Buffalo 2025 Team Preview: Get to know Czechia

The 2025 World Para Ice Hockey Championships A-Pool will take place from 24-31 May Buffalo, United States. Hosted in conjunction with USA Hockey at LECOM Harborcenter, the tournament will feature three days of group play followed by three days of playoff contests. The top five finishers from the event will earn qualification spots for the Milano-Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games. The bottom three finishers will be forced to compete at the Paralympic Winter Games Qualification Tournament that will take place later in 2025.

Here is all you need to know about Czechia.

Background 

Since finishing a disappointing sixth place at the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympics, Czechia has bounced back big time with two consecutive bronze medal finishes at the World Championships — its first two podium finishes in history at the event. Both of the last two seasons, Czechia has defeated China by a score of 3-2 in the bronze-medal game. Czechia will now skate for a fifth consecutive Paralympic Winter Games slot and aim to see if it can get even higher on the podium.

World Championships History

2024: Bronze (A-Pool) 
2023: Bronze (A-Pool)
2021: 5th place (A-Pool)
2019: 4th place (A-Pool)
2017: Gold (B-Pool)
2015: 7th place (A-Pool)
2013: 4th place (A-Pool)
2012: 4th place (A-Pool)
2009: 5th place (A-Pool)
2008: Silver (B-Pool)

📊 FINAL SCORE 🏒

🇨🇳 China 2 - 3 Czechia 🇨🇿

🥉 @parahockeycz take Bronze here for the second year in a row, here in Calgary!

📈 LIVE RESULTS: https://t.co/ZNnzwoFQv8@HockeyCanada | @ParaSport | #Calgary2024 | #ParaIceHockey pic.twitter.com/xT1ORHPNlR

— Para Ice Hockey (@paraicehockey) May 12, 2024

Athlete to Watch

Filip Vesely may not be a Para ice hockey player you heard of until he led Czechia with six points, including four goals, at last year’s World Championships. He’s only 23 years old and is turning into a future face of the sport. He has been playing Para ice hockey since he was nine years old and earlier this season scored the game-winning overtime goal in a wild overtime win against China at the Para Hockey Cup.

Matchup to Watch 

Czechia will enter its biggest challenge on Tuesday, 27 May when it plays six-time world champion and five-time Paralympic winner USA on their home ice. Czechia only lost to the U.S. by two goals in last year’s semifinals — a major improvement from the six-goal gap it had against the U.S. at the 2023 World Championships in the group stage. It will look to continue to close that gap and perhaps eek out a surprise victory this time around.

Game Schedule

Saturday, 24 May
10:00 - Czechia vs. Slovakia

Sunday, 25 May
10:00 - Czechia vs. Norway

Tuesday, 27 May
13:30 - USA vs. Czechia

More information about the Buffalo 2025 World Para Ice Hockey Championships can be found here.