In senior IIHF play, the Czech Republic has undeniable bragging rights as the winner of the inaugural “NHL Olympics” in 1998. It’s also the only country to earn three straight IIHF World Championship gold medals (1999-2001) in the post-Soviet era.

Now, at the World Juniors, Czech hockey history doesn’t glisten quite that brightly. On the other hand, the 2020 host nation still has plenty of proud U20 accomplishments. And who knows? That list may expand depending on what happens in Ostrava and Trinec leading up to the final on 5 January.

Here are 10 big Czech World Junior moments.

1) First Tournament, First Medal (1977)

After three unofficial U20 world championships from 1974 to 1976, Czechoslovakia got the honour of hosting the inaugural World Juniors. The tournament was an early feather in the cap of then-IIHF President Dr. Gunther Sabetzki, who led the organization from 1975 to 1994. Games took place in the neighbouring Slovak towns of Zvolen and Banska Bystrica.

While the tournament didn’t enjoy the high profile it does today, the Czechs played hard alongside their Slovak brothers and claimed a bronze medal behind the golden Soviets and silver Canadians.

In his first of three straight World Juniors, the 17-year-old Jan Hrabak was named Best Goalie with a 1.85 GAA, and future Brno captain Lubomir Oslizlo made the all-star team on defence. Noteworthy forwards on the roster included Jiri Hrdina and Jiri Lala.

2) Taking the Next Step with Silver (1979)

In the Swedish cities of Karlstad and Karlskoga, Ladislav Horsky got a nice present in his third and final World Juniors behind the bench. The Slovak coach got a character effort out of his Czechoslovak squad in the championship round, including ties against the Swedes (1-1) and the eventual Soviet champions (2-2). The latter was the only point conceded by the Russians, who featured all-stars Vladimir Krutov and Alexei Kasatonov.

Czechoslovakia held off Finland in a wild 6-5 win to nip Sweden for the silver medal. Later that year, Horsky led Slovan Bratislava to its first championship. He sadly passed away in 1983 at age 56, and was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2004.

3) Historic Blowout of Austria (1981)

Austria’s World Junior debut in West Germany was rough, and Czechoslovakia just made it rougher. The day after the Soviets demolished the Austrians 19-1 in Augsburg, the Czechoslovaks set a single-game record for most goals with a 21-4 triumph in Fussen. The record stands to this day.

Coach Jozef Golonka’s boys didn’t take their proverbial foot off the proverbial Skoda gas pedal, outscoring their opponents 9-0 in the third period.

4) Ruzicka Leads the Way (1983)

In the 1980’s, no World Junior nation settled for the silver medal more often than Czechoslovakia (1982, 1983, 1985, 1987). So what made the 1983 tournament in Leningrad special? Primarily, it was the coming-out party for forward Vladimir Ruzicka. “Rosie” led the World Juniors in points (20) and set a new tournament goals record (12). No one equalled it until Pavel Bure in 1991 or beat it until Markus Naslund (13) in 1993.

Ruzicka went on to even greater IIHF glory. As a player, he won gold at the 1985 Worlds and captained the Czechs to victory at the 1998 Nagano Olympics. As a coach, he masterminded the golden 2005 and 2010 Worlds runs.

Speaking of future Nagano heroes, 1983 also marked legendary goalie Dominik Hasek’s World Junior debut. A crazy 7-7 tie with bronze-medalist Canada included four future Hockey Hall of Famers: Hasek, Mario Lemieux, Steve Yzerman, and Dave Andreychuk.

5) What a Line! What a Line! (1990)

With a top line of Bobby Holik, Robert Reichel, and Jaromir Jagr, it’s hard to believe Czechoslovakia didn’t bring home the title from the 1990 World Juniors in Finland. Powerful and skillful, the budding stars combined for 50 points. Reichel led the tournament with 21 points; Jagr was second (18); and Holik was fifth (11). Still, the Czechoslovaks finished third behind Canada and the Soviets.

