Final World Cup of Hockey rosters announced – Sports Illustrated

All eight teams that will compete in the 2016 World Cup of Hockey are announcing their complete, 23-man rosters today, featuring their final seven selections.

We’ll update this page as the selections are announced. So far, Russia, Sweden, Finland and the Czech Republic have revealed their selections. Here’s the schedule for remaining teams (all times Eastern):

Team Europe: 6:09 p.m.

Team USA: 6:13 p.m.

Team North America: 6:16 p.m.

Team Canada: 6:22 p.m.

Russia offered the first surprises of the day, leaving off veteran forwards Ilya Kovalchuk and Alexander Radulov but including Slava Voynov.

The former Los Angeles Kings blueliner was suspended by the NHL in 2014 after being charged with spousal abuse. He later pleaded no contest to a reduced charge and was sentenced to 90 days in jail. Facing deportation from the United States upon his release, he left the country and returned to Russia, where he found employment in the KHL.

The NHL announced on Friday that it will review Voynov’s eligibility to take part in the World Cup tournament, which will be played entirely in Toronto from Sept. 17 to Oct 1.

“We will obviously have to review his status with the Players’ Association prior to the start of the tournament in September,” Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly told ESPN. “It is not my current expectation that this player will be deemed eligible to play in the World Cup of Hockey.”

Kovalchuk’s omission is glaring only for his familiarity to NHL fans. The former 50-goal man, who has spent the past three seasons in the KHL, was scratched by his team during the playoffs for his indifferent play.

Radulov made his intentions known that he would pursue another shot at the NHL after his current KHL agreement expired this season. It’s possible he was left off as retaliation for snubbing the Russian league, but it’s equally likely that management felt it had better options than the 29-year-old former Predator. Neither Radulov nor Kovalchuk skated for Russia at the just-completed World Championships, which were staged in Moscow. The host team claimed the bronze medal at the event.

Finland included 2016 NHL Draft prospect Patrik Laine, who recently dominated at the Worlds, and Carolina draft pick Sebastian Aho, but left off Jesse Puljujarvi.

Early Norris favorite John Klingberg was passed over by Team Sweden. That’s not a particularly surprising development, given their strength on the right side (Erik Karlsson, Anton Stralman, Niklas Hjalmarsson) and their already deep power play, but it’s sure to rile up fans who’ll question why Niklas Kronwall was selected ahead of him.

Gustav Nyquist was an unexpected snub by the Swedes. The Red Wings forward is coming off a solid World Championships where he led Tre Kroner with seven goals. Washington forward Marcus Johansson, who begged out of the Worlds because of injury, was also omitted.

Here are the first four rosters, with Friday’s final seven player additions listed in bold:

TEAM FINLAND

GOALTENDERS

Mikko Koskinen, SKA St. Petersburg (KHL)
Tuukka Rask, Bruins
Pekka Rinne, Predators

DEFENSEMEN

​Jyrki Jokipakka, Flames
Sami Lepisto, Salavat Yulaev Ufa (KHL)
Esa Lindell, Stars
Olli Maatta, Penguins
Ville Pokka, Rockford IceHogs (AHL)
Rasmus Ristolainen, Sabres
Sami Vatanen, Ducks

FORWARDS

​

​Sebastian Aho, Karpat Oulu (SM-liiga)
Aleksander Barkov, Panthers
Joonas Donskoi, Sharks
Valtteri Filppula, Lightning
Mikael Granlund, Wild
Erik Haula, Wild
Jussi Jokinen, Panthers
Mikko Koivu, Wild
Leo Komarov, Maple Leafs
Lauri Korpikoski, Oilers
Patrik Laine, Tappara Tempere (SM-liiga)
Jori Lehtera, Blues
Teuvo Teravainen, Blackhawks

TEAM CZECH REPUBLIC

GOALTENDERS

Petr Mrazek, Red Wings
Michal Neuvirth, Flyers
Ondrej Pavelec, Jets

DEFENSEMEN

Radko Gudas, Flyers
Michal Jordan, Hurricanes
Michal Kempny, Blackhawks
Zbynek Michalek, Coyotes
D Jakub Nakladal, Flames
D Roman Polak, Sharks
D Andrej Sustr, Lightning

FORWARDS

​​F Radek Faksa, Stars
F Michael Frolik, Flames
F Martin Hanzal, Coyotes
F Ales Hemsky, Stars
F Tomas Hertl, Sharks
F Dmitrij Jaskin, Blues
F David Krejci, Bruins
F Milan Michalek, Maple Leafs
F Ondrej Palat, Lightning
F David Pastrnak, Bruins
F Tomas Plekanec, Canadiens
F Vladimir Sobotka, Avangard Omsk (KHL)
F Jakub Voracek, Flyers

TEAM RUSSIA

GOALTENDERS

Sergei Bobrovsky, Blue Jackets
Semyon Varlamov, Avalanche
Andrei Vasilevskiy, Lightning

DEFENSEMEN

Alexei Emelin, Canadiens
Dmitry Kulikov, Panthers
Alexey Marchenko, Red Wings
Andrei Markov, Canadiens
Dmitry Orlov, Capitals
Slava Voynov, SKA St. Petersburg (KHL)
Nikita Zaitsev, Maple Leafs

FORWARDS

​Artem Anisimov, Blackhawks
Evgenii Dadonov, SKA St. Petersburg (KHL)
Pavel Datsyuk, Red Wings
F Nikita Kucherov, Lightning
F Nikolay Kulemin, Islanders
F Evgeny Kuznetsov, Capitals
F Evgeni Malkin, Penguins
F Vladislav Namestnikov, Lightning
F Alex Ovechkin, Capitals
F Artemi Panarin, Blackhawks
F Vadim Shipachev, SKA St. Petersburg (KHL)
F Vladimir Tarasenko, Blues
F Ivan Telegin, CSKA Moscow (KHL)

TEAM SWEDEN

GOALTENDERS

Robin Lehner, Sabres
Henrik Lundqvist, Rangers
Jacob Markstrom, Canucks

DEFENSEMEN

Mattias Ekholm, Predators
Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Coyotes
Victor Hedman, Lightning
Niklas Hjalmarsson, Blackhawks
Erik Karlsson, Senators
Niklas Kronwall, Red Wings
Anton Stralman, Lightning

FORWARDS

Nicklas Backstrom, Capitals
Loui Eriksson, Bruins
Filip Forsberg, Predators
Carl Hagelin, Penguins
Patric Hornqvist, Penguins
Marcus Kruger, Blackhawks
Gabriel Landeskog, Avalanche
Daniel Sedin, Canucks
Henrik Sedin, Canucks
Jakob Silfverberg, Ducks
Carl Soderberg, Avalanche
Alexander Steen, Blues
Henrik Zetterberg, Red Wings