Latvia men's national ice hockey team

Latvia
AssociationLatvian Ice Hockey Federation
General managerRūdolfs Kalvītis
Head coachHarijs Vītoliņš
Assistants
CaptainKaspars Daugaviņš
Most gamesRodrigo Laviņš (230)
Top scorerLeonīds Tambijevs (66)
Most pointsLeonīds Tambijevs (150)
Home stadiumXiaomi Arēna
Team colors   
IIHF codeLAT
Ranking
Current IIHF10 ( 1) (26 May 2025)[1]
Highest IIHF9 (2005–06, 2014)
Lowest IIHF13 (2018)
First international
Latvia  3–0  Lithuania
(Riga, Latvia; 27 February 1932)[2]
Biggest win
Latvia  32–0  Israel
(Bled, Slovenia; 15 March 1993)[2]
Biggest defeat
Canada  14–0  Latvia
(Davos, Switzerland; 20 January 1935)[2]
Olympics
Appearances7 (first in 1936)
IIHF World Championships
Appearances36 (first in 1933)
Best result Bronze: (2023)
IIHF European Championships
Appearances1
International record (W–L–T)
295–294–28
Medal record
World Championship
2023 Finland/Latvia

The Latvian men's national ice hockey team represents Latvia in international ice hockey. The team is ranked 10th in the world by IIHF as of 2023 and is controlled by the Latvian Ice Hockey Federation. Their best ever finish at the World Championships was in 2023, when they won the bronze medal. They reached the quarterfinals at the 2014 Winter Olympics, losing 2–1 to Canada. Latvia has hosted the World Championships three times, in 2006, 2021 and 2023.

There are 7,898 registered hockey players in Latvia, which is 0.43% of its population.

Tournament record

Olympic Games

Games GP W T L GF GA Coach Captain Finish
1936 Garmisch-Partenkirchen 3 0 0 3 3 27 Arvīds Jurgens Leonīds Vedējs 13
1948–1988 As part of  Soviet Union
1992 Albertville did not qualify
1994 Lillehammer
1998 Nagano
2002 Salt Lake City 4 2 1 1 20 14 Curt Lindström Harijs Vītoliņš 9
2006 Turin 5 0 1 4 11 29 Leonīds Beresņevs Kārlis Skrastiņš 12
2010 Vancouver 4 0 0 1 3 6 22 Oļegs Znaroks Kārlis Skrastiņš 12
2014 Sochi 5 1 0 0 4 9 14 Ted Nolan Sandis Ozoliņš 8
2018 Pyeongchang did not qualify
2022 Beijing 4 0 0 0 4 7 14 Harijs Vītoliņš Lauris Dārziņš 11
2026 Milan / Cortina d'Ampezzo 4 1 0 0 3 8 17 Harijs Vītoliņš Kaspars Daugaviņš 10

