Finnish winger Aku Räty, 23, has signed a two-year contract with his hometown team Kärpät Oulu, the Liiga club announced on Tuesday.

Räty had spent the past two seasons in North America in the systems of the Arizona Coyotes, Utah HC and Chicago Blackhawks.

“Expectations for next season are high,” said Räty. “The team is really good, and with a championship-winning coach on top of that. I hope that as a leading player I can help the team return Kärpät to where it belongs – at the top of the league.”

“It’s great to have Aku back in Oulu,” said club sports director Kimmo Kapanen. “He is a versatile player, grew up with Kärpät and knows what it means to play for this club. We believe he will be a significant part of next season’s team.”

Räty was drafted in the fifth round, 151st overall, by Arizona in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. He played with Kärpät, then one season with Ilves Tampere before heading to North America in 2023.

Räty played one NHL game for the Coyotes in 2023-24 but otherwise spent the past two seasons in the AHL with the Tucson Roadrunners and Rockford IceHogs. On the 2025 trade deadline, Räty’s rights were moved from Utah to Chicago along with the rights to defensemen Victor Söderström – who was playing in Sweden at the time – and Shea Weber – who hadn’t played since 2021 and was unofficially retired – in exchange for a fifth-round draft pick in 2026.

Victor Soderstrom Wins Borje Salming Trophy As SHL’s Top Defenseman Victor Söderström has been named the top defenseman in the Swedish Hockey League for the 2024-25 season. As a result, he has been awarded the Börje Salming Trophy.

Räty’s younger brother Aatu is a center for the Vancouver Canucks.

Kärpät had high expectations for last season but missed the playoffs, causing the club maangement to issue an apology to the fans.

Keeping the puck out of the Kärpät net was a particular issue for the team, and during the course of the season the team acquired, among others, defensemen Dominik Mašin, Marcus Björk and Ville Pokka and goaltender Damian Clara, with limited success. As the transfer deadline approached, native son Jesse Puljuärvi was rumored to be headed there after securing his release from the Pittsburgh Penguins, but he instead signed with the Carolina Hurricanes.

The payroll for 2025-26 seems lower so far – Räty’s one game represents the only NHL experience on the team so far – but the club does have prospects Viljami Marjala (Buffalo Sabres), Janne Peltonen (Chicago) and Visa Vedenpää (Seattle Kraken) under contract.

After Disappointing Season, Kärpät Management Addresses Fans: 'The On-Ice Goal Was Far From Achieved' A perennial powerhouse and seven-time champion in Finland since being promoted to the top-tier Liiga in 2000, this past season was bitterly disappointing for Kärpät Oulu. Despite the high hopes and a high payroll, the team finished 13th in the 16-team league, missing the post-season for the first time since the turn of the Millenium.

Adam Klapka played his first IIHF World Championship game on Thursday against Hungary but his second game on Saturday was more memorable. The 24-year-old Calgary Flames winger recorded two goals and an assist in an 8-1 victory over Kazakhstan.

He assisted on Jakub Flek’s goal early in the second period to make it 2-0 but waited until the third period to score his goals. Before that, he missed a couple of point-blank chances.

“Honestly, I was a little angry with myself,” he told the media after the game, according to Hokej.cz. “When you're alone in the slot, you should score because it doesn’t happen very often. I should convert these chances. But I’m glad I finally found a way to score.”

Did he ever. A minute into the third period, he picked up the corner deep in his own zone and went end-to-end, beating five Kazakhs and splitting the defense along the way to give the Czechs a 5-0 lead.

Klapper!

Co fanoušci mohli sledovat v letošním ročníku na farmě #Flames a poslední měsíce i v NHL.

Adam Klapka je strašně silný na puku a díky enormní pracovitosti herně dál roste.

