The fact that there are two countries involved in the hosting duties of next year's World Championships means that not only are they going to reduce the number of groups from four to two for logistical reasons, but how they split up the teams will have to be changed as well.  From the IIHF:

The two groups of eight teams for the 2012 IIHF World Championship in Helsinki (Finland) and Stockholm (Sweden), along with the schedule, will be determined shortly upon consultation with the involved parties and participants.

Due to logistical and scheduling reasons, the composition of the two groups may not necessarily follow the predetermined order from the 2011 IIHF World Ranking.

The reasoning for this is simple:  currently Finland is ranked 2nd in the world, followed by Sweden at 3rd, meaning they'd ordinarily be put in the same group.  The organizers of the tournament want Sweden to play before crowds in Stockholm, while Finland plays at home in Helsinki.  So, how do they fix this?  Do they just make a simple switch to the order and pretend like Finland is #1 and Russia is #2?  

Well, the simple answer is this:  they can organize the elite men's (and women's) tournaments the same way they do every other tournament the IIHF runs.

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When all is said and done, this is how the countries sorted themselves out for the 2011 IIHF World Championship season.  After the jump, you can see all the standings from 17th through 43rd (and beyond):

2011 IIHF World Championships

Rank	Country	2012 Tournament
Gold	Finland	Championship
Silver	Sweden	Championship
Bronze	Czech Republic	Championship
4	Russia	Championship
5	Canada	Championship
6	Norway	Championship
7	Germany	Championship
8	United States of America	Championship
9	Switzerland	Championship
10	Slovakia	Championship
11	Denmark	Championship
12	France	Championship
13	Latvia	Championship
14	Belarus	Championship
15	Austria	Division 1A
16	Slovenia	Division 1A

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It took only sixteen years, but once again, Finland are the World Champions.  The IIHF's Twitter feed stated that it was the first time since the 1995 Champions that Finland didn't have a player from that original championship roster, and officially the torch for a new batch of Finnish heroes to start a massive party throughout all of Suomi was passed. 

And once again, it came at the expense of their top rivals, Sweden. 

The game itself started very tight, which was expected.  A scoreless first went by with only a few chances between the two teams, while penalties started to open up the game in the second period.  Shortly after Tim Erixon made two saves on a flurry in front of the Sweden goal, Magnus Paajarvi wristed home the opening goal for Sweden.  Sweden then had consecutive power play opportunities, giving them a real chance to take full control of the game, but only managed a goalpost.  A late penalty to David Petrasek gave Finland a chance they probably didn't deserve to tie the game going into the third period.  Jarkko Immonen blasted home his tournament leading ninth goal, thanks to a screen from Tuomo Ruutu, with only seven seconds to play in the period.

The third period opened, and a nervous Sweden team was, for lack of a better word, pounced on by the Finnish Lions.  A Petrasek giveaway at the blueline led to a two on one for Finland's fourth line, with Antti Pihlstrom feeding Petteri Nokelainen for what turned out to be the golden goal.  Niko Kapanen was the recipient of another goal created off a Swedish turnover down low just 46 seconds later, giving the Finns the coveted two goal lead that Sweden couldn't build in the second period.  The Finns entered lockdown mode, and Sweden barely got close to Finnish goalie Petri Vehanen.  When Mikael Granlund dumped the puck in and Janne Pesonen blew by Swedish defender Oliver Ekman-Larsson for Finland's fourth goal, Sweden seemed to just quit playing.  The final score of 6-1 was more dominating than the game really played out, as Swedish goalie and tournament MVP Viktor Fästh looked deflated by allowing stoppable shots from Mika Pyorala and Antti Pihlstrom. 

And now, they are partying in the streets of Helsinki, Tampere, Turku, Oulu, Espoo, Vantaa, Jyväskylä, Lahti, Pori and well...  everywhere in the land that gave us Jari Kurri, Teemu Selanne, Reijo Ruotsalainen, Teppo Numminen, Miikka Kiprusoff, Saku Koivu, Jere Lehtinen and many, many more.