World Championship

Championships GP W T L GF GA Coach Captain Finish
1933 Prague 4 1 0 3 3 9 Nikolajs Kavass Arvīds Jurgens Finished in 10th place
1935 Davos 5 1 0 4 11 25 Nikolajs Kavass Leonīds Vedējs Finished in 13th place
1938 Prague 4 1 0 3 4 8 Arvīds Jurgens Leonīds Vedējs Finished tied in 10th place
1939 Zürich/Basel 3 1 0 2 6 21 Larry Marsh Leonīds Vedējs Finished in 10th place
1954 – 1991 As part of  Soviet Union
1993 Bled/Ljubljana (Group C) 7 6 1 0 101 9 Helmuts Balderis Konstantīns Grigorjevs Finished in 21st place (Won Group C)
1994 Copenhagen/Aalborg (Group B) 7 6 0 1 61 9 Helmuts Balderis Konstantīns Grigorjevs Finished in 14th place (2nd in Group B)
1995 Bratislava (Group B) 7 6 0 1 65 16 Ēvalds Grabovskis Aleksandrs Beļavskis Finished in 14th place (2nd in Group B)
1996 Eindhoven (Group B) 7 6 1 0 41 16 Leonīds Beresņevs Oleg Znarok Finished in 13th place (Won Group B)
1997 Helsinki/Tampere/Turku 8 4 2 2 37 23 Leonīds Beresņevs Normunds Sējējs Finished in 7th place
1998 Zürich/Basel 6 3 1 2 21 18 Leonīds Beresņevs Oleg Znarok Finished in 9th place
1999 Oslo/Hamar/Lillehammer 6 2 0 4 24 22 Leonīds Beresņevs Oleg Znarok Finished in 11th place
2000 Saint Petersburg 7 3 1 3 15 17 Haralds Vasiļjevs Harijs Vītoliņš Finished in 8th place
2001 Nuremberg/Cologne/Hanover 6 3 1 2 19 13 Haralds Vasiļjevs Harijs Vītoliņš Finished in 13th place
2002 Gothenburg/Karlstad/Jönköping 6 1 0 5 11 18 Curt Lindström Harijs Vītoliņš Finished in 11th place
2003 Helsinki/Tampere/Turku 6 3 0 3 14 16 Curt Lindström Harijs Vītoliņš Finished in 9th place
2004 Prague/Ostrava 7 2 2 3 12 14 Curt Lindström Sergejs Žoltoks Finished in 7th place
2005 Vienna/Innsbruck 6 2 1 3 10 21 Leonīds Beresņevs Kārlis Skrastiņš Finished in 9th place
2006 Riga 6 2 1 3 12 24 Petr Vorobiev Aleksandrs Semjonovs Finished in 10th place
Championships GP W OTW OTL L GF GA Coach Captain Finish
2007 Moscow 6 2 0 1 3 20 22 Oleg Znarok Rodrigo Laviņš Finished in 13th place
2008 Halifax/Quebec City 6 2 0 0 4 11 19 Oleg Znarok Rodrigo Laviņš Finished in 11th place
2009 Bern/Kloten 7 2 2 0 3 15 23 Oleg Znarok Kārlis Skrastiņš Finished in 7th place
2010 Cologne/Mannheim/Gelsenkirchen 6 2 0 0 4 15 18 Oleg Znarok Herberts Vasiļjevs Finished in 11th place
2011 Bratislava/Košice 6 2 0 2 2 18 19 Oleg Znarok Herberts Vasiļjevs Finished in 13th place
2012 Helsinki/Stockholm 7 2 0 0 5 11 19 Ted Nolan Jānis Sprukts Finished in 10th place
2013 Stockholm/Helsinki 7 2 0 1 4 14 25 Ted Nolan Lauris Dārziņš Finished in 11th place
2014 Minsk 7 3 0 0 4 20 24 Ted Nolan Herberts Vasiļjevs Finished in 11th place
2015 Prague/Ostrava 7 0 2 1 4 11 25 Aleksandrs Beļavskis Kaspars Daugaviņš Finished in 13th place
2016 Moscow/Saint Petersburg 7 1 0 3 3 13 22 Leonīds Beresņevs Kaspars Daugaviņš Finished in 13th place
2017 Cologne/Paris 7 3 0 1 3 14 18 Bob Hartley Kaspars Daugaviņš Finished in 10th place
2018 Copenhagen/Herning 8 3 1 2 2 18 19 Bob Hartley Roberts Bukarts Finished in 8th place
2019 Bratislava/Košice 7 3 0 0 4 21 20 Bob Hartley Lauris Dārziņš Finished in 10th place
2020 Cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic[3]
2021 Riga 7 2 0 3 2 15 16 Bob Hartley Lauris Dārziņš Finished in 11th place
2022 Helsinki/Tampere 7 2 1 0 4 14 20 Harijs Vītoliņš Rodrigo Ābols Finished in 10th place
2023 Tampere/Riga[4][5] 10 4 3 0 3 30 25 Harijs Vītoliņš Kaspars Daugaviņš Finished in 3rd place
2024 Prague/Ostrava 7 1 3 0 3 19 29 Harijs Vītoliņš Kaspars Daugaviņš Finished in 9th place
2025 Stockholm/Herning 7 3 0 0 4 17 25 Harijs Vītoliņš Kaspars Daugaviņš Finished in 10th place
2026 Zurich/Fribourg Harijs Vītoliņš

European Championship

Games GP W T L GF GA Coach Captain Finish Rank
1932 Berlin 4 1 0 3 5 13 Nikolajs Kavass Arvīds Jurgens Consolation Round 8th

Team

2026 Olympics roster

The first six players of Latvia's roster were announced on 16 June 2025.[6] The remaining roster was named on 6 January 2026.[7][8] On 12 January, forward Eriks Mateiko was ruled out for the remainder of the season and Olympics after his Achilles tendon was accidentally cut by a skate blade during a Hershey Bears game;[9] he was replaced on the roster by Anrī Ravinskis.[10] On 18 January, forward Rodrigo Ābols was ruled out after suffering a lower-body injury the previous day, and was replaced by Rihards Bukarts.[11] On 10 February, Kaspars Daugaviņš was named Latvia's captain, with Uvis Balinskis and Zemgus Girgensons serving as alternate captains.[12]

Head coach: Harijs Vītoliņš[13]

