His
Vegas Golden Knights
were eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs on Wednesday, and on Friday
morning, William Karlsson announced that he was heading home to
Sweden to play for his country at the IIHF World Championship.
He will arrive in Stockholm on Sunday, Expressen.se
reports. That should put him in the Swedish lineup for the team’s final Group A game on Tuesday against Canada, with first place probably on the line.
“Of course, it’s a very bitter feeling,” Karlsson said about
the Knights’ second-round elimination at the hands of the Edmonton
Oilers. “I think we have a good team, so getting knocked out
this early is really tough.”
However, Karlsson is excited to be joining a strong Swedish squad
and said that he feels healthy since returning from LTIR on March 20
with a lower-body injury.
“The body feels good. I’ve been able to play pain-free since I
came back, so it’s great.”
“He is a fantastic hockey player, a really smart hockey player,”
said Swedish and Vancouver
Canucks defenseman Marcus Pettersson. “He’s a player who can
play many different situations and in many different places in a line
up. A very strong reinforcement.”
“It’s good that the players are interested in coming,” said
Swedish coach Sam Hallam, who added that he would only comment
specifically on players who are already in Stockholm. “And when we
have something clear to communicate, then we will do it.”
Along the same line of thought, Hallam refused to comment on
whether Victor Olofsson, Karlsson’s Vegas teammate, might also join
the team.
Filip Forsberg Praises Nashville Teammate Juuse Saros After Sweden-Finland Game
It’s
never dull when Sweden takes on Finland. On Tuesday at the IIHF World
Championship in front of their home fans in Stockholm, the Swedes
were dominant, outshooting the Finns 41-19 and controlling the game
in terms of possession and zone time.
The updated Swedish roster:
Goaltenders: Samuel Ersson (Philadelphia
Flyers, NHL), Jacob Markström (New
Jersey Devils, NHL), Arvid Söderblom (Chicago
Blackhawks, NHL).
Defensemen: Simon Edvinsson, Erik
Gustafsson (both Detroit
Red Wings, NHL), Rasmus Andersson (Calgary
Flames, NHL), Jonas Brodin (Minnesota
Wild, NHL), Gabriel Carlsson (EV Zug,
SUI), Adam Larsson (Seattle
Kraken, NHL), Marcus Pettersson (Vancouver
Canucks, NHL).
Forwards: Leo Carlsson, Isac
Lundeström (both Anaheim
Ducks, NHL), Alexander Wennberg (San
Jose Sharks, NHL), Anton Bengtsson (Rögle
BK, SHL), Christoffer Ehn (Linköping HC,
SHL), Max Friberg (Frölunda HC,
SHL), Mikael Backlund (Calgary Flames,
NHL), Filip Forsberg (Nashville
Predators, NHL), Jesper Frödén (ZSC
Lions, SUI), Marcus Johansson (Minnesota
Wild, NHL), Elias Lindholm (Boston
Bruins, NHL), Lucas Raymond (Detroit
Red Wings, NHL), Mika Zibanejad (New
York Rangers, NHL), Emil Heineman (Montreal
Canadiens, NHL), William Karlsson (Vegas Golden Knights, NHL).
Nathan MacKinnon On Sidney Crosby, Gabriel Landeskog
Nathan
MacKinnon is, not surprisingly, one of the most popular targets for
interviews among journalists covering the 2025 IIHF World
Championship Group B in Stockholm. The Hockey News’
Remy
Mastey spoke to him before Canada’s first game of the tournament,
with the memories of the Game 7 loss to the Dallas
Stars and Mikko Rantanen’s amazing performance still fresh in
his and everybody’s minds.
Read the full article here