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Heading into the tournament, this wasn't the final people were predicting.  Even heading into the quarterfinals this famous geographic battle wasn't seen by too many as likely.  While both offered strong teams, neither team dazzled with star power, and neither team had reached the Finals of any major senior men's tournament in the past three years.  However, the two teams will finally meet for the first time in this tournament here, and the stakes are as always quite high.  The two countries are co-hosting the next two World Championships, and bragging rights will be much more significant as a result.  Oh yeah, and there's the whole winning gold thing:  Sweden has been empty handed since their double gold in 2006, where they won the Olympic gold...  over Finland.  Finland, meanwhile, have not won this tournament since back in 1995, when they were led by a highly touted young centre by the name of Saku Koivu, with linemates Jere Lehtinen and Ville Peltonen. 

Finland vs. Sweden - 8:15 PM local, 2:15 PM EST

Finland's path to the gold medal game wasn't easy.  Placed in a group with the Czechs, Russians, and last year's 4th place finishers Germany, clawing their way to 2nd place in the qualification round was an accomplishment unto itself.  Goals weren't easy to come by either:  they need the shootout to beat Russia, Latvia, and Germany in those early rounds, and lost a tight 2-1 game to the Czechs in regulation.  However, the percentages seem to be balancing out for them in the playoffs:  they rallied to beat Norway in the quarterfinals, and they outlasted Russia in the semis.  They haven't been able to score early, but persistence has been paying off for the team. 

Sweden, on the other hand, have simply gotten better as the tournament has progressed.  Way back in the opener, the team lost in a shootout to Norway for the first time in modern history, but the team started to come together against the Americans, who they beat soundly 6-2 in a game that wasn't even that close.  The team did lose to Canada in a very even game, but when the chips were down they broke down the determined Germans in the quarters and the undefeated Czechs in the semifinals.  Patrik Berglund has been a nearly unstoppable force up front, leading the tournament in goals.  While on the back end, its been a combination of youth and savvy, unheralded vets that have stepped up even when one of the team's few NHLers, Nicklas Grossman, went down in the first game with an injury. 

The goaltending matchup puts the spotlight on two European stars in Petri Vehanen for Finland and Viktor Fästh for Sweden.  Both goalies could be in line for NHL contracts based on their play to date, although Vehanen probably has missed his window of opportunity on that front as he's now 33 years old. 

For me, the past couple of weeks have made me believe that this is Finland's tournament.  We've seen the emergence of Mikael Granlund, the international hockey world's brightest young star.  He could to this tournament what Saku Koivu was to 1995, and maybe more.  Saku's younger brother, Mikko Koivu, has been the team's workhorse, playing in every situation against the top players the rest of the world has to offer.  Sweden is younger, bigger, and a little deeper, but Finland's experience advantage could play a big role in this final. 

I'm picking Finland for their second ever gold medal.  But take it with a grain of salt:  heading into the quarters, I had the Czechs and Canadians battling it out for gold.  But since Sweden is wearing their yellow jerseys and Finland is wearing their blue, I think we can all agree that everyone wins today.

Join us in the comments during the game for discussion as well as updates.

BTW, congratulations to the Czech Republic on their bronze medal, defeating Russia 7-4 in the highest scoring medal game since the new format was introduced in 1992.

Bronze medal games are viewed by some countries as simply consolation prizes, and that description fits the two teams that are facing each other here quite well.  With their deep, star studded rosters, the Czech Republic and Russia no doubt believe they deserved to be playing a rematch of last year's gold medal game four hours later.  However, fate has landed these two proud hockey nations a slight blow, and the prize they will be fighting for is not as lucrative as they had hoped. 

However, there is tremendous pride in winning bronze at this event, and I don't expect that motivation will be lost upon these teams. 

Czech Republic vs. Russia - 4:15 PM local, 10:15 AM EST

How did the Czechs end up here?  After cruising through the preliminary and qualification rounds undefeated, and a relatively easy 4-0 quarterfinal win over the Americans, the defending champions couldn't solve Swedish goaltender Viktor Fästh early in the semifinals, failing to build an early lead.  The Swedes played a strong, disciplined game and shut down the dangerous combination of Tomas Plekanec and Jaromir Jagr, and eventually broke through the Czech defense to dominate the second period and build a lead with which they wouldn't relinquish in the third period. 

