Women's ice hockey in Sweden

Ice hockey is one of Sweden's most popular sports and participation in women's ice hockey is increasing; the number of registered women's ice hockey players in Sweden increased from 3,425 in 2011 to 5,973 in 2020.[1]

2013 Swedish Championship winners AIK IF Dam
Country Sweden
Governing bodySwedish Ice Hockey Association
National team(s)
First played
  • Organized game, 1969
  • National Championship (unofficial), 1984–85
  • National team game, 1987
  • Swedish Championship, 1987–88
Registered players5,973 (2020)
National competitions
International competitions

History

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The first organized women's ice hockey game in Sweden was played in 1969 between Modo AIK and Timrå IK.[2] The Swedish women's national team played its first games in April 1987, during the 1987 Women's World Tournament in Ontario, Canada.[3]

The first, unofficial National Championship was played in 1985. Three unofficial championships were held, in 1984–85, 1985–86, and 1986–87. The championships were played with round-robin tournament structure. Nacka HK won the National Championship title in all three seasons.[4]

The Swedish Ice Hockey Association (SIF) established the first, official Swedish Championship for the 1987–88 season. Division 1 served as the qualifying league for the Swedish Championship. This league had a variable number of teams distributed into some small regional leagues, followed by a national playoff.

During the 2007–08 season, the best Division 1 teams qualified for a new league, the Riksserien (‘National Series’), which became the top-tier league. Division 1 became the second level of women's hockey in Sweden. The Riksserien comprised eight teams. Each team would face the seven opposing teams in four games, two at home and two away. The top two teams at the end of the regular season would qualify for the semi-finals. The teams classified in third to sixth place would each play a three-game playoff qualifying series. In the semifinals, the match for the third place and final depend on a simple match. The teams ranked seventh and eighth at the end of the regular season would face the top two from Division 1 in a promotion/relegation series to remain in the Swedish Women's Hockey League or be relegated Division 1

The Riksserien was reorganized and rebranded as the Svenska damhockeyligan (SDHL, lit.'Swedish Women's Hockey League') prior to the 2016–17 season. The change was meant to increase public interest and sponsorship of the teams by branding the league in the style of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) and to encourage SHL teams to promote their sister teams.

Domestic league structure

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  1. Swedish Women's Hockey League (SDHL; Swedish: Svenska damhockeyligan), organized by the Swedish Ice Hockey Association
    • 10 teams
    • 36 games in regular season
    • Playoffs for top eight teams, winner is named Swedish Ice Hockey Champion
    • Bottom two teams progress to qualifiers against top teams from Nationella Damhockeyligan, relegation to NDHL DamEttan is possible
  2. Nationella Damhockeyligan (NDHL; lit.'National Women's Hockey League'), comprises multiple stages of play that are organized by regional organs of the SIF (NDHL DamEttan) or by the Swedish Ice Hockey Association itself (Dam HockeyAllsvenskan)
    • 25 teams began the 2022–23 season in the NDHL DamEttan regional series, split into four geographic divisions: Norra (North), Östra (East), Södra (South), and Västra (West)
      • NDHL DamEttan Norra: 5 teams (30 games per team)
      • NDHL DamEttan Östra: 6 teams (14 games per team)
      • NDHL DamEttan Södra: 8 teams (21 games per team)
      • NDHL DamEttan Västra: 7 teams (20 games per team)
    • Two teams from the top of each division move on to the Dam HockeyAllsvenskan, and are grouped geographically in two divisions: Norra and Södra
      • Dam HockeyAllsvenskan Norra: 4 teams (6 games per team)
      • Dam HockeyAllsvenskan Södra: 4 teams (6 games per team)
    • Playoffs for top-three teams from each Dam HockeyAllsvenskan division, plus the top-two teams from regional qualification (Swedish: regionalt förkval); uses the Dam HockeyAllsvenskan two-division structure and two league champions are named each season
    • Dam HockeyAllsvenskan champions proceed to qualifiers against the bottom teams from SDHL, in which promotion to SDHL is possible
    • Team finishing the regular season with the fewest points of any team in the league is relegated to DamTvåan
  3. DamTvåan, organized by regional organs of the Swedish Ice Hockey Association
    • 15 teams in the 2019–20 season, split into three geographic regions: Södra (South), Västra (West), and Norra (North)
      • DamTvåan Södra: 4 teams
      • DamTvåan Västra: 7 teams
      • DamTvåan Norra: 4 teams
    • Number of games in regular season varies by region, from 6–12 games in 2019–20 regular season
      • DamTvåan, Region Norr: 6 games
      • DamTvåan Västra: 12 games
      • DamTvåan, Region Syd: 9 games
    • Team finishing the regular season with the most points of any team in the league gains promotion to NDHL DamEttan
  4. Various local and district-level recreational leagues, regulated by the Swedish Ice Hockey Association but generally overseen by constituent entities

