Norway men's national ice hockey team

Norway prior to the 1937 World Championships, their first international tournament. They finished in ninth place.

The Norwegian Ice Hockey Association (NIHA) was founded in 1934 and, adopting the international rules and regulations of ice hockey, became a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation in 1935.[2][3] Poor finances delayed the formation of a national team until 1937, and continued to hamper its development in the years prior to World War II. After missing out on the 1935 World Championships and 1936 Winter Olympics, the NIHF managed to raise enough funds to send a team to London for the 1937 World Championships. The national ice hockey team thus played its first game on 17 February 1937, losing 0–7 to Czechoslovakia, and was eliminated from the competition following a 2–13 loss to Switzerland.[4] Norway also took part in the next tournament in 1938, but was unable to participate in 1939. Results remained meagre throughout the pre-war years; of the nine international fixtures contested between 1937 and 1940, the closest Norway came to winning was 3–4 in the first game against Sweden, on 20 January 1939.[5]

After the war, ice hockey in Norway accelerated as new teams formed and improvements in infrastructure were made. The opening of the Jordal Amfi in Oslo made Norway's facilities state of the art.[6] Results began to improve on the international stage, though not before Norway had endured its worst defeat ever at the hands of Finland in 1947.

The period from 1949 to 1953 has been viewed as a "golden age" in the history of the national team, beginning with the maiden victory, a 2–0 win over Belgium at the 1949 World Championships. In 1951, the NIHF appointed Canadian Bud McEachern as head coach. McEachern brought a physical style which suited the players of the generation well,[7] and at the 1951 World Championships, Norway defeated the United States and Great Britain to finish fourth overall. Norway's inaugural Olympic tournament, was as host nation of the 1952 Winter Olympics. In 1953, Norway was the first Western nation to play the Soviet Union, overshadowed by the death of Joseph Stalin shortly after the team's arrival in Moscow.

Norway would continue during the 1950s to challenge the strongest national hockey teams. From the 1960s, the sport became more popular in the nation but national team achievements would decline as mild winters did not result in government support to construct artificial ice rinks to replace what had traditionally been relied on in the past due to weather conditions.[8] NIHA president Tore Johannessen managed Norway at the 1962 Ice Hockey World Championships.[9] After the 1965 World Championships, Norway was no longer allowed to compete at the highest level, and the NIHF resigned itself to competing at the top of Pool B instead.[8] Qualifying for the Winter Olympics was still within reach, however, and Norway managed to do so in both 1964 and 1968.

Norway would be relegated to Pool C after finishing in last place in Pool B of the 1972 World Championships. The NIHF was forced to revise its objectives; not to return to Pool A, but merely to survive in Pool B. The goal of qualifying for the Winter Olympics remained throughout this period, but after another stint in Pool C in 1975, the ice hockey tournament at the 1976 Winter Olympics went ahead without Norway's participation.[8]

In the 1970s, the unwillingness of the government to support the sport with improved training facilities encouraged a growing reluctance among players to represent Norway internationally.[8] This trend was finally reversed under the leadership of Georg Smefjell and Olav Dalsøren from 1978 to 1980. Smefjell and Dalsøren succeeded in reestablishing Norway competing internationally. At the 1979 World Championships, Norway finished fourth in Pool B and qualified for the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid. There, the team showed encouraging signs for the future, despite losing heavily against the top tier nations and eventually coming away from the tournament with only a single point.[10]

Game between France and Norway at Patinoire Pôle Sud in 2013.

The appointment of Ronald Pettersson as head coach in 1980 heralded an era of Swedish influence on Norway's international ice hockey. For the next nine years, four Swedish coaches in a row took charge of a team that proved to be highly unstable. For Pettersson, the 1981 World Championships were a disappointment. Wins against Yugoslavia and Japan were barely enough to avoid relegation from Pool B. His successor, Arne Strömberg, experienced similar difficulties. At the 1982 World Championships, an otherwise strong performance was blighted by losses against newly promoted China and Austria.[10]

The next Swedish import was Hans Westberg in 1982, whose unorthodox methods lead Norway to the 1984 Winter Olympics. Expectations ahead of the Olympic tournament were only partially met, the 3–3 draw against the United States being the most notable result.[10][11] The following season, while initially promising, ended in catastrophe at the 1985 World Championships as Norway dropped out of Pool B for the third time.[12]

Norway stabilized itself in the lower half of Pool A in the 1990s, but the team was relegated again in 1997. After a spell with Swedish coach Leif Boork, Roy Johansen was hired in 2001. A new era of slow, but steady, growth began and Norway climbed thirteen places in the IIHF World Ranking during Johansen's reign, from a 21st place in 2004, to an 8th place in 2012. Johansen stepped down as head coach in 2016 and was replaced by Petter Thoresen.

Updated as of 23 May 2023. Defunt teams are listed in italics.

Opponent	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	GF	GA	GD
Austria	54	31	5	18	197	139	+58
Belarus	39	12	4	23	91	114	−23
Belgium	5	5	0	0	58	7	+51
Bulgaria	5	4	1	0	31	11	+20
Canada	84	5	4	75	142	487	−345
China	11	9	1	1	93	20	+73
Croatia	4	4	0	0	36	5	+31
Czech Republic	31	1	2	28	33	121	−88
Czechoslovakia	18	0	0	18	23	141	−118
Denmark	94	45	9	40	302	234	+68
East Germany	68	12	4	52	200	363	−163
Estonia	2	1	0	1	4	2	+2
Finland	97	8	5	84	147	494	−347
France	97	58	14	25	335	225	+110
Germany	49	14	2	33	145	238	−93
Great Britain	21	16	1	4	113	55	+58
Hungary	25	14	3	8	99	59	+40
Italy	46	26	3	17	167	132	+35
Japan	38	16	8	14	159	131	+28
Kazakhstan	7	3	1	3	21	18	+3
Latvia	40	16	0	24	108	130	−22
Lithuania	3	2	0	1	15	8	+7
Netherlands	42	25	6	11	200	130	+70
Poland	77	31	7	39	243	316	−73
Romania	31	15	3	13	134	112	+22
Russia	18	1	1	16	25	75	−50
Serbia and Montenegro	1	1	0	0	21	0	+21
Slovakia	35	7	2	26	65	131	−66
Slovenia	16	8	1	7	50	44	+6
South Korea	6	6	0	0	31	6	+25
Soviet Union	13	0	0	13	14	115	−101
Spain	1	1	0	0	18	3	+15
Sweden	96	2	11	83	139	527	−388
Switzerland	76	26	5	45	221	289	−68
Ukraine	9	3	1	5	26	27	−1
United States	44	5	3	36	106	246	−140
Yugoslavia	28	18	5	5	155	97	+58
Total	1 324	451	112	767	3 969	5 248	−1 279

• National team jerseys
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• Langholm, Dag (1984). Norsk ishockey gjennom 50 år. Norwegian Ice Hockey Association.

• Official website
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• National Teams of Ice Hockey