For the Russians, something similar happened.  Finland stymied the Russians early, and when Mikael Granlund scored his magical goal to give Finland a 1-0 lead in the second period, the Russians started to open up offensively and gave up some high quality chances as a result.  Alex Ovechkin, arguably the top player on the planet, was held scoreless again, culminating an intensely frustrating season for the superstar.  The team took a number of offensive zone penalties and couldn't mount sustained pressure before falling behind 3-0 in the third period. 

In this game, the specter of avenging last year's shocking gold medal result looms large for Russia.  The proud nation has been humbled a bit at this tournament they have come to dominate the past four years.  This is the first year in four that the Russians are not playing for gold, and I think they have the edge in motivation.  For the Czechs, this is an opportunity to thank their loyal supporters who have shown up en masse to Bratislava to see their country try once again to prove to the world that they can come out on top in big international tournaments.  But can they really beat the Russian machine a third straight time at this event? 

I'm predicting a bronze medal for Russia here.  Join us in the comments for discussion and updates on the game.  I'll have a new post up for the gold medal game after this is finished.

Lots of news is coming out of the IIHF's Annual Congress this week, but this site always likes to highlight the growth of the game, so the news of new members into the IIHF are very much welcome.  Kyrgyzstan burst onto the international hockey scene this past year by detroying the Challenge Cup of Asia-level competition at the 2011 Asian Winter Games' Premier Division this past year, and building on that momentum the nation has been accepted into the IIHF as the organization's 70th member.  In addition to the Asian Winter Games Kyrgyzstan has had a national championship the past three seasons, teams in six cities, and three indoor rinks in the nation's capital of Bishkek.  I've previously linked to images from 2008 of a Kyrgyz championship played on an outdoor arena, to give you an idea of how far the sport has come in the past couple of years.  There are plans for Kyrgyzstan to build more indoor rinks (likely outside the capital) as well as launch a professional team, presumably to compete in a league with Kazakhstani teams. There is already one Bishkek based junior team that competes in Kazakhstan's championship.

Rarely has their been a member so qualified to enter the IIHF from the get go, and while we won't be seeing any Krygzystan teams participating in any World Championships in 2012, it shouldn't take long for that to happen. 

Also in a notable change was the upgrading of Argentina from affiliate to associate member status.  This might seem like some kind of technicality, but affiliate members have generally been reserved for countries that compete in InLine Hockey events only, so presumably Argentina's ice hockey infrastructure has been improved sufficiently enough to be recognized for both disciplines of the sport.  This means that there are officially recognized national federations for our sport on every habitable continent on the planet, as Argentina becomes the first nation of ice hockey from South America.  The website Fire and Flames offers some history to the development of the sport in Argentina, and pictures of the country's one Olympic sized outdoor ice hockey rink in Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world.

So welcome our two new nations of ice hockey!  Kyrgyzstan's federation website is now up, while Argentina has had one up for a while now, mainly in support of Ushuaia's "End of the World Cup" which takes place every June.

Back in 2009, the IIHF's Annual Congress accepted the bid of Belarus for the 2014 IIHF World Championships.  The bid recognized the country's growing presence in the international hockey community, and their desire to build some world class facilities to host such events in the capital city of Minsk.  There was little concern given towards the country's political status at the time, despite the fact that President Alexander Lukashenko had been in power for fifteen years at that point with relatively few democratic checks on his power.

But the Belarussian election of 2010 sparked a new wave of authoritarianism from the nation's leader, who himself is a huge hockey fan who still takes to the ice nearly every day.  The election officially stated an overwhelming 80% support for Lukashenko's regime, but has been deemed fraudulent by the international community.  Since the election, Lukashenko has taken to imprisoning opposition leaders and shutting down media outlets that support the opposition.  The clampdown has been brutal:  protesters have been beaten by the police, imprisoned and the trials against the protesters have been a farce.  Here is one account from the New York Times on the trial of Dmitri Medved, a 51 year old arrested in the protests:

Mr. Medved’s supposed victims were officers from the elite police special forces, or Spetsnaz, burly men with buzz cuts who are trained to thwart insurrection.

Human rights workers, independent journalists and international observers have accused them of pummeling unarmed demonstrators with clubs and bare fists at the protest, in some cases breaking limbs and cracking skulls.