Swedish Championship

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Results

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Season Champion Runner-up Score Bronze
National Championship (Riksmästerskapet)[a]
1984–85 Nacka HK Modo AIK round-robin Diö GoIF
1985–86 Nacka HK Danderyds SK round-robin Modo AIK
1986–87 Nacka HK Modo AIK round-robin Diö GoIF
Swedish Championship (Svenska mästerskapet)
1987–88 Nacka HK FoC Farsta 11–0 Modo Hockey
1988–89 Nacka HK Modo Hockey 3–2 Alvesta SK
1989–90 Nacka HK Alvesta SK 7–0 FoC Farsta
1990–91 Nacka HK Alvesta SK 9–0 FoC Farsta
1991–92 Nacka HK FoC Farsta 3–1 Brynäs IF
1992–93 Nacka HK FoC Farsta 4–3 Vallentuna BK
1993–94 Nacka HK FoC Farsta 3–0 Brynäs IF
1994–95 Foc Farsta Nacka HK 5–1 Västerhaninge IF
1995–96 Nacka HK FoC Farsta 6–5 Västerhaninge IF
1996–97 Foc Farsta Västerhaninge IF 4–3 Nacka HK
1997–98 Nacka HK FoC Farsta 3–0 Veddige HK
1998–99 M/B Hockey AIK IF 8–1 Modo Hockey
1999–00 M/B Hockey AIK IF 4–3 Veddige HK
2000–01 M/B Hockey AIK IF 6–3 Modo Hockey
2001–02 M/B Hockey Modo Hockey 9–1 AIK IF
2002–03 M/B Hockey AIK IF 7–3 Modo Hockey
2003–04 AIK IF Limhamn Limeburners HC 5–2 M/B Hockey
2004–05 M/B Hockey AIK IF 4–3 Modo Hockey
2005–06 M/B Hockey Modo Hockey 2–1 Örebro HK
2006–07 AIK IF Segeltorps IF 2–1 OT Modo Hockey
Riksserien
2007–08 Segeltorps IF AIK IF 5–2 Modo Hockey
2008–09 AIK IF Segeltorps IF 5–0 Modo Hockey
2009–10 Segeltorps IF Brynäs IF 6–0 Modo Hockey
2010–11 Segeltorps IF Brynäs IF 2–1 OT Modo Hockey
2011–12 Modo Hockey Brynäs IF 1–0 Segeltorps IF
2012–13 AIK IF Brynäs IF 2–1 [b]
2013–14 Linköpings HC Modo HK 3–2 OT
2014–15 Linköpings HC AIK IF 5–0
2015–16 Luleå HF Linköpings HC 4–1
Swedish Women's Hockey League (Svenska damhockeyligan)
2016–17 Djurgårdens IF HV71 2–0
2017–18 Luleå HF Linköpings HC 2–0
2018–19 Luleå HF Linköpings HC 3–2
2019–20 Playoffs cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Sweden

Notes:

  1. ^ The National Championship (Riksmästerskapet) was played for three seasons before the introduction of the Swedish Championship by the Swedish Ice Hockey Association in 1987. The National Championships are widely regarded as unofficial Swedish Championships.
  2. ^ Bronze medals were officially awarded from 1988 until 2012, at which time the playoff system was restructured. Since the 2012–13 season, no bronze medals have been awarded.

All-time medal count

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Updated 1 August 2020

Team       Total
1 Nacka HK 9 1 1 11
2 M/B Hockey 7 0 1 8
3 AIK IF 4 6 1 11
4 Segeltorps IF 3 2 0 5
5 Luleå HF/MSSK 3 0 0 3
6 FOC Farsta 2 6 2 10
7 MODO Hockey 1 4 9 14
8 Linköpings HC 1 2 1 4
9 Djurgården IF 1 0 0 1
10 Brynäs IF 0 4 2 6
11 Alvesta SK 0 2 1 3
12 Västerhaninge IF 0 1 2 3
13 Limhamn HC 0 1 0 1
13 HV71 0 1 0 1
15 Veddige HK 0 0 2 2
16 Vallentuna BK 0 0 1 1
16 Örebro HUF 0 0 1 1

Teams 2010–11

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Riksserien

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Division I Region South A

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Division I Region South B

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Division I Region West

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Division I Region East

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Division I Region North

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Tournaments

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The following are IIHF tournaments that were hosted in Sweden.

Event Location Finish
2003 4 Nations Cup Skövde Fourth
2004–05 IIHF European Women's Champions Cup Solna   Gold for AIK IF
2005 Women's World Ice Hockey Championships Linköping, Norrköping   Bronze[5]
2005–06 IIHF European Women's Champions Cup Solna   Gold for AIK IF
2006–07 IIHF European Women's Champions Cup Katrineholm   Gold for AIK IF
2007 4 Nations Cup Leksand Fourth
2007–08 IIHF European Women's Champions Cup Vallentuna   Gold for AIK IF
2011 IIHF World Women's U18 Championship Stockholm, Sweden No medal

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Sweden". IIHF. Retrieved 2 January 2011.
  2. ^ Eric Westlund, Anki Haglund (21 October 2013). "Som att möta en gammal släkting" (in Swedish). Sundsvalls tidning. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
  3. ^ "Matches internationaux féminins 1986/87" (in French). Hockeyarchives. 21 April 1987. Retrieved 17 March 2011.
  4. ^ "SM för damer sedan starten 1988" (PDF). swehockey.se (in Swedish). Swedish Ice Hockey Association. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  5. ^ Collins Gem Hockey Facts and Stats 2009–10, p.540, Andrew Podnieks, Harper Collins Publishers Ltd, Toronto, Canada, ISBN 978-1-55468-621-6
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