| HC Slovan Bratislava | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Nickname | Belasí (the Sky Blues), Orli (the Eagles) |
| City | Bratislava,Slovakia |
| League | Slovak Extraliga (1993–2012, 2019–present)
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| Founded | 1921; 104 years ago (1921) |
| Home arena | Ondrej Nepela Arena (capacity 10,055) |
| Colours | Sky blue, white, dark blue |
| Owner(s) | JTRE sports & entertainment a.s. (Peter Korbačka, chairman)[1][2] |
| General manager | Lukáš Havlíček |
| Head coach | Brad Tapper |
| Captain | Tomáš Marcinko |
| Website | www.hcslovan.sk |
Hockey Club Slovan Bratislava (Slovak:Hokejový klub Slovan Bratislava) is a professionalice hockey club based inBratislava, Slovakia. In 2012, it left theSlovak Extraliga and joined the internationalKontinental Hockey League (KHL). In 2019, it returned to the Tipos Extraliga. The club has won nine Slovak championships (most recently in 2022), one Czechoslovak championship (1979) and one IIHF Continental Cup (2004), making it the second most successful hockey club in Slovak history after their biggest rivalHC Košice. The team plays its home games atOndrej Nepela Arena, also known asSlovnaft Arena. The team is nicknamed Belasí, which means the "sky blues" in English.
The sports clubSlovan Bratislava was founded in 1919 as a football club, then called 1.CsSK Bratislava. In 1921, a hockey section was founded as "CsSK hockey". It played its first game in December 1924 againstWiener EV fromVienna, losing 6–1. In 1948, the name of the club was changed toSlovan Bratislava, which has been kept until today.[3]
For many years following World War II, Slovan was the only Slovak representative in the highest Czechoslovak league, and achieved several second-place finishes in the championship. The only title in theCzechoslovak First Ice Hockey League was achieved under coach Ladislav Horsky in the 1978–79 season. Additionally, the youth teams won several championships.[3]
After theseparation of Slovakia and the Czech Republic in 1993, Slovan played in theSlovak Extraliga and won eight championship titles over 19 years.[3]
In addition to the success achieved in Slovakia, Slovan also performed well internationally, with threeSpengler Cup wins in a row in 1972, 1973 and 1974. It is also one of only four clubs to play all four seasons of theEuropean Hockey League, progressing to the playoff stage each year. Another highlight was winning theIIHF Continental Cup in the2003–04 season. From 2011 to 2013, Slovan participated in theEuropean Trophy international pre-season tournament.[3]
In March 2012, Slovan filed an application to play in theKontinental Hockey League (KHL).[4] On 21 June 2012, Slovan Bratislava was officially admitted to the KHL, after they fulfilled all necessary conditions. Founded in 1921, they were the oldest KHL team by a large margin, as there were no ice hockey leagues in the formerUnion of Soviet Socialist Republics prior to 1946.[5]
In May, Slovan signed Rostislav Čada as the new head coach for the first KHL season, who had had a KHL experience from working atAvangard Omsk.[6] After playing two friendly matches against KHL teams and theEuropean Trophy during the summer months, Slovan opened the2012–13 season with a home game against UkrainianHC Donbass on 6 September 2012, losing 2–4 in front of a capacity crowd. The first win was achieved 4 days later by defeatingSpartak Moscow 2–1 after ashootout. During theNHL lockout between September 2012 and January 2013, the two defendersĽubomír Višňovský andAndrej Sekera enhanced the team. Slovan ended the season with 78 points as 6th of the Western conference and thus clinched aplay-off spot in their first KHL season.[7] In the first play-off round, Slovan played against then-defending championDynamo Moscow and lost all four matches.
During the regular season, Slovan had sold out 25 out of its 26 home games with an average attendance of 9,977 spectators, which was the seventh-highest average attendance in Europe that season.[8]
Before the start of2013–14 season, it was announced that the franchise will have a new mascot calledHarvy. The mascot's name was determined by fans and its appearance will be of abald eagle, which is also on HC Slovan's logo.[9]
The rebranding of four leading Bratislava clubs in three sports –ice hockey,basketball, andvolleyball – marks the completion of their unification under the new owner, JTRE Sports & Entertainment. This is reflected in a shared name and visual identity. From june 2025, the clubs operated under a single name: Slovan Bratislava[10]
For more than three quarters of a century, the Slovan Bratislava brand has been synonymous with the most successful club in Slovakia and one of the most traditional in Europe across multiple sports, bringing together the largest fan base in our city and across the country. The clubs now share a common logo and club colors – sky blue, dark blue, white, with red and grey as complementary colors. A distinctive typographic monogram, SB, has proven to be the ideal link across different sports. Slovan Bratislava. We are sky blue. The name carries tradition, reflects pride, honor, and success.[11]
The new visual identity was created by the agency 2:Score, which has extensive experience with sports projects. The agency is behind, for example, the rebranding of football clubSparta Prague and ice hockey clubKometa Brno, the anniversary season ofFC Hradec Králové, as well as a long-term partnership with theChance League – the top Czech football competition, which launched its biggest branding campaign, Fenomén, this summer.