In their testimony, however, the police officers portrayed themselves as having been besieged, though no photos or video have yet surfaced that show the police in such a position that night.

"The people pounced on us, punching us," said Aleksei Sakach, the first officer to speak. He said he lost his shield and his helmet in the fray, and had to seek medical attention for an injured left arm.

Others offered similar, sometimes identical, testimony.

Needless to say, President Lukaschenko has become an international pariah, and sanctions have now been imposed on his regime from the United States and European Union.  And now, the United States and the EU are looking to the IIHF to withdraw Belarus' winning bid for the 2014 World Championships, led by current Member of the European Parliament and Hockey Hall of Famer Peter Stastny.

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Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the fifth leg of this year's Euro Hockey Tour.  The top four European nations are the last four teams standing at the IIHF World Championships, after Russia took out Canada with a third period comeback to win 2-1 yesterday, while the Czechs, Swedes, and Finns all won their games as expected.  These teams are all very familiar with each other, as various incarnations of their national teams play in tournaments in each other's country throughout the year during the international breaks, before ending with the World Championships.  The Russians came out on top this past year, although the Czechs won the final leg of the tour on home ice in Brno, just before the Worlds opened.  Does any of that matter now?  No, but there are no secrets between these teams, even with the NHLers taking leading roles here.

Czech Republic vs. Sweden - 4:15 PM local, 10:15 AM EST

The defending champions are undefeated so far, have the support of the Bratislava crowd, and got to relive the glory days in their quarterfinal win over the USA, with 39 year old Jaromir Jagr dazzling the fans with a hat trick.  The top line of Roman Cervenka, Tomas Plekanec and Jagr seems almost impossible, but they haven't played Sweden yet.  Viktor Fästh has been the tournament's top goaltender to date, and this is the first time the Czechs have ever seen him, as he wasn't used in any of the Euro Hockey Tour tournaments at all.  Patrik Berglund has been starring for Sweden in the goal scoring department, but its been a lot of unheralded players chipping in that have pushed Sweden into the semifinals for the 11th straight year.  David Petrasek has been a rock on the blueline, while Niklas Persson, Robert Nilsson and Martin Thornberg have made big contributions up front. 

The Czechs right now look like a behemoth. The Swedes are a strong team, but they're going to need Fasth to play like he's back in Stockholm taking on HV71 in order to pull this off.  Which means its entirely possible.  Still, I'm expecting the Czechs to come out on top here.

Finland vs. Russia - 8:15 PM local, 2:15 PM EST

These teams just played yesterday, and this is a quick turnaround for them, especially Russia who had a more emotionally and physically demanding game against Canada than Finland did against Norway, so we'll see if fatigue sets in on their end.  The good news for Russia is that coach Vyacheslav Bykov likes to roll his lines, so no one player was overexerted, with only defender Ilya Nikulin clocking in at over 20 minutes against Canada (21:54).  Meanwhile, Finland built a three goal lead in the second period and were able to keep their stars from playing too much.  Mikko Koivu has been one of the busiest forwards during the entire tournament, but he only played 18:07 yesterday so he should be good to go, likely drawing an assignment against either Alex Ovechkin's line or Alexander Radulov and Ilya Kovalchuk's line.  In goal, Konstantin Barulin was the star for Russia against Canada, and will likely have to be sharp early as Finland will look to get the early jump.  Its doubtful that Jarkko Immonen will be able to score another one timer PP goal like he did twice against Norway, but Finland has enough other weapons in Tuomo Ruutu, Koivu, and Mikael Granlund to keep the pressure on Barulin.  Petri Vehanen also had a busy game against Norway, who came in waves against Finland in the quarterfinal.  Vehanen is familiar to a lot of the Russian shooters, having been the goalie for Ak Bars Kazan this past year. 

This is a tough call to make.  I picked Canada to beat Russia and go on to the final, but now that Russia is here I'm quite unsure which way to go.  Finland beat Russia earlier in the tournament, but it took a shootout to do so.  Finland has never beat Russia twice in the same tournament.  The rest factor favours Finland, but I'm just not sure about Finland's offensive punch.  And if the Russians win, they'll maintain the top spot in the world ranking.  But what the heck:  I'm taking Finland here.

Stick around all day in the comments section for discussion and updates of the games.