Nádherný premiérový 🚨na #MensWorld pro 🇨🇿obra.

pic.twitter.com/pfzBUNpFjihttps://t.co/O62rS2VjYr

— Matěj Hejda (@matej_hejda33) May 17, 2025

“The defenseman hit my stick and the puck went up in the air,” he said about the finish. “I wanted to bury it under (the goalie) and I found a hole between the legs, so I put it there.”

His second goal closed out the scoring in the final minute.

“Flíček (Flek) wanted to pass it to me and it hit a Kazakh stick, so again from the air, I just wanted to try to put it past the goalie, and fortunately I did,” Klapka described.

“I really enjoyed it. It’s something you dream about when you watch the World Championship at home.”

Klapka wasn’t the only Czech to record three points in the game. Captain Roman Červenka, a former Flame, recorded a hat trick.

"I'm happy for him,” said Klapka. Roman is a professional and you can learn a lot from him. He’s the first to enter the locker room and the last to leave. I like watching how he takes care of himself – it’s inspiring. It’s incredible to enjoy time with him like this and be right there.”

Adam Klapka: “I knew deep down that I would play in the NHL one day”At 6-foot-8 and 236 pounds, Adam Klapka is a hard guy to miss. But the Czech winger managed to fly under the radar for much of his amateur career and even in his early years as a pro. He never played in the U18 Worlds or the World Juniors, was never drafted by an NHL team and at age 21, split the season between the Bílí Tygři Liberec of the Czech Extraliga and HC Benátky nad Jizerou of the tier-two Chance Liga.

With injured Jakub Lauko due back into the lineup at some point and speculation about the addition of David Kämpf to the Czech team if the Toronto Maple Leafs get eliminated on Sunday, Klapka doesn’t know if he’ll get the chance to play any more games in this tournament, but he’ll be ready if he does.

“It’s up to the coaches,” he said. “I tried to do my best in the two games I played. We’ll see how it goes. I’ll do what the coaches say and be ready for anything.”

Czechs Eyeing Kämpf If Leafs Lose Game 7; Hertl HurtCzechia still has a free forward spot on its World Championship roster and the team is apparently eyeing David Kämpf in the event the Toronto Maple Leafs lose Game 7 of their Stanley Cup second-round playoff series to the Florida Panthers on Sunday.

His Vegas Golden Knights were eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs on Wednesday, and on Friday morning, William Karlsson announced that he was heading home to Sweden to play for his country at the IIHF World Championship.

He will arrive in Stockholm on Sunday, Expressen.se reports. That should put him in the Swedish lineup for the team’s final Group A game on Tuesday against Canada, with first place probably on the line.

“Of course, it’s a very bitter feeling,” Karlsson said about the Knights’ second-round elimination at the hands of the Edmonton Oilers. “I think we have a good team, so getting knocked out this early is really tough.”

However, Karlsson is excited to be joining a strong Swedish squad and said that he feels healthy since returning from LTIR on March 20 with a lower-body injury.

“The body feels good. I’ve been able to play pain-free since I came back, so it's great.”

“He is a fantastic hockey player, a really smart hockey player,” said Swedish and Vancouver Canucks defenseman Marcus Pettersson. “He’s a player who can play many different situations and in many different places in a line up. A very strong reinforcement.”

Filip Forsberg Praises Nashville Teammate Juuse Saros After Sweden-Finland Game It’s never dull when Sweden takes on Finland. On Tuesday at the IIHF World Championship in front of their home fans in Stockholm, the Swedes were dominant, outshooting the Finns 41-19 and controlling the game in terms of possession and zone time.

“It's good that the players are interested in coming,” said Swedish coach Sam Hallam, who added that he would only comment specifically on players who are already in Stockholm. “And when we have something clear to communicate, then we will do it.”

Along the same line of thought, Hallam refused to comment on whether Victor Olofsson, Karlsson’s Vegas teammate, might also join the team.

The updated Swedish roster:

Goaltenders: Samuel Ersson (Philadelphia Flyers, NHL), Jacob Markström (New Jersey Devils, NHL), Arvid Söderblom (Chicago Blackhawks, NHL).

