| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country |  West Germany |
| Venues | 6 (in 6 host cities) |
| Dates | December 27, 1980 – January 2, 1981 |
| Teams | 8 |
| Final positions | |
Champions  |  Sweden(1st title) |
Runners-up  |  Finland |
Third place  |  Soviet Union |
| Fourth place |  Czechoslovakia |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Games played | 20 |
| Goals scored | 207 (10.35 per game) |
| Scoring leader | Dieter Hegen (11 points) |
The1981 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships (1981 WJHC) was the fifth edition of theIce Hockey World Junior Championship and was held from December 27, 1980, until January 2, 1981. The tournament was held inFüssen,West Germany.Sweden won the gold medal, whileFinland won the silver, and theSoviet Union bronze.
The 1981 tournament divided participants into two divisions of four teams, each playing three games. The top two teams in each division advanced to the A division in the medal round, while the bottom two were placed in a B division. Each division played another round robin. The top three teams in the A division won the gold, silver and bronze medals. Teams that faced each other in the first round had their results carried over to the medal rounds.
This is the aggregate standings, ordered according to final placing. The four teams in the A division in the medal round were ranked one through four, while the four teams in the B division were ranked five through eight regardless of overall record.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sweden | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 25 | 11 | +14 | 9 |
| 2 | Finland | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 29 | 18 | +11 | 7 |
| 3 | Soviet Union | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 36 | 14 | +22 | 6 |
| 4 | Czechoslovakia | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 34 | 21 | +13 | 5 |
| 5 | West Germany | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 29 | 24 | +5 | 6 |
| 6 |  United States | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 19 | 27 | −8 | 4 |
| 7 |  Canada | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 26 | 25 | +1 | 3 |
| 8 |  Austria | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 67 | −58 | 0 |
Austria was relegated to Pool B for the1982 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.
| Team | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soviet Union | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 5 | +26 | 6 |
| Czechoslovakia | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 25 | 12 | +13 | 3 |
| Canada | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 17 | 11 | +6 | 3 |
| Austria | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 51 | −45 | 0 |
| December 27, 1980 | Czechoslovakia | 3 – 3 (1–0, 0–2, 2–1) | Canada | Kaufbeuren |
| December 27, 1980 | Soviet Union | 19 – 1 (7–0, 8–0, 4–1) | Austria | Augsburg |
| December 28, 1980 | Soviet Union | 7 – 3 (3–1, 3–0, 1–2) | Canada | Landsberg |
| December 28, 1980 | Czechoslovakia | 21 – 4 (6–1, 6–3, 9–0) | Austria | Füssen |
| December 30, 1980 | Canada | 11 – 1 | Austria | Landsberg |
| December 30, 1980 | Soviet Union | 5 – 1 (2–1, 0–0, 3–0) | Czechoslovakia | Füssen |
| Team | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sweden | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 6 | +13 | 6 |
| Finland | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 17 | 9 | +8 | 4 |
| West Germany | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 17 | −4 | 2 |
| United States | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 22 | −17 | 0 |
| December 27, 1980 | West Germany | 3 – 7 (2–3, 0–2, 1–2) | Sweden | Füssen |
| December 27, 1980 | Finland | 8 – 1 (0–0, 5–1, 3–0) | United States | Landsberg |
| December 28, 1980 | West Germany | 6 – 8 (1–3, 3–4, 2–1) | Finland | Oberstdorf |
| December 28, 1980 | Sweden | 10 – 2 (0–1, 6–1, 4–0) | United States | Augsburg |
| December 30, 1980 | Sweden | 2 – 1 (0–1, 2–0, 0–0) | Finland | Kempten |
| December 30, 1980 | West Germany | 4 – 2 | United States | Kaufbeuren |
Results from any games played during the preliminary round were carried forward to the consolation round.
| Team | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Germany | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 9 | +11 | 6 |
| United States | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 9 | +7 | 4 |
| Canada | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 20 | 15 | +5 | 2 |
| Austria | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 27 | −23 | 0 |
| December 31, 1980 | United States | 7 – 3 (2–1, 2–2, 3–0) | Canada | Landsberg |
| December 31, 1980 | West Germany | 9 – 1 (1–0, 5–0, 3–1) | Austria | Füssen |
| January 2, 1981 | West Germany | 7 – 6 (5–2, 2–3, 0–1) | Canada | Kaufbeuren |
| January 2, 1981 | United States | 7 – 2 (2–0, 2–1, 3–1) | Austria | Füssen |
Results from any games played during the preliminary round were carried forward to the championship round.
