Sweden, Finland unveil men's Olympic rosters
Sweden and Finland released their men's Olympic hockey rosters Friday.
The Swedes are looking to medal for the first time since taking home silver at Sochi in 2014.
Finland is the defending champion after defeating ROC 2-1 in the gold-medal game at Beijing 2022.
Here are the full rosters.
Sweden
| Forwards | Defensemen | Goaltenders |
|---|---|---|
| Jesper Bratt (NJD) | Rasmus Andersson (CGY) | Filip Gustavsson (MIN) |
| Leo Carlsson (ANA) | Philip Broberg (STL) | Jacob Markstrom (NJD) |
| Joel Eriksson Ek (MIN) | Jonas Brodin (MIN) | Jesper Wallstedt (MIN) |
| Filip Forsberg (NSH) | Rasmus Dahlin (BUF) | |
| Pontus Holmberg (TBL) | Oliver Ekman-Larsson (TOR) | |
| Adrian Kempe (LAK) | Gustav Forsling (FLA) | |
| Gabriel Landeskog (COL) | Victor Hedman (TBL) | |
| Elias Lindholm (BOS) | Erik Karlsson (PIT) | |
| William Nylander (TOR) | ||
| Elias Pettersson (VAN) | ||
| Rickard Rakell (PIT) | ||
| Lucas Raymond (DET) | ||
| Alexander Wennberg (SJS) | ||
| Mika Zibanejad (NYR) |
Notable omissions: Viktor Arvidsson, Mikael Backlund, William Eklund, Gustav Nyquist, Marcus Johansson, Simon Edvinsson, Mattias Ekholm, Hampus Lindholm, Samuel Ersson, Linus Ullmark
Vegas Golden Knights forward William Karlsson is unavailable due to injury.
Holmberg, Landeskog, and Wennberg are new forward additions from Sweden's 4 Nations Face-Off team. Arvidsson and Nyquist were dropped.
Edmonton Oilers blue-liner Ekholm is excluded in favor of Ekman-Larsson and Broberg.
Three players remain from Sweden's last Olympic team to feature NHLers, which won silver in 2014: Landeskog, Ekman-Larsson, and Karlsson.
Ottawa Senators goaltender Ullmark leads all Swedes in starts this season with 28 but was left at home. The 2023 Vezina Trophy winner has an .881 save percentage on the campaign.
Instead, rookie sensation Wallstedt gets the nod. The 23-year-old is 11-2-3 this season with a .928 SV% and an NHL-best four shutouts.
Finland
| Forwards | Defensemen | Goaltenders |
|---|---|---|
| Sebastian Aho (CAR) | Miro Heiskanen (DAL) | Kevin Lankinen (VAN) |
| Joel Armia (LAK) | Henri Jokiharju (BOS) | Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (BUF) |
| Mikael Granlund (ANA) | Mikko Lehtonen (Zurich) | Juuse Saros (NSH) |
| Erik Haula (NSH) | Esa Lindell (DAL) | |
| Roope Hintz (DAL) | Nikolas Matinpalo (OTT) | |
| Kaapo Kakko (SEA) | Niko Mikkola (FLA) | |
| Oliver Kapanen (MTL) | Olli Maatta (UTA) | |
| Joel Kiviranta (COL) | Rasmus Ristolainen (PHI) | |
| Artturi Lehkonen (COL) | ||
| Anton Lundell (FLA) | ||
| Eetu Luostarinen (FLA) | ||
| Mikko Rantanen (DAL) | ||
| Teuvo Teravainen (CHI) | ||
| Eeli Tolvanen (SEA) |
Notable omissions: Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Matias Maccelli, Aatu Raty, Urho Vakaanainen, Joonas Korpisalo
Florida Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov will miss the Olympics due to a knee injury. He had been named to the roster in the summer. Montreal Canadiens forward Patrik Laine is also sidelined with an injury.
Seven of the eight Finnish defensemen to play in the NHL this season are on the roster. The lone exception is New York Rangers blue-liner Vaakanainen. In his place is Swiss league rearguard Lehtonen, who played for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2020-21 campaign.
Lehtonen is the only returnee from Finland's gold-medal triumph at Beijing 2022.
Finland sticks with its 4 Nations Face-Off group between the pipes and should again be led by Saros.