International Ice Hockey Federation

Sweden adds two

Sweden adds two

Norman, Zackrisson to play at Olympics

Published 15.08.2018 16:15 GMT+11 | Author Martin Merk
Sweden adds two
John Norman represented Sweden at the 2016 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship. Photo: Minas Panagiotakis / HHOF-IIHF Images
Sweden has finalized its men’s national team for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games.

The Swedes had earlier announced a preliminary 23-man roster with two forwards to be added last week. Head coach Rickard Gronborg has now made the decision and added two KHL players to the roster.

John Norman of Jokerit Helsinki and Patrik Zackrisson, scoring leader of Russian club Sibir Novosibirsk, will be part of the team for the 2018 Olympic men’s ice hockey tournament.

For Zackrisson it will be the first top-level tournament with the men’s national team. He has been playing exhibition games since 2008 but has never been nominated to the Olympics or World Championships but was on the World Junior squad in 2007.

The updated roster includes five players who have won gold at the 2017 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship last spring including goaltender Viktor Fasth and forwards Dennis Everberg, Carl Klingberg, Joel Lundqvist and Linus Omark.
12 players join from teams in the KHL, nine play in the domestic SHL and four in Switzerland.

Joel Lundqvist, who captained Sweden to gold last May, is the most experienced player with 141 international games for the Swedish men’s national team. Defenceman Staffan Kronwall (104) and forward Linus Omark (101) also have more than 100 national team games where Omark scored the most (19) goals.

34-year-old Lundqvist is also the oldest player on a roster full of experience with an average age of 29. Only one player is younger than 23: millennial Rasmus Dahlin. The 17-year-old defenceman is a candidate for becoming the next number-one-draft pick in the NHL and recently played at the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship where he won a silver medal and the Best Defenceman award.

Sweden will have a pre-tournament game in Incheon near Seoul against Canada on 12 February before the tournament starts in Gangneung where all ice sports competitions will be held.

Tre Kronor won silver at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games. This year they will face countries from their neighbourhood in the preliminary round with archrival Finland, Norway and Germany.

Goaltenders:
Jhonas Enroth, Dynamo Minsk (BLR/KHL)
Viktor Fasth, Vaxjo Lakers
Magnus Hellberg, Kunlun Red Star (CHN/KHL)

Defencemen:
Jonas Ahnelov, Avangard Omsk (RUS)
Simon Bertilsson, Brynas Gavle
Rasmus Dahlin, Frolunda Gothenburg
Johan Fransson, Geneve-Servette (SUI)
Erik Gustafsson, Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk (RUS)
Patrik Hersley, SKA St Petersburg (RUS)
Staffan Kronwall, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl (RUS)
Mikael Wikstrand, Farjestad Karlstad

Forwards:
Dick Axelsson, Farjestad Karlstad
Alexander Bergstrom, Sibir Novisibirsk (RUS)
Dennis Everberg, Avangard Omsk (RUS)
Carl Klingberg, EV Zug (SUI)
Anton Lander, Ak Bars Kazan (RUS)
Par Lindholm, Skelleftea AIK
Joakim Lindstrom, Skelleftea AIK
Joel Lundqvist, Frolunda Gothenburg
Oscar Moller, Skelleftea AIK
John Norman, Jokerit Helsinki (FIN/KHL)
Linus Omark, Salavat Yulayev Ufa (RUS)
Fredrik Pettersson, ZSC Lions (SUI)
Viktor Stalberg, EV Zug (SUI)
Patrik Zackrisson, Sibir Novosibirsk (RUS)

Head Coach:
Rikard Gronborg

 

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