Slovak Extraliga facts for kids
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| Formerly | Czechoslovak First Ice Hockey League |
|---|---|
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Founded | 1993 |
| No. of teams | 12 |
| Country | Slovakia |
| Most recent champion(s) |
HC Košice (10th title) |
| Most titles | HC Košice (10 titles) |
| TV partner(s) | TV JOJ (Slovakia) Sport1 (Czechia, Hungary, Slovakia) |
| Relegation to | Slovak 1. Liga |
| Related competitions |
Slovak 1. Liga Slovak 2. Liga |
| Official website | hockeyslovakia.sk |
The Tipsport Liga, also known as the Slovak Extraliga, is the top ice hockey league in Slovakia. It is where the best hockey teams in Slovakia compete to become champions. The league started in 1993 after Czechoslovakia split into two countries, Slovakia and the Czech Republic.
Teams from the Tipsport Liga can play in the Champions Hockey League (CHL). This is a big international tournament for top European hockey clubs. The best team from the Tipsport Liga gets to join the CHL each year.
Contents
How Ice Hockey Games Are Played
An ice hockey game has three periods, each lasting 20 minutes. There is a short break between each period. If the game is tied after these 60 minutes, the teams play an extra five-minute period called overtime. In overtime, only three players from each team are on the ice at a time, making it very exciting!
If the game is still tied after overtime, they have a shootout. In a shootout, players take turns trying to score against the goalie one-on-one. The team that scores more goals out of five tries wins. If it's still tied, they keep going one by one until a winner is decided.
Teams in the Tipsport Liga
There are 12 teams that compete in the Tipsport Liga. These teams come from different cities across Slovakia. They all play hard to win the championship!
Teams for the 2025–26 Season
| Team Name | City | Venue | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| HC Košice | Košice | Steel Arena | 8,378 |
| HC Prešov | Prešov | Zimný štadión Prešov | 3,600 |
| HC Slovan Bratislava | Bratislava | Tipos Arena | 10,055 |
| HC 05 Banská Bystrica | Banská Bystrica | Tipsport Arena Banská Bystrica | 3,016 |
| Vlci Žilina | Žilina | Niké Arena | 6,200 |
| HK Dukla Trenčín | Trenčín | Zimný štadión Pavla Demitru | 6,150 |
| HK Nitra | Nitra | Tipsport Arena Nitra | 3,600 |
| HK Poprad | Poprad | Zimný štadión Poprad | 4,233 |
| HKM Zvolen | Zvolen | TiposBet Arena Zvolen | 5,675 |
| MHK 32 Liptovský Mikuláš | Liptovský Mikuláš | JL Aréna | 3,680 |
| HK Dukla Michalovce | Michalovce | TiposBet Arena Michalovce | 4,000 |
| HK Spišská Nová Ves | Spišská Nová Ves | TiposBet Arena Spišská Nová Ves | 5,503 |
How the Season Works
The Tipsport Liga season has two main parts: the regular season and the playoffs. The regular season runs from late September to early March. After that, the playoffs begin in March and end in April. The team that wins the playoffs becomes the Slovak champion and gets the Vladimir Dzurilla Trophy.
The Regular Season
During the regular season, each team plays 54 games. Teams earn points for winning games:
- 3 points for winning in regular time.
- 2 points for winning in overtime or a shootout.
- 1 point for losing in overtime or a shootout.
- 0 points for losing in regular time.
The team with the most points at the end of the regular season is the league champion. The top six teams go straight to the playoffs. Teams ranked 7th to 10th play a special "play-in" round to earn the last two playoff spots. The team with the fewest points at the end of the regular season moves down to a lower league.
The Play-in Round
The play-in round is for teams ranked 7th to 10th. The 7th-ranked team plays against the 10th-ranked team. The 8th-ranked team plays against the 9th-ranked team. These are "best-of-five" series, meaning the first team to win three games moves on. The winners of these two series get the final spots in the playoffs.
The Playoffs
The playoffs are an exciting elimination tournament. Teams play "best-of-seven" series, meaning the first team to win four games moves to the next round.
- Quarterfinals: The top-ranked team plays the lowest-ranked team that made it through the play-in. The second-ranked team plays the other play-in winner. The 3rd-ranked team plays the 6th-ranked team, and the 4th-ranked team plays the 5th-ranked team.
- Semifinals: The remaining teams are re-ranked. The highest-ranked team plays the lowest-ranked team, and the other two teams play each other.
- Finals: The two teams that win their semifinal series play each other to decide the Slovak champion!
In each series, the team that was ranked higher in the regular season gets to play more games at their home arena. This is called "home-ice advantage."
League Names Over Time
The name of the league has changed many times because of different sponsors. It started as the Extraliga in 1993. Over the years, it has been known by names like West Extraliga, Boss Extraliga, ST Extraliga, T-Com Extraliga, Slovnaft Extraliga, Tipsport Extraliga, and Tipos Extraliga. Since 2025, it has been called the Tipsport Liga.
| Period | Name | Sponsor |
|---|---|---|
| 1993–1997 | Extraliga | none |
| 1997–2001 | West extraliga | West |
| 2001–2002 | Boss extraliga | Boss |
| 2002–2005 | ST extraliga | Slovak Telekom |
| 2005–2006 | T-Com extraliga | T-Com |
| 2006–2007 (half-season) |
Extraliga | none |
| 2007–2011 | Slovnaft extraliga | Slovnaft |
| 2011–2015 | Tipsport extraliga | Tipsport |
| 2015–2020 | Tipsport liga | Tipsport |
| 2020–2025 | Tipos extraliga | Tipos |
| 2025–2030 | Tipsport liga | Tipsport |
Past Champions
Many different teams have won the Slovak Extraliga championship over the years. HC Košice has won the most titles, with 10 championships!
Slovak Extraliga Playoff Winners (Slovak Champions)
- 1994 – Dukla Trenčín
- 1995 – HC Košice
- 1996 – HC Košice
- 1997 – Dukla Trenčín
- 1998 – Slovan Bratislava
- 1999 – HC Košice
- 2000 – Slovan Bratislava
- 2001 – HKm Zvolen
- 2002 – Slovan Bratislava
- 2003 – Slovan Bratislava
- 2004 – Dukla Trenčín
- 2005 – Slovan Bratislava
- 2006 – MsHK Žilina
- 2007 – Slovan Bratislava
- 2008 – Slovan Bratislava
- 2009 – HC Košice
- 2010 – HC Košice
- 2011 – HC Košice
- 2012 – Slovan Bratislava
- 2013 – HKM Zvolen
- 2014 – HC Košice
- 2015 – HC Košice
- 2016 – HK Nitra
- 2017 – HC '05 Banská Bystrica
- 2018 – HC '05 Banská Bystrica
- 2019 – HC '05 Banská Bystrica
- 2020 – Not held due to COVID-19 pandemic
- 2021 – HKM Zvolen
- 2022 – Slovan Bratislava
- 2023 – HC Košice
- 2024 – HK Nitra
- 2025 – HC Košice
Video Games
You can play with teams from the Slovak Extraliga in the video game NHL 09 by EA Sports.
See also
- Czech Extraliga
- Czechoslovak Extraliga
- List of Slovak ice hockey champions