No. Pos. Name Height Weight Birthdate Team
3 D Alberts Šmits 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) 93 kg (205 lb) (2007-12-02)2 December 2007 (aged 18) Jukurit
9 F Renārs Krastenbergs 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) 87 kg (192 lb) (1998-12-26)26 December 1998 (aged 27) HC Olomouc
11 F Dans Ločmelis 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 81 kg (179 lb) (2004-01-21)21 January 2004 (aged 22) Providence Bruins
13 F Rihards Bukarts 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) 84 kg (185 lb) (1995-12-31)31 December 1995 (aged 30) HC Prešov
16 F Kaspars Daugaviņš – C 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) 102 kg (225 lb) (1988-05-18)18 May 1988 (aged 37) Kassel Huskies
17 F Mārtiņš Dzierkals 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) 91 kg (201 lb) (1997-04-04)4 April 1997 (aged 28) Sparta Praha
21 F Rūdolfs Balcers 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) 80 kg (176 lb) (1997-04-08)8 April 1997 (aged 28) ZSC Lions
22 F Sandis Vilmanis 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 88 kg (194 lb) (2004-01-23)23 January 2004 (aged 22) Florida Panthers
23 F Teodors Bļugers 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 86 kg (190 lb) (1994-08-15)15 August 1994 (aged 31) Vancouver Canucks
26 D Uvis Balinskis – A 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 90 kg (198 lb) (1996-08-01)1 August 1996 (aged 29) Florida Panthers
27 D Oskars Cibuļskis 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 94 kg (207 lb) (1988-04-09)9 April 1988 (aged 37) Herning Blue Fox
28 F Zemgus Girgensons – A 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 90 kg (198 lb) (1994-01-05)5 January 1994 (aged 32) Tampa Bay Lightning
29 D Ralfs Freibergs 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) 88 kg (194 lb) (1991-05-17)17 May 1991 (aged 34) Vítkovice Ridera
30 G Elvis Merzļikins 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) 90 kg (198 lb) (1994-04-13)13 April 1994 (aged 31) Columbus Blue Jackets
31 G Artūrs Šilovs 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) 93 kg (205 lb) (2001-03-22)22 March 2001 (aged 24) Pittsburgh Penguins
34 F Eduards Tralmaks 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) 100 kg (220 lb) (1997-02-17)17 February 1997 (aged 28) Grand Rapids Griffins
43 F Anrī Ravinskis 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) 94 kg (207 lb) (2003-01-02)2 January 2003 (aged 23) Abbotsford Canucks
50 G Kristers Gudļevskis 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) 97 kg (214 lb) (1992-07-31)31 July 1992 (aged 33) Fischtown Pinguins
55 D Roberts Mamčics 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 104 kg (229 lb) (1995-04-06)6 April 1995 (aged 30) Energie Karlovy Vary
71 F Roberts Bukarts 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) 84 kg (185 lb) (1990-06-27)27 June 1990 (aged 35) Dukla Trenčín
72 D Jānis Jaks 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) 89 kg (196 lb) (1995-08-22)22 August 1995 (aged 30) Energie Karlovy Vary
77 D Kristaps Zīle 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 90 kg (198 lb) (1997-12-24)24 December 1997 (aged 28) Bílí Tygři Liberec
94 D Kristiāns Rubīns 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) 99 kg (218 lb) (1997-12-11)11 December 1997 (aged 28) Škoda Plzeň
95 F Oskars Batņa 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) 106 kg (234 lb) (1995-05-07)7 May 1995 (aged 30) Pelicans
97 F Haralds Egle 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) 86 kg (190 lb) (1996-05-11)11 May 1996 (aged 29) Energie Karlovy Vary

Retired numbers

Coaching history

Coach GP W T L GD P-ts
1932–1935 Nikolajs Kavass 13 3 0 10 19:47 9
1936–1938 Arvīds Jurgens 7 1 0 6 7:35 3
1939 Larry Marsh 3 1 0 2 6:21 3
1992–1994 Helmuts Balderis 14 12 1 1 162:18 27
1995 Ēvalds Grabovskis 7 6 0 1 65:16 18
1996–1999 Leonīds Beresņevs 27 15 4 8 123:79 49
1999–2001 Haralds Vasiļjevs 13 6 2 5 34:30 20
2001–2004 Curt Lindström 23 8 3 12 57:62 27
2005–2006 Leonīds Beresņevs 11 2 2 7 21:50 8
2006 Petr Vorobiev 6 2 1 3 12:24 7
2007–2011 Oleg Znarok 35 16 – 19 85:123 37
2011–2014 Ted Nolan 26 11 – 15 54:82 25
2015 Aleksandrs Beļavskis 7 2 – 5 11:25 5
2016 Leonīds Beresņevs 7 1 – 6 13:22 6
2016 Haralds Vasiļjevs 3 2 – 1 13:5 6
2017–2021 Bob Hartley 29 12 – 17 68:73 41
2021–present Harijs Vītoliņš 35 18 – 17 98:111 48

