| Iceland is actually not a big hockey country at all, contrary to what Disney might suggest. There aren't enough rinks for players, and in fact Iceland is only in Division II (which is the same as Australia, China, North Korea, and Mexico, and 2 rungs beneath the championship division), and were in Division III as recently as 2007.
If there's any surprising country that missed the list, it might be Latvia, although I suppose population has more to do with that than anything else.
Slovakia has long been considered one of the Big 7, so it shouldn't be a surprise at all. They finished 4th at the 2010 Olympics, including giving Canada a bit of a late scare in the semis. |