Photo Source: polskihokej.eu
Despite both senior teams being relegated this year, 2025 promises to be a big year for Polish hockey. We will have to see what impact the World Championship has on the sport’s growth, but plenty of numbers suggest both of Poland’s leagues were already on the rise. 2025 will also be the 100th anniversary of the formation of the Polish federation. The federation was founded on February 22nd, 1925, though they would not join the IIHF until about a year later, on January 11th, 1926. There is plenty to be excited about in the centennial year of Polish hockey, we wanted to highlight ten things to be optimistic about and to look forward to.
1. Julia Zielinska Makes NCAA History
When Julia Zielinska makes her debut with Bemidji State University, she will be the first Polish women’s player to play in America’s top level of college hockey. Polish players in the NCAA are rare overall, as she will only be the fourth Polish player ever to suit up in the top level of college hockey. Women’s hockey in Poland continues to grow at a fast pace. Zielinska has been a star defender for Kiekko-Espoo in the Naisten Liiga since 2020. The Hockey News recently did a profile on the history-making 19-year-old defensewoman.
2. Men’s U16 Squad wins back-to-back Riga Cups.
Poland’s U16 team won their second straight Riga Cup, beating teams from Sweden, Latvia, and Finland. This is the third consecutive year they have been in the finals. The success at the U16 level suggests a strong wave of talent is coming for Poland at the junior ranks in the upcoming years, and we have already started to see some of those players hit the U18 and U20 national teams. A big part of their success is due to their head coach who is making his own waves.
3. Tobiasz Bigos To Coach in Finland
A rising star in the Polish coaching ranks, former JKH GKS Jastrzebie defenseman Tobiasz Bigos will now be working in Finland. Bigos has led the Polish U16 squad and youth Olympic teams since the 2020 season. During that time, he also studied and worked with junior teams in Finland. For the 2024 season, he will work with the U16 squad of Ilves. IIves’ top club plays in the Liiga and has developed several notable players, including current NHLers Roope Hintz, Juuso Välimäki, and Joona Koppanen. Just as I advocate for Polish players to go abroad, it is good for Polish coaches to go and learn and work in top hockey countries. Last year, another Polish coach, Hubert Demkowicz, worked in Sweden with Järna SK J20.
4. Men’s U18 Gold and Promotion
The only national team to win gold and earn promotion in 2024 was the Men’s U18 squad, which moved up from Division 2 Group A to Division 1 Group B. In recent years, the U18 squad has been a tweener team at the U18 level, bouncing back and forth between divisions 1 and 2. It was a great team last year, and many players will still be eligible for the squad in 2025. Our 2024 tournament recap goes more in-depth, but this team only allowed a single goal over their last four games. It will be exciting to see this squad compete at the next level, especially with the flux of talent coming from the previously mentioned Riga Cup-winning U16 squads.
5. Hockey Prodigy Malgorzata Zakrzewska is IIHF eligible
If you don’t know Malgorzata Zakrzewska’s name, you will soon. The 14-year-old has been dominating the senior league in Poland since she was 12. Over the past two seasons, she has 118 points (72G-46A-118PTS) in 34 games. 118 is the most points in the TLHK by any player during that time. This year, her dominance extended to the European Women’s Hockey League, where she posted 12 points (9G-3A-12PTS) in 20 games. It was the most ever recorded by a player under 14 in the league. She wasn’t eligible for IIHF play during this whole time frame, as you have to be 15. Malgorzata Zakrzewska turns 15 on January 28th, making her eligible for the Women’s U18s and senior World Championship.
6. Poland Back in the Champions Hockey League
While Poland’s senior national teams won’t be in the top division of international hockey, we still will see Polish players face off with Europe’s best. By winning the 2023-24 THL championship, Unia Oswiecim qualified for the Champions Hockey League (CHL). Polish clubs were initially cut from the competition in 2024, but the CHL changed the challenger league format. The CHL is a competition of the best European clubs competing against each other in a six-game regular season, followed by a playoff for the top sixteen clubs. In the draw, Oswiecim received an excellent outcome. The club will get to host the German champions Eisbären Berlin (DEL), Austrian champions Red Bull Salzburg (ICEHL), and the Straubing Tigers (DEL). For their away games, the team will face Czech Champions Oceláři Třinec (Tipsport Extraliga), Ilves Tampere (Liiga), and KAC Klagenfurt (ICHL).
7. Two IIHF Events in Poland
The CHL games are just some of the big games Poland will be hosting. Poland and, specifically, Bytom will host both events where the women’s squads will play. They will kick off the IIHF calendar for Poland with the women’s U18s from January 7th to the 13th. The senior team will play in Bytom from April 7th to the 13th. The senior World Championship will be a special event as most of the senior national team plays for Bytom. Over 1,400 fans attended the final game between Bytom and Janow at this year’s TLHK finals. See Poland’s full IIHF tournament schedule for 2025 here.
8. A Match With Canada?
As part of the hundred-year celebration, in an interview with SportMarketing.pl, PZHL federation Mirosław Minkina expressed his desire to have a match with Canada. Canada played Hungary in a game in the lead-up to this year’s World Championship after Hungary won promotion from the Division 1 Group A World Championship. That would likely be the time for the game, as Canada doesn’t play warmup matches for the Spengler Cup, their only other international trip to Europe. The Division 1 Group A tournament ends May 3rd, while the World Championship begins May 9th. Canada could schedule a warm-up game in Poland during that couple-day window.
9. Growing Attendance and Money
The quality of play in the THL has been rising for some time now, thanks to the no-limit policy on import players. The European Alliance of Hockey Clubs released their annual attendance report about European and Asian hockey leagues. The Tauron Hockey League now sits in 13th place, up two spots from the 2023 ranking. The alliance reported that THL average attendance was up to 1,218, an increase of 39.84%. The only league that experienced a larger growth in attendance this year was Finland’s second league, the Mestis, with a 54.4% increase. Poland almost doubled their media advertising value in 2024, going from $22.2 million to $39.5 million.
10. Import Support
The last point may be controversial, but Poland is poised to add new depth to the national team. GKS Katowice forward Ben Sokay will look to join the national team at the end of the year. The Canadian forward with Polish roots was a crucial part of Katowice’s third straight playoff run with 17 goals and 20 assists. Another player who aims to represent Poland is 19-year-old Tomasz Szczerba. Born in Toronto to Polish parents, he came to Podhale in November last season. Among U20 skaters, his six points were four more than any other young skater. He previously played in the QMJHL and the top German junior league; if he is eligible, he will be a big boost for Poland at the U20 World Championship. There are a few other players Poland may look to add, and we will have to confirm them as they come.
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