Twenty years ago, Sweden fell short of its first gold medal in women's hockey, losing the gold medal game to Canada. Since that year's Winter Olympics, the team has seen a slow yet pronounced decline in its overall performance. In the four editions of Olympic hockey following that 2006 tournament, Sweden lost the bronze medal game twice (2010, 2014), finished seventh in 2018 and finished eighth in 2022. That 2022 finish marked the Swedes' worst performance yet in an Olympic women's hockey tournament.
The story doesn't end there; the team's decline in performance can also be seen at the IIHF Women's World Championship. Since their bronze medal in 2007, the team has not won a medal at the World Championship; it's also worth noting that Sweden hasn't made it to the semifinals of that tournament since 2009.
While their performance in the Women's World Championship has slightly rebounded, with two of their last four performances resulting in sixth-place finishes, can Sweden regain some of their past Olympic glory?
Of the twenty-three players heading to Italy to represent Sweden, just over half play their club hockey in Sweden's domestic league. The remaining eleven are on North American rosters in some form; seven are enrolled in university-level hockey programs, while the remaining four are on PWHL rosters.
Sweden’s NCAA-developed players could fuel a semifinal push
While just over a quarter of Sweden's Olympic roster plays in the United States' collegiate system, all seven have been playing important parts in their respective team's success. Through her first twenty-two games, Hilda Svensson (Ohio State University) has tallied thirty-eight points; her Ohio State Buckeyes currently have a record of 24-3 and are the second-best team in the nation behind only Wisconsin.
Elsewhere, the success of both Minnesota teams represented (University of Minnesota and University of Minnesota-Duluth) is being fueled by their respective Olympians. For the University of Minnesota, Josefin Bouveng is proving to be a strong option in the forward group, while Minnesota-Duluth has been pushed forward primarily by the success of Thea Johannson.
Alongside Sweden's more experienced players, the aforementioned Olympians will need to translate their domestic success towards an international stage. An inability to score has cost Sweden at times over the past two Olympic tournaments; production at all points of the lineup is going to be key if Sweden is to finally see some improved play at the Olympics.
In the 2022 Winter Olympics, Sweden's women's hockey team lost each of their opening two preliminary round games against Czechia and Japan. A 2-1 win over hosts China and a 3-1 decision against Denmark on the final day would ultimately be just enough to send Sweden into the quarterfinal, but said quarterfinal would see them lose 11-0 to Canada. Throughout the five games they played at the 2022 tournament, Sweden was only able to score seven goals; at the same time, Sweden conceded nineteen goals across those matches.
Any improvement in performance has to start up front; seven goals isn't necessarily going to cut it at any level of hockey, let alone the Olympics. That said, Sweden does benefit from being in a group that includes debutants France, host nation Italy, and Germany (who is making their return to the Olympic women's hockey tournament after twelve years); one should also note that their first three preliminary round games are against those three teams.
If Sweden can win at least two of their first three games in regulation, they should be able to make it to the quarterfinals with relative ease. Whether a strong start will get them into first place remains to be seen, but I do think they will be right there with Japan for much of the round robin.