With the Calgary Flames missing the playoffs for the third straight season, many players have received the opportunity to represent their home country. Many current Calgary Flames will be playing in the upcoming IIHF World Championship in Sweden and Denmark. The Flames will have players representing five countries at the forthcoming tournament.
Zayne Parekh, Team Canada
Defenceman Zayne Parekh will finally get an opportunity to represent Team Canada. Many hockey fans were extremely upset when the defenceman was left off the World Junior Roster in Ottawa. Now, he has gotten the recognition he deserves and will get a chance to play in the biggest international hockey tournament in the world. Parekh impressed many people in his NHL debut with the Calgary Flames. The 19-year-old scored his first NHL goal, which helped the Flames win their final game of the season.
Outside of his NHL debut, Parekh dominated the OHL again this season. The offensive defenceman was the highest-scoring defenceman with 107 points across 61 games. His OHL team, the Saginaw Spirit, had a fairly disappointing end to their season. In the first round of the OHL playoffs, they lost in five games to the underdog Erie Otters. Zayne Parekh will be looking to have a positive turnaround in the IIHF World Championship.
MacKenzie Weegar, Team Canada
MacKenzie Weegar will be making his second appearance for Team Canada at the World Championship. The defenceman was an assistant captain of the 2023 team, where he played a key role in helping Canada capture gold over Germany. He scored an impressive 11 points across 10 tournament games, leading the team in points. Weegar will likely be a veteran on the team, expected to help lead Canada to another gold medal championship.
Rasmus Andersson, Team Sweden
Rasmus Andersson will be making his World Championship debut for Team Sweden in May. The defenceman recently represented Sweden at the 4 Nations Face-Off, where he played in the victory against the United States.
The 28-year-old defenceman does not have much experience representing his country, so this will be an awesome opportunity for him. It was reported that Andersson played the final stretch of the NHL season on a broken fibula. Thankfully, it must have been minor since he is playing in the World Championship.
Mikael Backlund, Team Sweden
Flames captain Mikael Backlund will be returning to the World Championship for the first time since 2018. This will be his 6th time representing Sweden at the World Championship. His last appearance in 2018 was his best, where he captained the team to a gold medal win. Backlund had a stat line of nine points in 10 games, finishing fourth on the team in scoring. Over the five previous tournaments, Backlund has played in 43 games, putting up a total of 27 points. Will he lead Sweden to another championship?
Dan Vladar, Team Czechia
Goaltender Dan Vladar will get to represent Team Czechia for the first time since the 2017 World Junior Championship. He will be the backup for the team, as Karel Vejmelka will be the starter. Vejmelka helped Czechia win the tournament last year, so there is no doubt that he will be the number one guy in the net.
Vladar will hopefully get some playing time, as it is unlikely that Vejmelka starts every game. Vladar may get some starts against the weaker opponents, such as Denmark, Hungary, and Kazakhstan. Czechia is expected to do well again this year, as David Pastrnak will be playing, and the B pool is easily the weaker division.
Matt Coronato, Team USA
Forward Matt Coronato is coming off a fantastic season. The 22-year-old had 24 goals and 47 points through 77 games with the Calgary Flames. It has not been officially reported that Coronato will be on the team, but the Flames’ social media made it sound like he will be going.
This will be Coronato’s second time playing for Team USA at the World Championship. He was on the team in 2023, where he put up an impressive eight points in 10 games as a 20-year-old. Unfortunately, Team USA had a heartbreaking end to the tournament, losing to Latvia in the bronze medal game. Coronato will likely be a huge asset to the USA as he has begun to find his scoring touch in the NHL.
Update: The Calgary Flames announced that Coronato is no longer going. This decision is intended to give him time to recover and prepare for next season.
Samuel Honzek, Team Slovakia
The Flames’ top pick from the 2023 NHL draft will be representing Slovakia. As a 20-year-old in the AHL this year, Samuel Honzek had a solid rookie season, collecting eight goals and 21 points in 52 games. Miroslav Satan—President and General Manager of the Slovak Ice Hockey Federation—announced Honzek’s participation on X last night.
Honzek has had some injury troubles early on in his career, which is why he only suited up in 52 games for the Calgary Wranglers this year. He’s a good addition to a Slovakian team that finished seventh in last year’s tournament.
Other Flames that should be there
It was shocking to see when Team USA released their roster that Dustin Wolf was not on there. He was the best rookie goalie in the NHL and deserves a spot on the team. Hampton Slukynsky from Western Michigan University was named the third goalie for the USA.
Martin Pospisil played for Team Slovakia last year. The forward sustained a shoulder injury late in the tournament, which was a huge loss for Slovakia. Pospisil had seven points in seven games and was a main driver of the team’s offence. Maybe the forward is considering a longer offseason as he is coming off an up-and-down season.
Some other players that deserve to be in the tournament include Nazem Kadri, Jonathan Huberdeau, and Blake Coleman.
Who do you think deserves a spot at the 2025 IIHF World Championship? The tournament begins May 9 and runs until May 25.
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