The dust has now settled.

The hockey world feels like it’s reverting to some kind of normality.

Fans have been allowed back into some buildings and schedules have been finalised for a full 2012-22 season.

The 2021 World Championships held in May almost feels like a lifetime ago now. Time may have slowed down for many during the height of the Covid19 pandemic but it seems to be in fast-forward mode post-lockdown.

It was a World Championship like no other.

Hosted in a bubble with COVID restrictions and countries selecting rosters with players that might not ordinary had a chance to represent their nation given a ‘normal’ build-up to a tournament.

What Great Britain achieved at this tournament has not been put into complete context and perspective.

There was no relegation at stake but the fact they did not finish bottom of their group and were in the hunt for the knockout stages at one point speaks volumes.

The vast majority of the Team GB roster did not play anything resembling a season.

A few competed in the second tier of British hockey and then in a hastily arranged EIHL Elite series competition that ran for three weeks.

Great Britain was as prepared as they could have been given the circumstances but incredibly ill-prepared in comparison to their upcoming opponents.

All the other nations in Group A fielded rosters stacked with vastly more talented and experienced players but that didn’t stop Great Britain from once again upsetting the odds.

Russia 1-7

It was an impossible task on paper, which proved the case on ice.

However, before the flurry of goals in the first period, GB skated with the superpower hockey nation and did so again once finding their composure.

Even with a different-looking roster, Russia fielded players who comprised the following amount of experience (all numbers are games played at the various competition levels).

NHL: 3255 KHL: 6032 AHL: 683 World Championships: 359

Slovakia 1-2

So close but yet so far from a momentous first point of the tournament.

An immense performance from Ben Bowns kept GB in this game and there were opportunities for a tying goal late in the third period.

NHL: 72 KHL: 895 SHL: 525 AHL: 923 World Championships: 324

Denmark 2-3 OT

Righting a wrong.

Two years after being thumped 9-0 by Denmark, Great Britain responded with a performance of heart, desire and a deal of skill to earn a point.

It might have even been more had GB not taken so many penalties but that takes nothing away from the achievement of recording a point against an established top-tier nation.

NHL: 775 KHL: 565 AHL: 1176 SHL: 1954 World Championships: 935

Belarus 4-3

The greatest result in British hockey history?

A contentious question but my answer is, yes, definitively given the circumstances.

A remarkable performance, including in the middle frame when Great Britain surged into a 4-1 lead.

Peter Russell’s charges had to hang on for dear life toward the end of the game but it was a richly deserved victory.

NHL: 588 KHL: 5233 AHL: 1346 World Championships: 468

Sweden 1-4 

The Swedish team was under pressure before this game and even more so after they found themselves trailing to an early strike from Liam Kirk.

Sweden established a 3-1 lead in the middle frame but it could have been different had GB been able to take one or two of the chances they created.

NHL: 2092 KHL: 1011 AHL: 1 853 World Championships: 251

Czech Republic 1-6 

By this stage of the tournament, GB appeared to run out of gas and understandably so.

The Czech team was clinical in taking their chances in producing the victory they required to qualify for the knockout stages.

NHL: 1428 KHL: 1960 AHL: 1585 World Championships: 392

Switzerland 3-6

Switzerland was somewhat of the dark horses in the group and topped the standings.

An entertaining game in which GB once again went toe-to-toe with a far more established nation.

Scoring three goals in a single game for the second time in the tournament is not to be understated. It was also the crowning glory of Liam Kirk’s tournament as he scored twice to finish tied for the tournament lead for goals.

NHL: 1417 KHL: 56 AHL: 1163 World Championships: 602

Great Britain

Experience outside of the EIHL in the professional game.

AHL: 87 HockeyAllsvenskan: 53 World Championships: 264

In some respects, the achievement of ‘avoiding relegation and picking up more point’s is far greater than the ‘great escape’ of 2019.

A roster devoid of some vital players, others making their debut at this level and young players, some of whom had never played outside of the UK.

An understandable lack of conditioning, playing time and a head coach unable to attend were just other issues the roster had to contend with.

From the coaches to all the staff and the players, this was a momentous achievement by the group.

To take four points from nations with far more resources and expertise on the ice should not be taken lightly.

A third crack at the World Championships is the richly deserved award.

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