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Sweden
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USSR |
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Czechoslovakia |
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Vienna played host to one of the strangest "A" Pool tournaments in history. Sweden captured its first gold medal in 25 years by humiliating Canada 9-0 on the final day of the medal round. Later that day, the Soviet Union tied Sweden for top spot with a 2-1 victory over Czechoslovakia. The USSR settled for the silver medal since their goals for and against differential was inferior to Sweden's. Czechoslovakia claimed the bronze and Canada, which had held the USSR to a 0-0 tie, finished fourth and out of the medals. Soviet winger Vladimir Krutov, West German defenceman Udo Kiessling and Czechoslovak goalie Dominik Hasek all had outstanding tournaments.
The 1987 championship was marred by a scandal relating to the eligibility of West Germany's Miroslav Sikora. The West Germans had been playing well and appeared to have a chance to reach the medal round after recording victories over Canada and Finland. However, the Finns protested that Sikora had played for Poland at the 1976 European Junior Championship. International Ice Hockey Federation rules at that time prohibited players from representing more than one country in official tournaments, but the Germans stated that they had obtained permission from the IIHF for Sikora to play. The IIHF Directorate suspended Sikora after the Finnish protest and stripped West Germany of its two wins. The Germans protested this decision and filed a lawsuit in a Vienna court, which eventually ruled in favor of Germany and ordered the IIHF to reinstate the two victories or pay a substantial fine. The IIHF Directorate voted 11-2 to accept the court's decision regarding the West German victories. Sikora remained suspended for the rest of the tournament. The distracted West German team lost its three remaining games and failed to make the medal round.
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