Artūrs Irbe is a Latvian professional ice hockey coach and former goaltender. Born during the Soviet era, Irbe played for various Soviet league teams and the Soviet Union national team before moving to North America in 1991. Irbe played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the San Jose Sharks, Dallas Stars, Vancouver Canucks, and Carolina Hurricanes. In 2004 Irbe returned to Europe to play until he retired in 2007. He has served as a goaltending coach with Dinamo Riga, the Washington Capitals, and the Buffalo Sabres, as well as internationally with the Latvia men's national ice hockey team. He was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2010. Irbe was rated number 93 on The Hockey News list of the Top 100 Goalies of All-Time in 2018.
Helmuts Balderis-Sildedzis is a former Latvian professional ice hockey player. He played on the right wing and participated at the 1980 Winter Olympics, where the Soviet team unexpectedly lost to the United States. He played part of a single season in the National Hockey League after being drafted in 1989 by the Minnesota North Stars, becoming the oldest player to be drafted by an NHL team at the age of 36. In 1998, he was inducted into International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame.
Sportin Latvia includes basketball, football, ice hockey, athletics (track), rugby, tennis, cycling, and others. Ice hockey is the most popular of the Latvian sports and is closely followed by basketball. Some of Latvia's most notable athletes include hockey player Sandis Ozoliņš, football player Māris Verpakovskis, Olympic javelin thrower Jānis Lūsis, two-time Olympic BMX champion Maris Strombergs, and basketball player Kristaps Porziņģis. The national sport of Latvia is ice hockey.
HK Liepājas Metalurgs was a professional hockey club based in Liepāja, Latvia that fielded multiple teams over the years competing in the Belarusian Extraliga (BXL), Latvian Hockey League (LHL), and Minor Hockey League Division B. The club was dissolved following the conclusion of the 2012-13 season when primary sponsor, industrial company Liepājas Metalurgs, discontinued support for the club.
Dinamo Riga is a professional ice hockey team based in Riga, Latvia. It most recently was a member of the Latvian Hockey Higher League. The club is affiliated with HK Zemgale/LBTU.
HK Riga is an ice hockey club, based in Riga, Latvia. It was founded in 2009 to serve as the farm club of former Kontinental Hockey League club Dinamo Riga. The club played the 2009–10 season in both the Latvian Hockey Higher League and the Belarusian Extraleague, but joined the Russian Junior Hockey League (MHL), the junior league of the Kontinental Hockey League, for the 2010–11 season.
HK Zemgale/LBTU is a Latvian professional ice hockey team that plays in the Latvian Hockey Higher League. The team is based in Jelgava and play their home games at the Jelgava Ice hall.
HK Prizma Riga/IHS is an ice hockey team in Riga, Latvia, that plays in the Latvian Hockey Higher League, the top tier of the sport in Latvia. The team is based in Riga and play their home games at the Volvo Sports Centre. HK Prizma previously played in both the Eastern European Hockey League and the MHL B.
The 2012–13 Latvian Hockey League season was the 22nd season of the Latvian Hockey League, the top level of ice hockey in Latvia. Eight teams participated in the league, and HK SMScredit won the championship.
The 2013–14 Latvian Hockey League season was the 23rd season of the Latvian Hockey League, the top level of ice hockey in Latvia. Six teams participated in the league, and HS Prizma Riga won the championship and qualified for the 2014–15 IIHF Continental Cup.
HK Mogo/LSPA is a Latvian professional ice hockey team that plays in the Latvian Hockey Higher League, the top tier of the sport in Latvia. The team is based in Riga and play their home games at the Mogo ice hall.
The 2014–15 Latvian Hockey League season was the 24th season of the Latvian Hockey League, the top level of ice hockey in Latvia. Seven teams participated in the league, and HK MOGO won the championship.
The 2015–16 Latvian Hockey League season was the 25th season of the Latvian Hockey League, the top level of ice hockey in Latvia. Seven teams participated in the league, and HK Liepāja won the championship.
The 2016–17 Latvian Hockey League season was the 26th season of the Latvian Hockey League, the top level of ice hockey in Latvia. Seven teams participated in the league, and HK Kurbads won the championship.
HK Kurbads is a professional ice hockey team based in Riga, Latvia. It is a member of the Latvian Hockey Higher League and also compete for the Latvian Cup, winning Latvian Hockey League in 2016–17 and 2017–18 season. The team played its home games at Vidzemes Ledus Halle in Ogre until 2017 when the new arena was built in Rumbula, Riga.
The 2017–18 Latvian Hockey League season was the 27th season of the Latvian Hockey League, the top level of ice hockey in Latvia. Six teams participated in the league, and HK Kurbads won the championship.
The Baltic Hockey League is a professional ice hockey competition based in the Baltic states featuring club teams from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The competition was founded in 2018, and the first edition of the competition began in November, 2020.
HS Rīga is a Latvian professional ice hockey team that plays in the Latvian Hockey Higher League, the top tier of the sport in Latvia. The team is based in Riga and play their home games at the Hokeja halle Riga.
HK Dinaburga are a professional Latvian ice hockey team that plays in the Optibet Hockey League, the top tier of the sport in Latvia. The team is based in Daugavpils and play their home games at the Daugavpils Ice Arena.
The 2021–22 Latvian Hockey League season was the 31st season of the Latvian Hockey League, the top level of ice hockey in Latvia. HK Zemgale/JLSS won their first championship.