Ice hockey is among the most popular indoor sporting events and has existed since 1875. The IIHF will host the 86th Men’s Ice Hockey World Championships in late spring 2023. The tournament is unquestionably the most significant event in international ice hockey. 

Additionally, whenever a global event comes around, sportsbooks pay extra attention. This also attracts new bettors who are constantly searching for valid hockey betting tips and platforms where they can safely wager. 

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Let’s look at some exciting teams in this year’s tournament, beginning with Division IV and working our way up to the Championship tier.

Division IV: Indonesia

The Indonesian men’s national squad has previously competed in the Challenge Cup of Asia. Still, it has never appeared in an IIHF competition or the Olympics. This year, however, they will compete in the DIV tournament of the IIHF. 

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Division III: Hong Kong

Kyrgyzstan claimed the 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship Division III Group B in dominant fashion in Sarajevo, Bosnia, and Herzegovina, to seal back-to-back gold medals for the nation.

Kyrgyzstan’s golden generation is on a roll after finishing first in Division IV at home in Bishkek last season. The men’s national team of the Kyrgyz Republic, led by Mikhail Chekanov, was ferocious in front of the net, scoring 76 goals and allowing only five.

Another Notable Team in DIII:

Hong Kong boasts one of the most fascinating teams in the IIHF. As a unique country with many international inhabitants, the Hong Kong squad had many American and Canadian stars moonlight on its roster during the 1980s and 1990s—but no teams could contend in the tournament. The Hong Kong squad returned to the IIHF in 2014. They’ve competed in DIII since then.

Division II: Georgia

The Georgian men’s national ice hockey team is generating much buzz as one of the IIHF’s youngest squads. Georgia is rated 43rd in the world as of 2022. Yet, given that they competed in their inaugural IIHF tournament in 2013, the team is thrilling to watch. They advanced from DIII to DII after only five years of play in 2018.

Division I: Poland

In the 1980s, the core of the Polish men’s national ice hockey team consisted of players from Canada, Sweden and the Soviet Union, the top teams at the time. Though they never advanced past sixth place in the international rankings, the team has a lot of admirers, and with their recent promotion back into the DI category. Moreover, many individuals anticipate they can play at a high level again.

Championship: Kazakhstan

The Kazakh national men’s hockey squad has not won an IIHF championship since entering the organization in 1992. They are, nevertheless, one of the tournament’s leading underdogs in the first division. So far, the team’s highest IIHF result was a tenth-place finish in 2021. While the squad has alternated between the Championship and the IIHF’s DI level, they have a winning international record improving each passing year. Under the leadership of head coach Yuri Mikhailis, who has been in command of the team since 2020, several analysts view the squad as a competitive underdog.