All-time record

As of 8 November 2025.[15]
Opponent Played Won Drawn Lost GF GA GD
 Austria 28 23 0 5 106 65 +41
 Belarus 40 19 3 18 106 97 +9
 Belgium 2 2 0 0 31 4 +27
 Canada 24 1 1 22 29 126 -97
 China 1 1 0 0 22 0 +22
 Czech Republic 19 1 1 17 34 66 −32
 Czechoslovakia 2 0 0 2 0 16 −16
 Denmark 38 24 0 14 131 93 +38
 Estonia 5 5 0 0 32 6 +26
 Finland 36 5 2 29 66 136 −70
 France 57 37 4 16 195 115 +80
 Germany 42 13 4 25 92 115 -23
 Great Britain 11 6 1 4 44 39 +5
 Hungary 6 4 1 1 31 12 +19
 Israel 1 1 0 0 32 0 +32
 Italy 19 14 1 4 71 30 +41
 Japan 13 12 0 1 79 26 +53
 Kazakhstan 15 10 0 5 54 31 +23
 Lithuania 5 5 0 0 45 2 +43
 Netherlands 6 6 0 0 45 6 +39
 North Korea 1 1 0 0 4 0 +4
 Norway 45 27 0 18 144 112 +30
 Poland 21 16 0 5 72 50 +22
 Romania 8 6 0 2 49 7 +42
 Russia 22 6 1 15 38 83 −45
 Slovakia 38 12 2 24 80 123 -43
 Slovenia 14 13 0 2 49 25 +24
 South Korea 3 3 0 0 38 2 +36
 Sweden 30 3 1 26 50 126 −76
  Switzerland 43 10 3 30 78 134 -56
 Ukraine 20 14 1 5 67 49 +18
 United States 19 4 2 13 38 61 −23
 Yugoslavia 2 2 0 0 10 0 +10
Total 617 295 28 294 1 910 1 699 +211

Uniform evolution

  • National team jerseys
  • 1993-2005 IIHF jerseys
  • 2006-2013 IIHF jerseys
  • 2014-2017 Winter Olympics and IIHF
  • 2018–2021 IIHF jerseys
  • 2022–2025 Winter Olympics and IIHF

References

  1. ^ "IIHF Men's World Ranking". IIHF. 26 May 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
  2. ^ a b c Includes Olympics, World Championships, World Cups, Canada Cups and Summit Series.
  3. ^ Steiss, Adam. "2020 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship cancelled". iihf.com. IIHF. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
  4. ^ "IIHF to move 2023 World Championship". iihf.com. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
  5. ^ Merk, Martin. "Tampere/Riga candidate for 2023". IIHF. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
  6. ^ "Latvia names 1st 6 players to preliminary Olympics roster". National Hockey League. 16 June 2025. Retrieved 15 December 2025.
  7. ^ "Nosauc Latvijas izlases sastāvu olimpiskajām spēlēm". www.lhf.lv (in Latvian). 6 January 2026. Retrieved 6 January 2026.
  8. ^ "Latvia roster for 2026 Winter Olympics includes Merzlikins, Silovs". NHL.com. 6 January 2026. Retrieved 6 January 2026.
  9. ^ "Latvia to make injury replacement for the Olympics with Eriks Mateiko out". AP News. Associated Press. 13 January 2026. Retrieved 14 January 2026.
  10. ^ Steiner, Ben (13 January 2026). "Canucks prospect Anri Ravinskis joins Latvia's Olympic team as injury replacement". Daily Faceoff. Retrieved 14 January 2026.
  11. ^ Ellis, Steven (19 January 2026). "Flyers' Rodrigo Abols to miss 2026 Olympics with Latvia". Daily Faceoff. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  12. ^ Kuehl, Tyler (10 February 2026). "Former NHLer Daugavins named captain of Latvia's men's Olympic hockey team". Daily Faceoff. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
  13. ^ "Team roster: Latvia". iihf.com. 10 February 2026. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
  14. ^ "LHF iemūžina Žoltoka 33. Numuru un godina viņa piemiņu". 24 April 2019.
  15. ^ "Latvia - National Teams of Ice Hockey". nationalteamsoficehockey.com. 7 August 2016. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
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