Metro station next door.

The arena was “discovered” for hockey seven years ago when the French Ice Hockey Federation started to host the French Cup Final at the venue. In each of the recent years this event has been sold out with 13,362 spectators and also international exhibition games have been hosted in the metropolis of 2.3 million inhabitants.

Opened in 1984, the arena will be renovated and expanded by 2015 so that it can offer seating for 15,000 fans for hockey games.

Paris can be reached by plane worldwide through three airports. Cologne and Paris are also linked through the countries’ high-speed railway network. Five trains a day link the cities in a journey of little more than three hours. The flight time between the cities is 75 minutes.

“In a city like Paris where hockey is normally not part of the culture it is time to host this event,” Tardif said. “It’s in two neighbouring countries but with one team of organizers.”

The city will host one preliminary-round group and two quarter-final games. The two winners will travel to Cologne for the semi-finals.


The French Cup Final in Paris-Bercy is sold out every year. Photo: Martin Merk

The vote came during the 50-year-anniversary of the Élysée Treaty for reconciliation between the two countries signed by French President Charles de Gaulle and German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer in 1963. It is also known as the Treaty of Friendship. And the German Ice Hockey Association as it is known today was founded in the same year in West Germany.

“The Germans are good organizers and the French know how to create feelings,” Harnos said about the co-hosting duo. “We’re a perfect couple and have become good friends since working together. Cologne and Paris are nice cities with great people next to each other. It will be hockey in the middle of Europe. We have a new friendship between the two countries that has historically grown.”

The cities will offer perfect hospitality for participants and fans. Cologne offers 73,000 hotel beds, Paris 111,000. Three high-class hotels in the Bercy district have been found in for the participants and also in Cologne teams will stay close to the arena and near the picturesque old town.

Both arenas were already operated with two ice rinks. The Bercy arena has a small ice rink that is operated permanently and will be used as practice rink while the Lanxess Arena has a second rink next door making it easy for the teams logistically.

The bidding committee targets 32 million people in a 100-kilometre radius of Cologne and Paris and fans from foreign countries.

“We want to have low prices and more spectators in big venues,” Reindl said. Tickets will be available for as little as €9 while the average price over all tournament stages and seat categories will be €39. Local transportation will be offered for free to ticketholders and participants.

Tickets will be sold centrally by CTS Eventim, which also owns the arena in Cologne.

“This will make it easy for fans from all over the world to buy tickets,” Reindl said.

The committee calculates with 600,000 fans with a capacity of 886,000 fans for all games.

During the event, Latvia showed interest in bidding for 2018. Switzerland in view of new arenas in Zurich and Geneva, as well as Slovakia announced their intention to bid for 2019.

MARTIN MERK

STOCKHOLM – Oscar Lindberg’s inaugural World Championship so far is a good one. Not only is it in his home country but Sweden has made it into the semi-finals with a chance on Saturday to make it to the finals for the first time since 2011.

Lindberg is another in a long line of players who are making their first World Championship appearance and with youth on their side, certainly not the last.

“It was tough to start because there’s so much competition and depth on these teams at this level but it is getting better and good to be here,” said Lindberg of his experience to date. “It is fun and I’m learning a lot.”

Lindberg has scored a goal and two points in eight games while averaging over 13 minutes per game. He assisted on Martin Thörnberg’s game winning goal against Denmark in the last game of the Preliminary Round on Tuesday.

Sweden has received important scoring from the Sedin brothers who have combined for two goals and seven points since arriving earlier in the week.

It is particularly important for production to come from other lines. With Thörnberg’s pair of goals in Sweden’s final game of the Preliminary Round and from Nicklas Danielsson and Loui Eriksson yesterday against Canada, Sweden has more options now moving forward.

“We know they are going to score but we need the whole team to get going and get other people scoring,” he said. “Getting big goals at key times are important.”

2012-13 was something of a magical season for Lindberg and Skellefteå AIK. Thanks in large part to his play, the team won the Swedish Elitserien. It was Skellefteå AIK's first playoff championship since 1978.

Lindberg scored 17 regular season goals and 42 points. In the playoffs he added 4 goals and 1 points in 13 games.

Lindberg’s performance in the post-season earned him honors with the Stefan Liv Memorial Trophy as most valuable player in the Elitserien playoffs.

“The whole season was great both personally and professionally,” Lindberg commented on 2012-13. “We had a great playoff and won the championship so it was a great experience overall.”

