Canada held on to top spot in the IIHF World Rankings while several other nations saw their ranking rise or fall.
Canada held on to top spot in the IIHF World Rankings while several other nations saw their ranking rise or fall.
Despite falling to Team USA at the most recent IIHF World Championships, Canada held on to the #1 ranking in the IIHF's World Rankings.
According to the IIHF, the Rankings are a "tool to reflect the long-term quality of the countries' national team program."
Following Canada, USA remained in the second spot, but the rest of the top five changed. Rounding out the top five nations in the world, Switzerland climbed to third, while Finland fell one spot to fourth, and Czechia entered the top five rising a single spot to fifth.
In the top ten, Germany climbed one spot, trading places with Hungary, to ninth.
From the recent Division 1A World Championships, China earned a two place boost to 14th, while Norway fell two places to 15th.
Farther down the ladder, Australia, Lithuania, and Belgium all saw multi-spot boosts in their international rankings.
On the women's side, 44 nations are ranked, with Israel sitting 44th. The men's side also released their World Rankings with Canada on top. The men's bracket has 58 nations and added two members - Mongolia and Indonesia - this year.