Defensemen: Simon Edvinsson, Erik Gustafsson (both Detroit Red Wings, NHL), Rasmus Andersson (Calgary Flames, NHL), Jonas Brodin (Minnesota Wild, NHL), Gabriel Carlsson (EV Zug, SUI), Adam Larsson (Seattle Kraken, NHL), Marcus Pettersson (Vancouver Canucks, NHL).

Forwards: Leo Carlsson, Isac Lundeström (both Anaheim Ducks, NHL), Alexander Wennberg (San Jose Sharks, NHL), Anton Bengtsson (Rögle BK, SHL), Christoffer Ehn (Linköping HC, SHL), Max Friberg (Frölunda HC, SHL), Mikael Backlund (Calgary Flames, NHL), Filip Forsberg (Nashville Predators, NHL), Jesper Frödén (ZSC Lions, SUI), Marcus Johansson (Minnesota Wild, NHL), Elias Lindholm (Boston Bruins, NHL), Lucas Raymond (Detroit Red Wings, NHL), Mika Zibanejad (New York Rangers, NHL), Emil Heineman (Montreal Canadiens, NHL), William Karlsson (Vegas Golden Knights, NHL).

Nathan MacKinnon On Sidney Crosby, Gabriel Landeskog Nathan MacKinnon is, not surprisingly, one of the most popular targets for interviews among journalists covering the 2025 IIHF World Championship Group B in Stockholm. The Hockey News’ Remy Mastey spoke to him before Canada’s first game of the tournament, with the memories of the Game 7 loss to the Dallas Stars and Mikko Rantanen’s amazing performance still fresh in his and everybody’s minds.

Antti Raanta is finally going home. On Monday, Liiga club Lukko, located in Raanta’s hometown of Rauma, on Finland’s west coast, announced that the 36-year-old goaltender had signed a one-year contract.

“There’s a little boyish enthusiasm, Raanta smiled in a press conference. “Of course, I feel a little nervous about returning home, but at the same time I’m really excited and have found some peace – now I know where I’m going and I’ll have the opportunity to play in Rauma again.”

“It’s a great thing that Antti is coming home,” said Lukko sports director Kalle Sahlsted. “‘Ana’ has, of course, had a great career so far and now he was quite mature and a return to Lukko was possible. We strongly believe that he will be one of the top players in the league next season.”

Sahlstedt continued, “The best thing about this is that we get a boy from our own village back home.”

Raanta had considered signing with Lukko last year summer when he decided to end his NHL career and return to play in Europe. However, he learned that, according to Finnish tax laws, if he signed a professional contract in Finland in 2024, he would be taxed by the Finnish government for all of his income during that calendar year, which included a half-season’s NHL salary and proceeds from the sale of his house in North Carolina.

Instead, he played in Switzerland for Genève-Servette, where he posted a goals-against average of 2.74, a save percentage of .902 and one shutout in 24 National League games. He also played in five Champions Hockey League games, where he backstopped his team to the semifinals with a goals-against average of 1.80, a save percentage of .944 and two shutouts. Raanta was one of the pan-European competition’s five MVP finalists.

Antti Raanta Won’t Return To Geneva – Finland Next? Antti Raanta’s first season back in Europe after ending his NHL career had its ups and downs.

Raanta grew up and turned pro with Lukko until 2011. He also played two Liiga seasons for Ässät before going to North America in 2013. Over the next 11 seasons, he played 277 NHL regular-season games and 24 playoff games for the Chicago Blackhawks, New York Rangers, Arizona Coyotes and Carolina Hurricanes.

Last season, Lukko finished first in the Liiga standings and was eliminated in the semifinals by SaiPa Lappeenranta.

“We’ve got a chance to win here,” said Raanta. “The team here has been built in such a way that we are very close to that ultimate goal and a championship. I have also heard a lot of good things about the entire organization and how things are handled here.”

