Chinese men’s ice hockey team edges Estonia in shootout for historic silver, ends long wait for best worlds finish

Chinese men’s ice hockey team edges Estonia in shootout for historic silver, ends long wait for best worlds finish

Chinese national men's ice hockey team edged past Estonia 4-3 and secured a silver medal at the 2026 IIHF Men's World Championship Division I Group B in Shenzhen on Tuesday night. Photo: VCG

Chinese national men's ice hockey team edged past Estonia 4-3 and secured a silver medal at the 2026 IIHF Men's World Championship Division I Group B in Shenzhen on Tuesday night. The record marks the team's best result at the World Championship in 32 years.

Having clinched the historic silver medal, the Chinese men's national ice hockey team finished in 24th place overall in this season's IIHF World Championship ranking. This marks the Chinese team's best performance at the World Championship since placing 20th in 1994, and the team's highest finish since the IIHF introduced its current division-based format in 2001.

On the ice, the Chinese players were locked in from the opening face-off. China wasted no time finding their rhythm, as power forward Hou Yuyang opened the scoring at the five-minute mark of the first period. Player Yu Jilong then capitalized on a power-play opportunity to double the lead, sending China into the first intermission with a 2-0 advantage.

Just two minutes into the second frame, Hou struck again for his second goal of the night. Team Estonia responded by cutting the deficit to one goal later in the period. In the third, Estonia netted two consecutive goals to force a tie at the end of the round.

Hou finished the tournament with seven goals and 12 points. Meanwhile, 19-year-old young player Wang Haoxi was named the Best Defenseman of the tournament. Neither Team China nor Team Estonia managed to break the deadlock in overtime. China eventually prevailed 3-2 in the ensuing shootout to secure a 4-3 total victory.

Throughout the games, Chinese players delivered fair performances. Power forward Hou Yuyang finished with seven goals and 12 points. Wang Haoxi, a 19-year-old young player, was named the tournament's best defenseman. Wang, who previously played in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), said after the game that representing China for the first time at the World Championship felt especially meaningful.

"Playing at home and helping the team win silver and make history is something I am very proud of. I really cherish every opportunity on the ice," Wang told the media.

As a veteran on the team, Chen Zimeng was moved to tears during the award ceremony. Speaking after the match, Chen said that Chinese ice hockey will continue to "set the tone" and play with its own signature "fighting spirit."

That "fighting spirit" seemed to embody an unyielding resilience. Because before claiming this hard-earned silver medal, China had struggled in its opening game, suffering a disappointing loss.

Heading into the later matches, Romania's 4-1 victory over South Korea had temporarily dropped China from third to fourth place in the standings. With that result, China had no choice but to defeat Estonia in order to secure a spot on the podium. That scenario brought both invisible pressure and an extra source of motivation to the Chinese players.

Looking even back at the past performances of China's men's national ice hockey team, the squad has been a mix of veteran and young players. The team had long competed in the Division II group of the World Championship. After winning the Division II Group A title in 2022 to earn promotion, China finished third in Division I Group B in 2023. Over the next two years, the team placed fourth in the same group each season. This year's silver medal marks a new breakthrough for the competition agenda.

"This silver medal has greatly boosted the team's confidence and shown the team's potential to compete at a higher level. This result will also strongly support the development of the sport in China," Duan Jufang, secretary general of the Chinese Ice Hockey Association, told Xinhua News Agency after the competition.

Having run from April 29 to May 5, the 2026 IIHF Men's World Championship was held in Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong Province. This marks the city's latest hosting of an IIHF ice hockey world championship, following the successful editions of the IIHF Women's World Championship in 2023 and 2025.