The eight teams participating in the World Cup of Hockey 2016, which will take place from Sept. 17 to Oct. 1, 2016 in Toronto, have announced their final rosters for the tournament.
Below are the skaters who will play for Finland:
G Tuukka Rask, Boston Bruins
G Pekka Rinne, Nashville Predators
G Mikko Koskinen, SKA St. Petersburg (KHL)
D Esa Lindell, Texas Stars (AHL) – Dallas Stars hold NHL rights
D Olli Maatta, Pittsburgh Penguins
D Rasmus Ristolainen, Buffalo Sabres
D Sami Vatanen, Anaheim Ducks
D Jyrki Jokipakka, Calgary Flames
D Sami Lepisto, Salavat Yulaev Ufa (KHL)
D Ville Pokka, Rockford IceHogs (AHL)
F Aleksander Barkov, Florida Panthers
F Joonas Donskoi, San Jose Sharks
F Valtteri Filppula, Tampa Bay Lightning
F Mikael Granlund, Minnesota Wild
F Jussi Jokinen, Florida Panthers
F Mikko Koivu, Minnesota Wild
F Leo Komarov, Toronto Maple Leafs
F Lauri Korpikoski, Edmonton Oilers
F Jori Lehtera, St. Louis Blues
F Teuvo Teravainen, Chicago Blackhawks
F Sebastian Aho, Karpat Oulu (SM-liiga)
F Erik Haula, Minnesota Wild
F Patrik Laine, Tappara Tempere (SM-liiga)
The World Cup of Hockey 2016 is a joint effort of the National Hockey League and the National Hockey League Players’ Association, in cooperation with the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). The eight teams are split into two Groups, Group A and Group B, for the Preliminary Round (Sept. 17-22), when each team will play its three Group opponents in a round-robin format. Placed in Group A are Team Canada, Team Czech Republic and Team USA, plus Team Europe, a pan-European roster of players from birth countries outside of the Czech Republic, Finland, Russia and Sweden. The four teams in Group B are Team Finland, Team Russia, Team Sweden and Team North America, a selection of the top players from Canada and the United States who are 23 or under as of Oct. 1, 2016.
The top two finishers in each of Group A and Group B will advance to the Semifinals (Sept. 24-25), where each qualifier will face an elimination game against a team from the other Group. The two Semifinal winners will meet in the Final, a best-of-three series on Sept. 27, Sept. 29 and, if necessary, Oct. 1.