Raanta is one of eight players that Lukko has under contract for next season. Among the others is Canadian defenseman Éric Gélinas, who signed a one-year contract extension in March.

Ex-NHL D-Man Will Return To Finnish Team Next YearCanadian defenseman Éric Gélinas, 33, has agreed to a one-year contract extension with Lukko Rauma, the Finnish Liiga club announced on Monday.

Swedish forward Fredrik Olofsson, 28, has signed a three-year contract with Rögle BK, the Ängelholm-based SHL club announced on Monday.

“It’s an honor to have the chance here in Rögle and to play in a team with high ambitions,” said Olofsson. “It will be exciting. The SHL is a demanding league and nothing comes free. I am motivated to be an engine for the team at center and I want to challenge myself to carry a heavy load together with my teammates.”

“I’m very happy and excited to finally see Fredrik in green and white,” said club sports director Hampus Sjöström. “Fredrik has accumulated a lot of experience through playing in different leagues, which will be useful for our group. He’s a responsible player with the ability to make his surroundings better and a great and competitive guy to have in the locker room.”

Olofsson is originally from Helsingborg in southwestern Sweden, about 25 km from Ängelholm and just across the Öresund from Denmark. However, he began playing in the United States at age 14 – first youth hockey in Colorado, followed by two years in the USHL and four years of college hockey at the University of Nebraska-Omaha.

Olofsson was drafted in the fourth round, 98th overall, by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft, and he made his professional debut with the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs in the spring of 2019 after finishing his senior year at UNO.

Olofsson spent the next three seasons playing professionally in Sweden – first for MoDo in the second-tier HockeyAllsvenskan and then two years in the SHL for IK Oskarshamn. During that time, he also played his only significant international hockey to date, recording one assist in six games for Sweden at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.

Olofsson split the next two seasons between the NHL and the AHL – first with the Dallas Stars in 2022-23 and then with the Colorado Avalanche in 2023-24. Combined, he had 13 points and 10 penalty minutes in 85 NHL regular-season games. He was also pointless in two playoff games for Dallas in 2023.

Last season in Switzerland, Olofsson recorded 30 points in 51 National League regular-season and playoff games for EV Zug.

“My ambitions are crystal clear – winning a championship as a team is the only thing that matters,” Olofsson continued. “How we get there and individual goals we will put together now during the summer. Building a daily operation that spreads good energy while making demands on each other will drive us to the top. Together with Dan (Tangnes, Rögle’s head coach), we will be clear in everything we do and I look forward to that.”

Rögle finished seventh in the SHL regular season last year before being eliminated in the play-in round. Besides Olofsson, players under contract with the team for 2025-26 include NHL prospects Linus Sjödin (Buffalo Sabres), Simon Zether (Florida Panthers), Felix Nilsson (Nashville Predators) and Austrian defenseman Gregor Biber (Utah Mammoth).

Radim Zohorna Signs With Swedish ClubCzech forward Radim Zohorna, 29, has signed a two-year contract with Färjestad BK, the SHL club announced on Friday.

Canadian defenseman Nicolas Mattinen, 27, has signed a one-year contract with Adler Mannheim, the DEL club announced on Monday.

It will be Mattinen’s second tour of duty in Germany after spending last season in the AHL.

“I’m thrilled and honored to be wearing the Adler jersey next season,” Mattinen is quoted in a club press release. “It feels great to be returning to Germany. I want to do my part to contribute to what will hopefully be a successful season and am very excited to meet everyone and start working in August.”

“We are grateful that Nicolas has decided to return from North America and join our team,” said Dallas Eakins, Mannheim’s sports manager and head coach. “He’s a proven scorer in the league and brings size and attitude. We look forward to seeing him on the ice in our colors soon.”

