List of international ice hockey competitions featuring NHL players

The following is a list of international ice hockey competitions where National Hockey League players have been able to participate. Most of these competitions were arranged by the NHL or NHLPA.

Summit Series

Main article: Summit Series

The Summit Series was an eight game challenge series between the Soviet National Team and a Canadian professional team.

In the 1972 Summit Series, the Canadian team was made up of NHL hockey players. No World Hockey Association players were included in the event. Two years later, Canadian WHA players competed in the 1974 Summit Series and were defeated by the Soviets. There were however, some former NHLers playing for the WHA in the series.

Year	Winner	Runner-up
1972	Canada	Soviet Union
1974	Soviet Union	Canada

Canada Cup

Main article: Canada Cup

The Canada Cup tournament was a major international invitational competition for NHL players before the advent of the World Cup. In the 1976 and 1991 Canada Cups, the Soviet Union teams were missing many of their top players due to personal and political reasons.

Year	Winner	Runner-up
1976	Canada	Czechoslovakia
1981	Soviet Union	Canada
1984	Canada	Sweden
1987	Canada	Soviet Union
1991	Canada	United States

World Cup

Main article: World Cup of Hockey

In 1996, the World Cup of Hockey replaced the Canada Cup.

Year	Winner	Runner-up
1996	United States	Canada
2004	Canada	Finland
2016	Canada	Europe

Olympics

Main article: Olympic Games

Between 1998 and 2014, the NHL had a break in the season to allow its players to participate in the Olympics. In 2024, the NHL, along with the National Hockey League Players' Association and the International Ice Hockey Federation, have agreed to allow players to participate in the 2026 and 2030 Olympic Games after missing out in 2018 and 2022.

Year	City	Gold	Silver	Bronze
1998	Nagano	Czech Republic	Russia	Finland
2002	Salt Lake City	Canada	United States	Russia
2006	Turin	Sweden	Finland	Czech Republic
2010	Vancouver	Canada	United States	Finland
2014	Sochi	Canada	Sweden	Finland

IIHF World Championships

Main article: Ice Hockey World Championships

Since 1976, there has been no limit to how many NHL players countries can send to the IIHF World Championships, but the tournament is usually played during the NHL playoffs. Because of the NHL lockout in 2004, all NHL players were available to participate in the 2005 Championship. However, many players did not participate because they had not played for a full season, and were therefore not in "game shape." Another example is during the 2008 gold medal game 2008 Championship Canada faced Russia. However Canada was without superstar Sidney Crosby and Russia did not have Evgeni Malkin because both were playing for the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Stanley Cup final. Both Canada and Russia's teams featured many talented NHL players, but because not all elite players were available, many commentators do not consider this to be best-on-best play.

4 Nations Face-Off tournament

Main article: NHL 4 Nations Face-Off

In 2025, the NHL hosted the 4 Nations Face-Off in lieu of a typical NHL All-Star event. A total of seven games were played from February 12–20, with games being hosted in Montreal at Bell Centre, and in Boston at TD Garden. The countries participating in the tournament were Canada, Finland, Sweden and United States, and each team's roster was entirely composed of NHL players, similar to the World Cup of Hockey.

Year	Winner	Runner-up
2025	Canada	United States

Other competitions

Super Series

Main article: Super Series

The Super Series were exhibition games between Soviet teams and NHL teams that took place on each NHL opponents' home ice in North America from 1976 to 1991. The Soviet teams were usually club teams from the Soviet hockey league. The exception was in 1983, when the Soviet National Team represented the Soviet Union. Soviet teams won 14 series, NHL teams won 2 series, and 2 series were tied.

In the following summary the winner of a series is in bold.

Year	1st Team	2nd Team	W	L	T
1976	CSKA Moscow	NHL	2	1	1
1976	Soviet Wings Moscow	NHL	3	1	0
1978	Spartak Moscow	NHL	3	2	0
1979	Soviet Wings Moscow	NHL	2	1	1
1980	Dynamo Moscow	NHL	2	1	1
1980	CSKA Moscow	NHL	3	2	0
1983	Soviet Union	NHL	4	2	0
1986	CSKA Moscow	NHL	5	1	0
1986	Dynamo Moscow	NHL	2	1	1
1989	CSKA Moscow	NHL	4	2	1
1989	NHL	Dinamo Riga	4	2	1
1990	NHL	Khimik Voskresensk	3	3	0
1990	NHL	Soviet Wings Moscow	3	1	1
1990	CSKA Moscow	NHL	4	1	0
1990	Dynamo Moscow	NHL	3	2	0
1991	NHL	Khimik Voskresensk	3	3	1
1991	CSKA Moscow	NHL	6	1	0
1991	Dynamo Moscow	NHL	3	2	2

Challenge Cup 1979

Main article: 1979 Challenge Cup

Year	Winner	Runner-up
1979	Soviet Union	NHL All-Stars

Rendez-vous '87

Main article: Rendez-vous '87

In 1987, two matches were held between the USSR and NHL All Stars in Quebec City, Canada in place of the annual NHL All Star Game. Each team won one game and the series was declared a tie.

Game	Date	Winner	Runner-up	Score
1st	11 February 1987	NHL All-Stars	Soviet Union	4–3
2nd	13 February 1987	Soviet Union	NHL All-Stars	5–3

Ninety Nine All Stars Tour

Main article: Ninety Nine All Stars Tour

During the 1994–95 NHL lockout the Ninety Nine All Stars Tour was created by Wayne Gretzky and some of his personal friends, who formed a team and toured Europe. Playing in five countries, they played eight games against mainly European competition.

NHL Challenge

Main article: NHL Challenge

Between 2000 and 2003, a select few NHL teams traveled to Europe to play exhibition games against top division teams in the Swedish and Finnish leagues.

Year	Winner	Opponent	Score
2000	Vancouver Canucks	Modo	5–2
2000	Vancouver Canucks	Djurgårdens IF	2–1
2001	Colorado Avalanche	Brynäs IF	5–3
2003	Toronto Maple Leafs	Jokerit	5–3
2003	Toronto Maple Leafs	Djurgårdens IF	9–2
2003	Toronto Maple Leafs	Färjestads BK	3–0

Victoria Cup

Main article: Victoria Cup

The Victoria Cup is a new ice hockey tournament organized by the IIHF and intended for teams of the Champions Hockey League and the NHL. The inaugural Cup was a single game playoff between the 2008 IIHF European Champions Cup winners Metallurg Magnitogorsk and the New York Rangers of the NHL. It was held in Bern, Switzerland on 1 October 2008. The Rangers won 4-3.

The 2009 edition of the tournament featured the ZSC Lions, the 2008–09 Champions Hockey League winners, and the Chicago Blackhawks of the NHL. The ZSC Lions defeated the Blackhawks 2-1 in the Hallenstadion in Zurich, Switzerland.

Year	Winner	Runner-up
2008	New York Rangers	Metallurg Magnitogorsk
2009	ZSC Lions	Chicago Blackhawks

KHL vs NHL games

Main article: List of KHL vs NHL games

Teams of the former Soviet league have not played against NHL teams after the Super Series ended until 2008, when the 2008 Victoria Cup took place in Bern. In 2010 the NHL teams played their first games on Russian and Latvian ice since 1990.

See also

• International Ice Hockey Federation
• National Hockey League
• Ice Hockey World Championships
• List of international games played by NHL teams

External links

• Hockey Hall of Fame's Summary of Super Series
• Top Level Hockey World Rankings
• Canada Versus the Soviet Union The heyday of the battle for world hockey supremacy (1972-1987)

References

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