While competing in the Czechoslovak league, Slovan's main rival wasHK Dukla Trenčín. While competing in theSlovak Extraliga, Slovan had various rivals around the country, most notablyHC Košice andTrenčin
In Slovan's first two seasons in theKHL, its biggest rival wasLev Prague. The rivalry started when, in their first game,HC Lev'sZdeno Chára body-checked Slovan's team captainMiroslav Šatan, after which Šatan was out of the lineup for the rest of the season.[12] The fairness of this hit was the centre of many discussions. The games between Slovan and Lev were among the most anticipated of the season for both teams.[13] However, Lev Praha folded after the 2013–14 season.
This is a partial list of the last eleven seasons completed by HC Slovan Bratislava. For the full season-by-season history, seeList of HC Slovan Bratislava seasons.
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, OTW = Overtime/shootout wins, OTL = Overtime/shootout losses, L = Losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
| Season | GP | W | OTW | OTL | L | Pts | GF | GA | Finish | Playoffs |
| 2014–15 | 60 | 15 | 5 | 8 | 32 | 63 | 136 | 188 | 7th, Bobrov | did not qualify |
| 2015–16 | 60 | 21 | 11 | 4 | 24 | 89 | 154 | 148 | 3rd, Bobrov | Lost in Conference Quarterfinals, 0–4 (CSKA Moscow) |
| 2016–17 | 60 | 22 | 7 | 5 | 26 | 85 | 144 | 166 | 4th, Bobrov | did not qualify |
| 2017–18 | 56 | 15 | 3 | 7 | 31 | 58 | 119 | 187 | 5th, Bobrov | did not qualify |
| 2018–19 | 62 | 10 | 5 | 3 | 44 | 33 | 101 | 213 | 6th, Tarasov | did not qualify |
| 2019–20 | 55 | 29 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 108 | 191 | 118 | 2nd, Extraliga | Not held due to thecoronavirus pandemic |
| 2020–21 | 50 | 26 | 6 | 4 | 14 | 94 | 146 | 115 | 4th, Extraliga | Lost in Semifinals, 1–4 (HKM Zvolen) |
| 2021–22 | 50 | 32 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 104 | 189 | 118 | 1st, Extraliga | Slovak Extraliga Champions, 4–2 (HK Nitra) |
| 2022–23 | 50 | 27 | 3 | 6 | 14 | 93 | 162 | 115 | 2nd, Extraliga | Lost in Quarterfinals, 2–4 (Dukla Michalovce) |
| 2023–24 | 50 | 21 | 5 | 4 | 20 | 77 | 157 | 160 | 5th, Extraliga | Lost in Quarterfinals, 0–4 (Košice) |
| 2024–25 | 54 | 21 | 5 | 8 | 20 | 81 | 164 | 159 | 7th, Extraliga | Lost in Wild card round, 1–3 (Zvolen) |
Winners (2): 1981–82, 1989–90
Runners-up (1): 1954–55
3rd place (1):1979–80Winners (3): 1972, 1973, 1974Winners (5): 1974, 1975, 1990, 1997, 1998Winners (1): 1998As of 24 November 2024[14][15]
These are the top-ten-point-scorers in franchise history. Figures are updated after each completed season.[16]
Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game
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These are the head coaches of HC Slovan Bratislava since they joined the Czechoslovak Extraliga:
The following players associated with HC Slovan Bratislava have been inducted in various Halls of Fame:
Hockey Hall of Fame is located inToronto, Ontario, Canada.
| Name | Category | Inducted |
|---|---|---|
 Peter Šťastný | Player | 1998 |
The IIHF Hall of Fame is intended to honor individuals who have made valuable contributions both internationally and in their home countries.[17]
| Name | Category | Inducted |
|---|---|---|
 Václav Nedomanský | Player | 1997 |
| Vladimír Dzurilla | Player | 1998 |
| Jozef Golonka | Player | 1998 |
| Ján Starší | Builder | 1999 |
| Peter Šťastný | Player | 2000 |
— HC Slovan Bratislava
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