2006 Olympics Ice hockey at the 2006 Olympics was held at the Torino Palasport Olimpico and the Torino Esposizioni in Turin , Italy . The men ' s competition , held from 15 to 26 February , was won by Sweden , and the women ' s competition , held from 11 to 20 February , was won by Canada . Men ' s competition . The format was changed from the version used in the 1998 and 2002 tournaments . In the new format , the number of teams was reduced from 14 to 12 and the preliminary and final group stages were combined to form two six - team groups with the top four from each group advancing to the quarter - finals . These changes had the following effects : Preliminary round . Twelve participating teams were placed in two groups . After playing a round - robin , the top four teams in each group advanced to the Medal Round while the last two teams competed in the Consolation Round for the 9th to 12th places . Leading scorers . " At the end of game 34 . " Hat trick scorers Leading goaltenders . " Goalkeepers with 40 % or more of their team ' s total minutes . " Shut - out posters Awards . The tournament all - star team was voted on by the international media at the conclusion of the event . The following players were named : Additionally , Antero Niittymäki was named the most valuable player and the best goaltender of the tournament . Teemu Selänne was named the best forward and Kenny Jönsson was awarded as the best defenceman of the tournament . Qualification . Twelve places were allotted for the men ' s ice hockey tournament . The first eight were awarded to the top eight teams in the International Ice Hockey Federation ranking following the 2004 Men ' s World Ice Hockey Championships . Those teams were : The teams that automatically qualified include the same " Super Six " teams that were automatically qualified for the final group stage in the two previous tournaments , plus Slovakia and Germany which ( IIHF rankings notwithstanding ) are generally regarded by fans as being the seventh and eighth best teams . The ninth place was given to the host nation , Italy . The final three places were allotted through qualification tournaments in which Switzerland , Kazakhstan and Latvia won places . Qualification tournaments . " Groups D , E and F winners advance to Groups C , B and A respectively . Groups A , B and C winners qualify for the Olympic tournament . < br > Group D - Briançon , France ( 11 – 14 November 2004 ) Group E - Nowy Targ , Poland ( 11 – 14 November 2004 ) Group F - Stavanger , Norway ( 11 – 14 November 2004 ) Group A - Kloten , Switzerland ( 10 – 13 February 2005 ) Group B - Riga , Latvia ( 10 – 13 February 2005 ) Group C - Klagenfurt , Austria ( 10 – 13 February 2005 ) Women ' s competition . The loss of the United States to Sweden in Semifinal 1 was one of the most important events in the history of international women ' s ice hockey . It was the first time that either the US or Canada had lost in an international competition ( other than to each other ) . Leading scorers . Hat trick scorers Leading goaltenders . " Goalies with 40 % or more of their team ' s total minutes " " Goalies with less than 40 % of their team ' s total minutes " Shut - out posters Awards . Tournament Qualification . The top four teams from the International Ice Hockey Federation world rankings following the 2004 Women ' s World Ice Hockey Championships qualified automatically . These teams were Canada , the United States , Finland and Sweden . Italy also gained a place as the host nation . Russia , Germany , and Switzerland qualified for the last three places through qualification tournaments . Qualification tournaments . Group A - Podolsk , Russia ( 11 – 14 November 2004 ) Group B - Bad Tölz , Germany ( 11 – 14 November 2004 ) Group C - Beijing , China ( 11 – 14 November 2004 )