 The Soviet Union dissolved in December 1991 . Nine former soviet states became part of the IIHF and began competing in international competitions , including Belarus , Kazakhstan , Latvia and Ukraine . Russia was named the successor to the Soviet Union . With this flood of new teams , the IIHF expanded the number of spots from eight to twelve . From 1963 to 1991 , only four teams won a World Championship medal : the Soviet Union , Czechoslovakia ( failing to win a medal only three times ) , Sweden and Canada . The Soviets won a medal in every tournament they participated in ( 1954 to 1991 ) . At the 1992 World Championships , Sweden won their second consecutive gold . Finland won the silver medal , the nation 's first ever World Championship medal ( the Finnish team had previously won a silver at the 1988 Winter Olympics ) . 
