The purpose of this paper is to draw the lessons from the EU’s January 2009 gas crisis for national governments and regulators of the most affected countries. The results of the study are based on the review of the crisis related experiences of Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and Slovenia. Most importantly, we try to explain the difference in the performance of the countries under study in mitigating the effects of the crisis. The understanding of success factors in crisis management can help shaping the appropriate policy response to the risk of similar future events. Finally, we point out the need to reform some present regulatory practices regarding gas crisis management at the national level.