5 past Otters among OHL players competing at IIHF World Hockey Championship
The Ontario Hockey League is well represented at the 2018 IIHF World Hockey Championship getting underway in Copenhagen and Herning, Denmark this week.
A total of 37 past and present OHL players are part of a larger group of 100 CHL grads competing at the international showdown. The OHL features graduates representing 13 of the 16 countries competing.
The list includes a total of seven OHL grads representing Canada as they look to return to the top of the podium after settling for silver last year in Cologne, Germany and Paris, France. Canada has won a total of 26 gold medals at the international competition with back-to-back triumphs coming in 2015 and 2016.
Windsor Spitfires goaltender Michael DiPietro of Canada and Owen Sound Attack forward Maksim Sushko are two players headed to Denmark that played in the Ontario Hockey League this past season.
The list also includes a pair of players that competed in the OHL during the 2016-17 season including 2017 OHL Player of the Year Alex DeBrincat (Erie Otters) of the United States along Czech defenceman Filip Hronek (Saginaw Spirit).
Canada leads the way with seven OHL graduates on the roster followed by the Czech Republic with five and Belarus, Germany and the United States with four each.
OHL GRADUATES COMPETING AT IIHF WORLD HOCKEY CHAMPIONSHIP:
** played in the OHL during the 2017-18 season
* played in the OHL during the 2016-17 season
CANADA (7):
Goaltenders:
Michael DiPietro (Windsor Spitfires)**
Defencemen:
Aaron Ekblad (Florida Panthers/Barrie Colts)
Darnell Nurse (Edmonton Oilers/Soo Greyhounds)
Forwards:
Josh Bailey (NY Islanders/Windsor Spitfires)
Bo Horvat (Vancouver Canucks/London Knights)
Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers/Erie Otters)
Ryan O’Reilly (Buffalo Sabres/Erie Otters)
—
AUSTRIA (1):
Defencemen:
Steven Strong (Klagenfurter AC/Saginaw Spirit)
—
BELARUS (4):
Defencemen:
Stepan Falkovsky (Ontario Reign/Ottawa 67’s)
Forwards:
Artur Gavrus (Dinamo-Molodechno/Owen Sound Attack)
Geoff Platt (CSKA Moscow/Erie Otters)
Maksim Sushko (Owen Sound Attack)**
—
CZECH REPUBLIC (5):
Defencemen:
Filip Hronek (Grand Rapids Griffins/Saginaw Spirit)*
Michal Jordan (Amur Khabarovsk/Plymouth Whalers)
Forwards:
Radek Faksa (Dallas Stars/Sudbury Wolves)
Robert Kousal (HC Davos/Oshawa Generals)
Dominik Kubalik (HC Ambri-Piotta/Kitchener Rangers)
—
DENMARK (2):
Goaltenders:
Sebastian Dahm (Iserlohn Roosters/Sudbury Wolves)
Forwards:
Nicklas Jensen (Jokerit Helsinki/Oshawa Generals)
—
FINLAND (1):
Goaltenders:
Eero Kilpelainen (Orebro HK/Peterborough Petes)
—
GERMANY (4):
Goaltenders:
Mathias Niederberger (Düsseldorfer EG/Barrie Colts)
Defencemen:
Bjorn Krupp (Grizzlys Wolfsburg/Belleville Bulls)
Forwards:
Dominik Kahun (EHC Munchen/Sudbury Wolves)
Sebastian Uvira (Kolner Haie/Plymouth Whalers)
—
LATVIA (1):
Forwards:
Andris Dzerins (HK Hradec Kralove/Kingston Frontenacs)
—
NORWAY (1):
Forwards:
Mathis Olimb (Linkoping HC/Sarnia Sting)
—
SLOVAKIA (3):
Defencemen:
Michal Cajkovsky (Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg/Ottawa 67’s)
Andrej Sekera (Edmonton Oilers/Owen Sound Attack)
Forwards:
Tomas Marcinko (HC Ocelari Trinec/Barrie Colts)
—
SOUTH KOREA (3):
Defencemen:
Eric Regan (Anyang Halla/Oshawa Generals/Erie Otters[04-06])
Bryan Young (Daemyung Killer Whales/Peterborough Petes)
Forwards:
Michael Swift (Gangwon High1/Niagara IceDogs)
—
SWEDEN (1):
Forwards:
Rickard Rakell (Anaheim Ducks/Plymouth Whalers)
—
UNITED STATES (4):
Defencemen:
Connor Murphy (Chicago Blackhawks/Sarnia Sting)
Forwards:
Alex DeBrincat (Chicago Blackhawks/Erie Otters)*
Patrick Kane (Chicago Blackhawks/London Knights)
Sonny Milano (Columbus Blue Jackets/Plymouth Whalers)
For full coverage of the 2018 IIHF World Hockey Championship visit iihf.com.