A native of Orleans, Ont., Mattinen played junior hockey for the London Knights, Flint Firebirds, Hamilton Bulldogs and Oshawa Generals, winning two OHL titles along the way and was a member of London’s 2015-16 Memorial Cup championship team, although he missed the final tournament with an injury.

The 6-foot-5, 216-pound Mattinen was drafted in the sixth round, 179th overall, by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. He went on to play three years for the University of Ottawa, however, before finally turning pro in 2022 at age 24.

Former Leafs, Lightning D-Man Returns Home To Sweden Swedish defenseman Andreas Borgman, 29, has signed a three-year contract to play with HV71, the Jönköping-based SHL club announced on Tuesday.

Mattinen played for Villacher EV in 2022-23, winning the ICEHL’s top defenseman award, and then played for the DEL’s Straubing Tigers in 2023-24, where he won the league’s top defenseman and MVP awards. Mattinen signed a contract with Mannheim in the summer of 2024 but exercised an escape clause when he had the chance to sign with Toronto.

Last season, Mattinen played only 22 games for the Toronto Marlies, recording four assists and eight penalty minutes. He has seven points and 12 penalty minutes in 30 career AHL games.

Toronto retains his NHL rights.

Last season, Mannheim finished fourth in the DEL regular season and was swept by eventual champion Eisbären Berlin in the semifinals. In addition to Mattinen, Mannheim also has ex-NHLers Tom Künhackl, John Gilmour, Kristian Reichel and Marc Michaelis under contract for the 2025-26 season.

Kristian Reichel leaves Winnipeg for Adler MannheimKristian Reichel is moving on from the Winnipeg Jets organization where he’s spent the past six seasons, signing a three-year contract with German club Adler Mannheim.

Swedish defenseman Filip Roos, 26, has signed a two-year contract with Färjestad BK, the SHL club announced on Sunday. This comes two days after Färjestad signed Czech forward Radim Zohorna to a two-year deal.

“It’s gonna be fun,” said Roos. “I don’t know much about Karlstad, but I lived up in Karlskoga for two years, which is not very far away. The times I’ve played here, you can feel the energy from the fans in the arena. It will be really fun.”

“We’ve had our eyes on Filip for a long time and we believe that he, with his abilities, will strengthen our defense in a good way, said Färjestad sports director Rickard Wallin. “Of course, we’re looking to strengthen all parts of the team to the best of our ability, and even though we thought the defense had the qualities that we wanted in advance of last year, we didn’t really get it together as a whole. We think the qualities that Filip Roos has match very well with what we want to add.”

Wallin described Roos as “a really good two-way defenseman at the SHL level. He skates well, has good size and can play in all zones. We think the ceiling is high and we know that he is eager to come here so it feels great.”

Roos, who describes himself as “a skilled defenseman who likes to drive the puck and hopefully can use it even more at home on bigger ice,” is originally from Gothenberg and played one SHL game with Frölunda in 2017-18 and 56 with Skelleftea AIK in 2021-22, recording seven points in the regular season and playoffs.

Roos was never drafted by an NHL team but spent the last three seasons in North America. The first two seasons he spent in the Chicago Blackhawks organization, recording three points and four penalty minutes in 21 NHL games, spending the rest of the time with the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs. He spent last season in the Ottawa Senators organization, recording 17 points – all assists – in 68 AHL games with the Belleville Senators.

Last season, Färjestad finished fourth in the SHL regular season and was eliminated in the quarterfinals. The team also reached the final of the Champions Hockey League, losing to the ZSC Lions in Zurich.

In addition to Zohorna and Roos, Färjestad has under contract for next season ex-NHLers Oskar Steen and Marián Studenič, and NHL prospects Lucas Forsell (Vancouver Canucks), Jack Berglund (Philadelphia Flyers), Noel Fransén (Carolina Hurricanes) and goaltender Melker Thelin (Utah Mammoth).