In the fall, Lindberg will take his next step and move to North America. The New York Rangers have his rights gained through a trade with the Phoenix Coyotes.

Whether he makes the big club or sent to the team’s AHL affiliate Connecticut Whale, Lindberg will have a new hockey experience over 2013/2014.

“I am going to training camp in September and we’ll see if it’s the NHL or AHL,” said Lindberg. “Either way I am staying in North America. It will be a different experience but one I’m looking forward to.”

With the semi-finals set for tomorrow and a possible win taking Sweden into a gold medal game, Lindberg remains focused on the tournament.

“This season is not over and I’ll be thinking about the next game and the one after that. So much more to do.”

JOHN SANFUL

STOCKHOLM – Fredrik Pettersson scored the winning goal of the shootout on a slapshot from close range to give Sweden a 3-2 win over Canada and the final place in the semi-finals in Stockholm on Saturday. Sweden will now play Finland for a place in the gold-medal game on Sunday.

Video: Highlights, Post-Game Interviews

The game was decided on the fourth shot after Jordan Eberle and Loui Eriksson scored for Canada and Sweden, respectively, with the first three shots.

"I’m really happy," said winning coach, Pär Mårts. "They are a tough team to beat. We knew we had to play our best game of the tournament. Today everything worked well. I’m happy for Swedish hockey because you have to play for the medals in your home tournament."

"It's tough to lose a close game like this one," said goalie Mike Smith, who played well but lost in a shootout for the second time this tournament. "They battled hard and played great. We had some chances to put the game away but couldn't. This is a game that could have gone either way."

Canada, for the fourth consecutive year, goes home empty-handed. To make matters worse, Eric Staal, the team's captain, suffered what looked to be a bad knee injury in the first period after being taken out by a knee-on-knee hit from Alexander Edler.

"It was tough seeing someone like that go down," said defenceman P.K. Subban. "He's one of the best players in the world and our captain. It was tough."

Edler's actions are under review and the disciplinary panel will hold a hearing on Friday to determine if further sanctions are merited. Edler received a five-minute major and game misconduct on the play.

"I was so nervous in the shootout that I could barely watch," said Erik Gustafsson. "Usually I'm not that nervous, but today I was nervous. This is a great feeling to win the game. It is hard to describe. We will enjoy tonight and go to the next game against Finland."

The first period was markedly different from the one these two teams played last week. In that game, Canada took control from the opening faceoff, scoring the only goal and dominating in all areas of the game en route to a convincing 3-0 win.

Tonight, the team was more cautious, giving Sweden a chance to gain some confidence. The game turned initially in Tre Kronor’s favour after a bad pinch by Subban at centre ice, resulting in a two-on-one that should have given Sweden the opening goal. Simon Hjalmarsson’s pass to Gabriel Landeskog, though, was way off and the chance was lost.

Canada failed to connect with the five-minute advantage late in the period after Edler's infraction. Then, an Andrew Ladd minor nullified two minutes of it, leaving the game scoreless after 20 minutes.

The major penalty carried over to the second, however, and Canada capitalized on the fresh ice. Stéphane Robidas’ point shot was nicely deflected by Steven Stamkos in the slot just 45 seconds in, and Canada had the first goal.

The visitors had a great chance to make it 2-0 when Stamkos had a breakaway, but he made one move too many and ran out of room to tuck the puck past Enroth. In the last second, Canada thought it finally did go up 2-0, but video review showed the puck entered the net after time had expired.

"Jhonas is one of the most competitive players I've ever seen," said Gustafsson. "He showed that in the shootout. Nerves of steel. In the second period, if Stamkos scores on the breakaway it's a different game. He kept us in the game and played amazing."

When Dan Hamhuis drew a penalty for lifting the puck into the crowd early in the third, fans sensed the moment – and the Swedes responded. Nicklas Danielsson's one-timer from the point sailed through a maze of bodies in front and past Smith, tying the game and sending the crowd into a frenzy.

Four minutes later, the play was repeated after a senseless penalty by Claude Giroux. Samuelsson's point shot on the ensuing power play again found its way to the net where it went off Eriksson's skate and through Smith's pads to give the Swedes their first lead of the game.

Giroux atoned a minute later, though. Stamkos made a great play along the boards to force a turnover, and Andrew Ladd made a perfect pass to Giroux, who snapped a quick shot under the arm of Enroth to make it a 2-2 game at 10:50.

ANDREW PODNIEKS