6) Gold at Long Last (2000)

In 1972, Bobby Holik’s father Jaroslav played a huge role on the World Championship squad that ended the Soviet Union’s unprecedented run of nine straight world titles. Befittingly, as a 57-year-old head coach, Jaroslav Holik also brought a Midas touch to the 2000 World Junior team.

This was the golden age of Czech hockey. Czech teams prospered with a commitment to stifling team defence, taking away the neutral zone and capitalizing on the counterattack. This group, paced offensively by Milan Kraft (5+7=12), was no exception. Weirdly, the only nation to get more than two goals on the Czechs was Kazakhstan in a 6-3 quarter-final loss.

In the ultra-tight final in Skelleftea, Sweden, Libor Pivko’s shootout tally gave Holik’s team a 1-0 win over Russia and the first gold medal in Czech World Junior history. Future 790-game NHLer Martin Havlat, then 18, enjoyed his finest IIHF season ever, adding a second gold at the 2000 Worlds in St. Petersburg.

7) The Reign Continues (2001)

Who is the only goalie in World Junior history to win seven straight games? If you guessed Carey Price, Andrei Vasilevski, or John Gibson, you’re wrong. It’s Tomas Duba.

After sitting on the bench at the 2000 World Juniors, the Prague native was both exceptionally alert and well-protected at the 2001 tournament in Moscow. Duba posted a 1.14 GAA and 94.7 save percentage en route to a second straight gold medal under Jaroslav Holik. Now 38, Duba never suited up again in IIHF competition, but his pro career has taken him to countries like Italy, Germany, and Korea. This year, he’s the Sheffield Steelers starter in Great Britain.

The 2001 squad, which defeated Finland 2-1 in the final, had plenty of future NHLers. Rostislav Klesla and Pavel Brendl were named tournament all-stars, and Tomas Plekanec, Radim Vrbata, and Martin Erat also suited up.

8) Last Medal in Lockout Year (2005)

Due to the season-long NHL work stoppage, the 2005 World Junior rosters were absolutely loaded. Canada, including Sidney Crosby, Patrice Bergeron, and Corey Perry, claimed a 6-1 gold-medal victory over Russia, which had Alexander Ovechkin and Yevgeni Malkin. 

The Czechs weren’t quite that deep, which, in retrospect, makes their bronze-medal run even more impressive. Granted, coach Alois Hadamczik iced forwards like David Krejci, Boston’s future two-time NHL playoff scoring leader (2011, 2013), and Roman Cervenka, who would top the Czech Extraliga in points (2010) and the KHL in goals (2011).

However, in 2005, it was Rostislav Olesz who tied Ovechkin and Jeff Carter for the World Junior goals lead (seven). Petr Vrana notched the 3-2 overtime winner against the Americans in the bronze-medal game in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Goalie Marek Schwarz earned an all-star berth with his 2.15 GAA and 92.4 save percentage.

Since then, the Czechs have never returned to the medal podium.

9) Introducing Mr. Mrazek (2012)

Today, Petr Mrazek is the number one goalie of the Carolina Hurricanes. But during the 2012 World Juniors in Alberta, he made himself number one in the hearts of Czech fans. Coach Miroslav Prerost’s team was regularly outshot and outchanced by elite opponents, and the acrobatic Ostrava native kept them alive. He dazzled with 52 stops in a 5-2 upset over the U.S.

The Czechs finished in fifth place with another 5-2 win over Slovakia, and Mrazek was named Best Goalie and a tournament all-star. 

10) Zadina Brings Some Zip (2018)

For the Czechs, the World Juniors in Buffalo began with extraordinary promise and ended on a disappointing note. They fell 7-2 to Canada in the semi-finals and 9-3 to the Americans in the bronze medal game.

However, this fourth-place finish was the best Czech result since 2005, and it also spotlighted Filip Zadina’s sniper skills. The Pardubice-born winger keyed the attack with a big power play goal in the opening 5-4 win over Russia and the equalizer with 2:26 left in the 4-3 quarter-final shootout victory over Finland, among other contributions.

The future Detroit Red Wings prospect totalled seven goals and an assist. Zadina became the first Czech named to a tournament all-star team since Mrazek in 2012.