Radim Zohorna Signs With Swedish ClubCzech forward Radim Zohorna, 29, has signed a two-year contract with Färjestad BK, the SHL club announced on Friday.

Swedish defenseman Filip Roos, 26, has signed a two-year contract with Färjestad BK, the SHL club announced on Sunday. This comes two days after Färjestad signed Czech forward Radim Zohorna to a two-year deal.

“It’s gonna be fun,” said Roos. “I don’t know much about Karlstad, but I lived up in Karlskoga for two years, which is not very far away. The times I’ve played here, you can feel the energy from the fans in the arena. It will be really fun.”

“We’ve had our eyes on Filip for a long time and we believe that he, with his abilities, will strengthen our defense in a good way, said Färjestad sports director Rickard Wallin. “Of course, we’re looking to strengthen all parts of the team to the best of our ability, and even though we thought the defense had the qualities that we wanted in advance of last year, we didn’t really get it together as a whole. We think the qualities that Filip Roos has match very well with what we want to add.”

Wallin described Roos as “a really good two-way defenseman at the SHL level. He skates well, has good size and can play in all zones. We think the ceiling is high and we know that he is eager to come here so it feels great.”

Roos, who describes himself as “a skilled defenseman who likes to drive the puck and hopefully can use it even more at home on bigger ice,” is originally from Gothenberg and played one SHL game with Frölunda in 2017-18 and 56 with Skelleftea AIK in 2021-22, recording seven points in the regular season and playoffs.

Roos was never drafted by an NHL team but spent the last three seasons in North America. The first two seasons he spent in the Chicago Blackhawks organization, recording three points and four penalty minutes in 21 NHL games, spending the rest of the time with the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs. He spent last season in the Ottawa Senators organization, recording 17 points – all assists – in 68 AHL games with the Belleville Senators.

Last season, Färjestad finished fourth in the SHL regular season and was eliminated in the quarterfinals. The team also reached the final of the Champions Hockey League, losing to the ZSC Lions in Zurich.

In addition to Zohorna and Roos, Färjestad has under contract for next season ex-NHLers Oskar Steen and Marián Studenič, and NHL prospects Lucas Forsell (Vancouver Canucks), Jack Berglund (Philadelphia Flyers), Noel Fransén (Carolina Hurricanes) and goaltender Melker Thelin (Utah Mammoth).

Radim Zohorna Signs With Swedish ClubCzech forward Radim Zohorna, 29, has signed a two-year contract with Färjestad BK, the SHL club announced on Friday.

Czech winger Dominik Kubalík, 29, has signed a two-year contract with EV Zug, the National League club announced on Friday.

Last season, Kubalík had 52 points in 56 regular-season and playoff games for HC Ambrì-Piotta.

“Dominik is an experienced player with leadership qualities. With his speed, his intelligence and his shot, he strengthens our team on the wing,” said Zug GM Reto Kläy.

The news confirms reports from a month ago that Kläy and Kubalík’s agent were in contact.

A native of Plzeň, Czechia, Kubalík was a seventh-round pick of the Los Angeles Kings in 2013 but, other than two seasons in the OHL, stayed in his home country until 2017, when he went to Switzerland for the first time. In 90 National League regular-season and playoff games between 2017 and 2019, Kubalík had 37 goals and 60 assists for 97 points. In 2018-19, he was the league scoring champion and MVP.

In five NHL seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings and Ottawa Senators, Kubalík has 93 goals and 83 assists for 176 points in 357 regular-season games. In his first NHL season with Chicago, the pandemic-shortened 2019-20 campaign, he had 46 points in 68 regular-season games, then eight points in nine playoff games. However, he had only 15 points in 74 games with Ottawa in 2023-24 and, as a result, had trouble attracting contract offers last summer.

Report: Swiss Club Interested In Tomas Tatar, Dominik Kubalik Unhappy with the way his team’s season finished, EV Zug GM Reto Kläy recently spoke to the Swiss media about how he’d like to go about strengthening his team for next season.

