Less than 24 hours after his triumphant return with the Montreal Canadiens, Patrik Laine has another reason to celebrate: the 26-year-old forward was named to Finland’s 23-man roster that will participate in the Showdown of 4 nations next February.
Author of a goal during his first match in the French uniform, Tuesday evening against the New York Islanders, Laine is part of a group of 13 attackers selected by the Finnish team. CH number 92 will therefore represent his country for the first time since the Hockey World Cup which took place in the summer of 2016.
Laine will be accompanied by another Canadian player, since Joel Armia also obtained an invitation. The latter has collected two goals and 10 points in 25 games since the start of the campaign with CH. Last season, he scored 17 goals in 66 games after spending time in the American Hockey League (AHL). It was the best production of his career.
“It’s very special. It’s an honor to be able to represent my country and a very special moment for me,” said Armia, who sees himself playing an attacking-defensive role during the tournament.
Speaking of Armia’s work with his team since the start of the season, Canadian head coach Martin St-Louis indirectly justified the Finnish team’s choice to trust him.
“The first thing is to accept your role. Armia can play anywhere in a formation, he can play on the numerical advantage, short of a man, he can do so many things, commented St-Louis, after the Canadian’s training, Wednesday, at Brossard. He has a lot of value for a team.
Lehkonen present
In addition to the Canadian, the Florida Panthers and the Dallas Stars will be very well represented in the Finnish team with three players each.
Aleksander Barkov of the Panthers, Mikko Rantanen of the Colorado Avalanche and Sebastian Aho of the Carolina Hurricanes will be the driving forces on offense. On defense, Miro Heiskanen of the Stars will be the general.
Nashville Predators goaltender Juuse Saros will provide the last line of defense and will be supported in his work by Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen of the Buffalo Sabers as well as the surprising Kevin Lankinen of the Vancouver Canucks.
Among the Canadiens’ alumni, Avalanche forward Artturi Lehkonen got his ticket to Montreal and Boston while Jesperi Kotkaniemi of the Hurricanes was not selected.
All matches of the tournament will also be presented on TVA Sports.
– With the collaboration of Benoît Rioux
Here is Finland’s 23-man roster:
Kevin Lankinen, G (Vancouver)
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, G (Buffalo)
Juuse Saros, G (Nashville)
Jani Hakanpää, D (Toronto)
Miro Heiskanen, D (Dallas)
Esa Lindell, D (Dallas)
Niko Mikkola, D (Florida)
Olli Määtta, D (Utah)
Rasmus Ristolainen, D (Philadelphie)
Juuso Välimäki, D (Utah)
Sebastian Aho, C (Caroline)
Joel Armia, AD (Montreal)
Aleksander Barkov, C (Florida)
Mikael Granlund, AG (San Jose)
Erik Haula, C (New Jersey)
Roope Hintz, C (Dallas)
Kaapo Kakko, AD (NY Rangers)
Patrik Laine, AD (Montreal)
Artturi Lehkonen, AG (Colorado)
Anton Lundell, C (Florida)
Eetu Luostarinen, AG (Florida)
Mikko Rantanen, AD (Colorado)
Teuvo Teräväinen, AG (Chicago)
Sweden will be one to watch
NurPhoto via AFP
Although many place Canada and the United States as favorites for the competition, Sweden will certainly not be overlooked.
The Scandinavian team will count on one of the best defensive brigades of the tournament with Victor Hedman of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Rasmus Dahlin of the Buffalo Sabers and Gustav Forsling of the Florida Panthers on board.
She will also be able to count on a balanced attack with Filip Forsberg of the Nashville Predators, Jesper Bratt of the New Jersey Devils, Lucas Raymond of the Detroit Red Wings and William Nylander of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Against all expectations, young Leo Carlsson, second overall pick in the 2023 auction by the Anaheim Ducks, obtained his place on the 23-player roster.
Despite a good start to the campaign with the San Jose Sharks, forwards William Eklund and Fabian Zetterlund were not selected. Same thing for Rickard Rakell of the Pittsburgh Penguins, fourth top Swedish scorer in the NHL this season.
In goal, Filip Gustavsson should get the number job after a sensational start to the season in Minnesota. He is ahead of all goalkeepers on the circuit in terms of efficiency rate (0.929) as well as goals allowed average (2.04).
Here is Sweden’s 23-man roster:
Jacob Markstrom, G (New Jersey)
Filip Gustavsson, G (Minnesota)
Linus Ullmark, G (Ottawa)
Rasmus Andersson, D (Calgary)
Mattias Ekholm, D (Edmonton)
Jonas Brodin, D (Minnesota)
Rasmus Dahlin, D (Buffalo)
Gustav Forsling, D (Florida)
Erik Karlsson, D (Pittsburgh)
Victor Hedman, D (Tampa Bay)
Filip Forsberg, AG (Nashville)
Adrian Kempe, AD (Los Angeles)
Joel Eriksson Ek, C (Minnesota)
Gustav Nyquist, AG (Nashville)
Lucas Raymond, AD (Detroit)
Elias Lindholm, C (Boston)
Viktor Arvidsson, AD (Edmonton)
Elias Pettersson, C/AG (Vancouver)
Jesper Bratt, AD (New Jersey)
William Karlsson, C (Vegas)
William Nylander, AD (Toronto)
Leo Carlsson, C (Anaheim)
Mika Zibanejad, C (NY Rangers)
