2, maybe 3, more Blackhawks playing at World Championships

Sweden was the last of the hockey powerhouse countries to announce its roster for the IIHF World Championship, and there were a few names Chicago Blackhawks fans will recognize. Forward Anton Frondell and goaltender Arvid Soderblom were named to the roster. In addition, there is draft prospect Ivar Stenberg, who could still wind up in the Blackhawks organization next month.

Sweden Will Be Tough to Beat

Sweden’s roster is full of current and past NHL players. They could add another one or two after the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs concludes. Joining Frondell and Stenberg up front are Lucas Raymond (Detroit Red Wings), Oskar Sundqvist (St. Louis Blues), Emil Heineman (New York Islanders), and former NHLer Jakob Silfverberg.

Mattias Ekholm (Edmonton Oilers) and Oliver Ekman-Larsson (Toronto Maple Leafs) anchor the backend, with former NHL blueliners Robert Hagg and Erik Brannstrom. Soderblom is the only current NHL goaltender on the roster. Magnus Hellberg joins him, who bounced around five different NHL teams between 2014 and 2024. Love Harenstam is the third goalie. He’s a 19-year-old prospect, drafted by the Blues in the sixth round of last year’s NHL Entry Draft.

This is the first World Championship for Frondell and Stenberg. Frondell is no stranger to the international stage. He was named the World Junior Championship’s Best Forward as he led Sweden to the gold medal at the most recent tournament. He’s played 77 games for Team Sweden at multiple levels.

Soderblom played for Sweden at last year’s World Championship, but did not make an appearance. He was third on the depth chart behind Samuel Ersson and Jacob Markstrom. This time around, he’s the top netminder and should see plenty of action.

Plenty of Blackhawks in Switzerland

Frondell and Soderblom make seven current Blackhawks playing in the World Championships. Oliver Moore, Sam Lafferty, Wyatt Kaiser, and Drew Commesso are playing for the United States, while Teuvo Teravainen is suiting up for Finland.

The puck drops on the tournament Friday, with all the Blackhawks in action. Teravainen and Finland will open against Germany. Sweden has a tough opener against a loaded Canadian roster, while Team USA plays the hosting Swiss.

The United States, Switzerland, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Austria, Hungary, and Great Britain make up Group A and will play their preliminary round games in Zurich. Fribourg hosts Group B, which consists of Canada, Sweden, Czechia, Denmark, Slovakia, Norway, Slovenia, and Italy.

Both cities will host the quarterfinals on May 28 before the tournament moves to Zurich for the semifinals on May 30 and the championship game on May 31. The NHL Network will be broadcasting much of the tournament, including the elimination rounds.

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