Kubalík has made no secret of his desire to return to the NHL. Last year’s contract with Ambrì-Piotta included a clause that would have allowed him to leave the team if he had received an offer from an NHL team by Dec. 15. Although Zug’s announcement wasn’t specific about the details, it appears that his new contract includes the opportunity to accept a potential NHL offer.

“With a player of his caliber, the NHL is, of course, always a topic and we are aware of the risk that Dominik would take the step back to North America should he receive a corresponding offer,” said Kläy.

Internationally, Kubalík has produced big for the Czechs over the years with 46 points in 43 career games at five IIHF World Championships. In 2023, he led the tournament with eight goals and was a forward on the tournament all-star team. He also had two points in five games for the Czechs at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.

Martin Nečas Says Yes; Czechs Take 25 To Denmark The Czech roster for the upcoming IIHF World Championship is starting to come together. A week ago, David Pastrňák confirmed he would play and on Tuesday, at the team’s end-of-season press conference, Colorado Avalanche GM Chris McFarlane confirmed that Martin Nečas would be going as well.

Tim Stützle is joining the German team at the IIHF World Championship, the German Ice Hockey Association announced on Friday night.

“Immediately after the end of his NHL season, Tim publicly stated that he would like to join us,” said Christian  Künast, manager of the German team. “We are pleased that we have now calmly resolved all the formalities and that he will be joining us. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the Ottawa Senators, from whom we have already received approval for his participation, and we look forward to Tim’s arrival here in Herning.”

“We are, of course, delighted that Tim, a very high-quality player, is joining us and will further strengthen our team for the tournament,” said German coach Harold Kreis. “He demonstrated his strengths in the past NHL season and delivered a great season with the Senators. We had a very good and detailed conversation during our NHL trip, during which he reiterated his intention to join us. It’s all the more pleasing that his participation in the World Championship is now working out.”

Stützle becomes the fourth active NHLer on this year’s German team (see roster below).

To make room for Stützle, Marcel Noebels, a former Philadelphia Flyers prospect who is a veteran of eight World Championships and a silver medalist from the 2018 Winter Olympics, was cut from the team. That reduces the contingent on the team from DEL champion Eisbären Berlin to six.

Moritz Seider To Captain Germany At Worlds Germany’s initial 25-man roster for the 2025 IIHF World Championship includes three players who played in the NHL this season and three others who are currently under contract to NHL teams.

Germany’s first game is on Saturday afternoon against Hungary, although Stützle probably won’t play until at least Germany’s third game on Tuesday against Norway.

Goaltenders: Mathias Niederberger (Red Bull Munich), Arno Tiefensee (Adler Mannheim / Dallas Stars), Philipp Grubauer (Seattle Kraken).

Defensemen: Korbinian Geibel, Eric Mik, Jonas Müller (all Eisbären Berlin), Leon Hüttl, Fabio Wagner (both ERC Ingolstadt), Lukas Kälble (Adler Mannheim), Moritz Seider (Detroit Red Wings), Maksymilian Szuber (Tucson Roadrunners, AHL / Utah HC).

Forwards: Tim Stützle (Ottawa Senators), Leo Pföderl, Frederik Tiffels, Manuel Wiederer (all Eisbären Berlin), Yasin Ehliz, Patrick Hager, Maximilian Kastner (all Red Bull Munich), Alexander Ehl (Düsseldorfer EG), Marc Michaelis (Adler Mannheim), Joshua Samanski (Straubing Tigers / Edmonton Oilers), Justin Schütz (Kölner Haie), Wojciech Stachowiak (ERC Ingolstadt), Dominik Kahun (Lausanne HC, SUI), Lukas Reichel (Chicago Blackhawks).

Canada Ready To Start Worlds With All-NHL LineupCanada is set to begin the IIHF World Championship on Saturday against Slovenia with an all-NHL lineup.