11-10-2019, 04:41 PM(This post was last modified: 11-11-2019, 06:51 PM by Henrik.)
Team Sweden Announces WJC Roster
Hello everyone and welcome to the announcement, it is my pleasure as the GM of team Sweden to introduce to you players that have been selected to represent team Sweden in the upcoming WJC event. Team Sweden, while not having the deepest of rosters, has a solid but aging core group that is more than capable of making a push into the medal rounds. We have a deep veteran core with a strong sense of cohesion and a group that is committed to playing responsibly in our own end. The S51 class brought with it a much needed infusion of new blood into the list eligible players and we will start the night by introducing some of these new faces.
Trevor Yee, while yet to play any games in the SMJHL, is a young and talented offensive defenseman with excellent skating ability and great passing. His physical strength and size along with his lackluster shot is more than likely what has kept him outside of the league so far but he will be looking to have a strong tournament here to prove his worth as a future Free Agent in the juniors.
As his name suggests, Ogre is an impressive physical specimen that has a relentless style of play. He spent his first season with the St. Louis Scarecrows and provided a stable and physical presence on the blueline for them all season. Look for him to continue to play his gritty game during the WJC.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic Jr. - Defenseman @soulja
A familiar name to anyone who has followed football in the last two decades, Ibrahimovic Jr. has some fantastic athletic pedigree (we we’re unable to confirm the relation to the Swedish Striker but we assume that he is indeed Ibra’s son). One of the stars of the recent S51 draft class, Zlatan Jr. is a promising two-way defenseman with excellent defensive positioning and physical strength. His size along with his willingness to get physical and finish checks will make him an invaluable piece of the blue line for team Sweden.
Another fantastic addition to the Swedish junior teams blueline, Joakim Ohlund provides an offensive spark combined with responsible defensive play. A modern defenseman in every sense of the word, he is not as physical as previous generations of blueliners but his skating combined with his positioning and stickwork made him a great addition to the Detroit Falcons blueline this season. Expect him to put up a solid offensive effort as well as he is quite the sniper from the blueline.
Another example of a family of multi-generational talents, Lundqvist Jr is looking to add to his family’s already staggering athletic achievements. He is a physically large center with excellent positioning and playmaking ability. He had a limited role during his rookie season with the Colorado Raptors and is currently (as of the moment of writing this) still locked into the finals against the Carolina Kraken. He will definitely be playing a large role on this team this year and for years to come.
Another playmaking center to really fill out the depth of this junior squad, Bjornosonson played his rookie season with the Halifax raiders. He is an absolute workhorse that will give 110% every shift and can be relied upon to play in difficult situations. His passing as well as his high level of fitness are his major strengths. He is the kind of player that can be relied upon to always play at their best and will definitely be a valuable part of this team.
That’s all our new faces, now let’s go over some returning veterans.
Lindeman played his sophomore season as a goalie in the SMJHl with the Anaheim Outlaws. He is a agile and flashy goaltender that will provide solid goaltending, most likely in a backup role, for the Swedish team.
Fuhrberg is a physically imposing, old school power forward with an excellent shot. He will continue to provide a much needed scoring touch and a netfront presence for the team for the second year in a row. Fuhrberg has two seasons in the SMJHL under his belt and is currently signed to the Lethbridge Lions.
We’ve seen a trend in the last couple of draft classes of great playmaking forwards being developed in Sweden and Marcus Ohlsson is a fantastic example of this trend. A leader on and off the ice, Ohlsson will provide some invaluable intangible qualities to this team as well as the excellent two-way play on the ice that he is known for. Ohlsson has two seasons in the SMJHL under his belt and is currently playing for the Vancouver Whalers.
The S50 draft class was one of the deepest in recent memory and for team Sweden it was one that really brought in a lot of promising forwards to their roster, one of them being Lekberg Osterman. He is a strong skater with excellent two-way capability and decent all-round offensive capability. He is currently playing in his second SMJHL season in the finals against the Carolina Kraken. He is signed to the Colorado Raptors.
Another fantastic young playmaking forward to add to the team Sweden roster, Gylfi Eriksson combines his great passing ability with exceptional two-way play. He has a fantastic ability to read the developing play which will make him an invaluable part of any team that he plays for. He has played in the SMJHL for two full seasons, currently for the Kelowna Knights.
Axel Caderoth is your typical grinder, a guy you can rely on to provide a meaningful contribution while playing bottom 6 minutes. His gritty, physical and fearless style of play combined with a strong shot and netfront presence will make him an important part of the teams depth. Caderoth is currently a free agent after spending one season with the Colorado Raptors. A strong international performance can be exactly what he needs to get his career back on track.
Another free agent looking to get back into the bigger leagues with strong performance is winger Jastik Janörkssön. He is an offensively gifted forward with a fairly balanced style of play and an excellent shot, particularly his one-timer. He will provide additional scoring depth for the team this year.
Kathwyrm Hepbjörn - Center @tbeau
Kathwyrm is a player that should be a familiar face to most fans that have followed the Swedish junior team for the past few years. He is a large playmaking center that will provide the bottom 6 with some much needed veteran leadership as well as a strong presence in the face off circle.
Alexander Thorstrom - Goalie @Jesster
Thorstrom is a veteran of the SMJHL at this point, having just finished his 3rd season in the league. He has continually provided solid goaltending as well as some flashy, highlight reel saves for the fans of the various franchises he has played for. He will most likely be providing the team with most of its goaltending for the tournament.
Another veteran that will be providing some depth to this lineup is playmaking winger Juulius Smonk. He has a well rounded game and will most likely see play somewhere on the bottom 6 as well as some leadership on and off the ice
Adding another important veteran presence to the teams young blueline is Ender Zavala. Zavala is a smooth skating offensive defenseman with an excellent shot albeit with a smaller frame.
Rounding out the defensive depth on the team is Henrik Sapotchik, a veteran defensive defeseman with strong skating and a powerful physical presence. He is currently supplying the Anaheim Outlaws with defensive depth in the SMJHL.
Most likely the most talented of team Swedens Forwards is the veteran Savoli Tankovic. He is a sniper forward with a smaller frame but one hell of a shot. His tenacity and relentless style of play on and off the puck will make him an invaluable member of this team.
And finally we have a nice surprise in Jake Primeau who was recently moved from the Canadian to the Swedish list of players available for international play. Welcome to the team Jake!
Jake Primeau is a young, flashy center who just finished his third season in the SMJHL, currently playing for the Anchorage Armada. He is a sniper forward with an amazing goal scoring touch, great scoring and fantastic positioning. He will without a doubt prove to be a fantastic addition to this team and will play a key role on this team.
Thanks for reading and congratulations to all of our selected players on making the team.
Edit: Due to a mix-up it seems we had an illegal player selection on our roster. We wish Tankovic all the best in his future endeavours and are happy to announce that the veteran sniper Börje Burvall will be taking his spot on the final roster.
Henrik
Team Sweden Announces WJC Roster ![[Image: JvI8fTp.png]](https://i.imgur.com/JvI8fTp.png)
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