HELSINKI/MUNICH – Finland named its national team for the 2009 IIHF World Championship following the Euro Hockey Tour in the Czech Republic. 25 players are in the preliminary roster which will be cut by two skaters.
After several NHL players had to decline due to injuries, Finland has seven NHL players on its list with goalkeepers Pekka Rinne and Karri Rämö, defencemen Ville Koistinen and Anssi Salmela, and wingers Niklas Hagman, Antti Miettinen and Jarkko Ruutu. Eight players come from the domestic league, five from Swedish clubs, three from Switzerland and two from the Russian KHL.
Finland roster as of April 19
Goalkeepers: Juuso Riksman (Jokerit Helsinki), Pekka Rinne (Nashville, NHL), Karri Rämö (Tampa Bay, NHL).
Defencemen: Teemu Aalto (Linköping, SWE), Topi Jaakola (Södertälje, SWE), Ville Koistinen (Nashville, NHL), Mikko Lehtonen (Timrå, SWE), Janne Niinimaa (Langnau, SUI), Janne Niskala (Frölunda, SWE), Petteri Nummelin (Lugano, SUI), Anssi Salmela (Atlanta, NHL).
Forwards: Niklas Hagman (Toronto, NHL), Juha-Pekka Hytönen (Jyväskylä), Hannes Hyvönen (Dynamo Minsk, KHL), Jarkko Immonen (Jyväskylä), Niko Kapanen (Kazan, KHL), Sami Kapanen (Kuopio), Kalle Kerman (Jokerit Helsinki), Leo Komarov (Lahti), Antti Miettinen (Minnesota, NHL), Tuomas Pihlman (Jyväskylä), Mika Pyörälä (Timrå, SWE), Jarkko Ruutu (Ottawa, NHL), Tommi Santala (Kloten, SUI), Ville Vahalahti (Turku).
Also Germany named 25 players to the team which will travel to Berne for the World Championship. Coach Uwe Krupp named four players which join the team directly after the league final. As expected, also the NHL players Jochen Hecht and Christoph Schubert are part of the team but Hecht under the condition that he the re-inclusion to the National Anti-Doping Agency test pool will be approved.
Among the cut players was also Thomas Greilinger due to a shoulder injury in an exhibition games.
Germany roster as of April 19
Goalkeepers: Dimitrij Kotschnew (Spartak Moscow, RUS), Dimitri Pätzold (Hannover), Dennis Endras (Augsburg).
Defencemen: Sven Butenschoen (Mannheim), Christopher Schmidt (Iserlohn), Sebastian Osterloh (Frankfurt), Christoph Schubert (Ottawa, NHL), Michael Bakos (Ingolstadt), Andreas Renz (Köln), Frank Hördler (Berlin), Nikolai Goc (Hannover), Moritz Müller (Köln).
Forwards: Sven Felski (Berlin), Travis James Mulock (Bad Tölz, GER-2), Michael Wolf (Iserlohn), Jochen Hecht (Buffalo, NHL), Kai Hospelt (Wolfsburg), Andre Rankel (Berlin), Daniel Kreutzer (Düsseldorf), Alexander Barta (Hamburg), Michael Hackert (Mannheim), Yannic Seidenberg (Ingolstadt), Christoph Ullmann (Köln), Patrick Hager (Krefeld), Philip Gogulla (Köln).