| Team | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sweden | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 6 | +2 | 5 |
| Finland | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 11 | +2 | 3 |
| Soviet Union | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 2 |
| Czechoslovakia | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 14 | −4 | 2 |
| December 31, 1980 | Finland | 6 – 3 (2–0, 3–1, 1–2) | Soviet Union | Kaufbeuren |
| December 31, 1980 | Sweden | 3 – 3 (0–1, 2–1, 1–1) | Czechoslovakia | Oberstdorf |
| January 2, 1981 | Sweden | 3 – 2 (2–1, 1–1, 0–0) | Soviet Union | Augsburg Attendance: 2700 |
| January 2, 1981 | Czechoslovakia | 6 – 6 (2–2, 1–2, 3–2) | Finland | Landsberg |
| Rank | Player | Country | G | A | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dieter Hegen | West Germany | 8 | 1 | 9 |
| 2 | Dale Hawerchuk | Canada | 5 | 4 | 9 |
| Vladimir Svitek | Czechoslovakia | 5 | 4 | 9 | |
| Ari Lähteenmäki | Finland | 5 | 4 | 9 | |
| Bobby Carpenter | United States | 5 | 4 | 9 | |
| 6 | Håkan Nordin | Sweden | 2 | 7 | 9 |
| 7 | Jan Vodila | Czechoslovakia | 5 | 3 | 8 |
| 8 | Patrik Sundström | Sweden | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| 9 | Pekka Järvelä | Finland | 5 | 2 | 7 |
| 10 | Klaus Götsch | West Germany | 4 | 3 | 7 |
| IIHF Directorate Awards | Media All-Star Team | |
|---|---|---|
| Goaltender | Lars Eriksson | Lars Eriksson |
| Defencemen | Miloslav Hořava | Håkan Nordin Miloslav Hořava |
| Forwards | Patrik Sundström | Jan Erixon Patrik SundströmAri Lähteenmäki |
The second tier was contested from March 23–29, inStrasbourg,France. Eight teams were divided into two round robin groups where the top two, and bottom two, graduated to meet their respective opponents in a final round robin. Results between competitors who migrated together were carried forward. Yugoslavia made their debut, replacing Hungary.
| Team | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Switzerland | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 4 | +21 | 6 |
 Netherlands | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 13 | −4 | 4 |
 Denmark | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 15 | −5 | 2 |
 Yugoslavia | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 20 | −12 | 0 |
| Netherlands | 3 – 2 (1–1, 2–0, 0–1) | Denmark | Strasbourg |
| Switzerland | 7 – 3 (2–0, 1–2, 4–1) | Yugoslavia | Strasbourg |
| Switzerland | 8 – 1 (1–1, 3–0, 4–0) | Denmark | Strasbourg |
| Netherlands | 6 – 1 (2–1, 1–0, 3–0) | Yugoslavia | Strasbourg |
| Switzerland | 10 – 0 (5–0, 3–0, 2–0) | Netherlands | Strasbourg |
| Denmark | 7 – 4 (1–1, 1–1, 5–2) | Yugoslavia | Strasbourg |
| Team | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Norway | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 13 | +7 | 5 |
 Poland | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 25 | 11 | +14 | 4 |
 Italy | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 20 | −7 | 3 |
 France | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 24 | −14 | 0 |
| Norway | 5 – 5 (0–1, 3–1, 2–3) | Italy | Strasbourg |
| France | 4 – 8 (2–3, 2–2, 0–3) | Poland | Strasbourg |
| Poland | 12 – 1 (4–0, 4–0, 4–1) | Italy | Strasbourg |
| France | 3 – 9 (0–4, 2–2, 1–3) | Norway | Strasbourg |
| Norway | 6 – 5 (0–3, 2–1, 4–1) | Poland | Strasbourg |
| France | 3 – 7 (2–2, 3–0, 2–1) | Italy | Strasbourg |
Results from any games played during the preliminary round were carried forward to the consolation round.
| Team | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denmark | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 11 | +8 | 6 |
| Yugoslavia | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 16 | 14 | +2 | 3 |
| Italy | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 16 | −5 | 2 |
| France | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 13 | 18 | −5 | 1 |
| France | 6 – 7 (0–2, 5–1, 1–4) | Denmark | Strasbourg |
| Italy | 3 – 8 (0–2, 2–2, 1–4) | Yugoslavia | Strasbourg |
| France | 4 – 4 (1–2, 0–2, 3–0) | Yugoslavia | Strasbourg |
| Denmark | 5 – 1 (0–0, 2–1, 3–0) | Italy | Strasbourg |
Results from any games played during the preliminary round were carried forward to the promotion round.
| Team | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Switzerland | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 19 | 6 | +13 | 5 |
| Norway | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 18 | 10 | +8 | 5 |
| Poland | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 11 | +3 | 2 |
| Netherlands | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 25 | −24 | 0 |
Switzerland was promoted to Pool A for the1982 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.
| Norway | 8 – 1 (2–1, 5–0, 1–0) | Netherlands | Strasbourg |
| Switzerland | 5 – 2 (2–0, 2–1, 1–1) | Poland | Strasbourg |
| Netherlands | 0 – 7 (0–2, 0–2, 0–3) | Poland | Strasbourg |
| Switzerland | 4 – 4 (0–0, 3–1, 1–3) | Norway | Strasbourg |
| Rank | Player | Country | G | A | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Murajica Pajič | Yugoslavia | 10 | 1 | 11 |
| 2 | Alfred Lüthl | Switzerland | 7 | 4 | 11 |
| 3 | Martin Pavlu | Italy | 5 | 6 | 11 |
| 4 | Stanislaw Szpreglewski | Poland | 9 | 0 | 9 |
| 5 | Beat Eggimann | Switzerland | 5 | 4 | 9 |
| 6 | Guy Ireland | France | 5 | 3 | 8 |
