Playing hockey this time of year is ideal, but playing hockey in the World Championship this time is not the objective. The Detroit Red Wings certainly wish they were playing in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Still, after failing to participate in the postseason for the seventh straight season, some Detroit Red Wings players will head to the World Championship. In contrast, others will focus on resting and preparing for next season.
Detroit Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin, Moritz Seider, Andrew Copp, and Ville Husso have all elected to forgo the opportunity to participate in the tournament and will lick their wounds and begin to focus on next season.
Larkin, 26, is coming off a career year for the Red Wings, leading the team with 32 goals, 47 assists, and 79 points over 80 games. This production comes after the Red Wings captain signed an eight-year contract extension that will average $8.7 million per season starting next year. Now the objective for general manager Steve Yzerman will be to find an equal or close to it (scorer) this summer so Detroit can take its next step forward.
Second-year winger Lucas Raymond has elected to continue to play hockey and will represent Sweden. Raymond, 21, is coming off a 17-goal 45-point season for the Red Wings. This followed a sensational rookie campaign where he amassed 23 goals and totaled 57 points. Raymond finished fourth in Calder Trophy voting last season; the award went to fellow rookie teammate Moritz Seider.
Some Detroit Red Wings players are headed to the World Championship others have opted to rest.
Raymond is elated to play for Sweden at the Worlds.
"“There’s always a big honor playing for your national team and your country,” Raymond said. “I feel really good and I’m very excited and I want to keep playing.”"
Also heading to the tournament is forward Joe Veleno, sort of a surprise addition to Team Canada. Veleno, 23, notched nine goals and 20 points over 81 games while averaging slightly under 13 minutes of ice time this season for the Red Wings.
"“There’s plenty of great Canadian players that can be eligible,” Veleno said. “I was really grateful and honored that they thought of me.“Anytime you get a chance to represent the Maple Leaf for us Canadians, it’s a huge honor. It’s always a pleasure and anytime I can get that opportunity, more often than not I’ll take those tournaments. I think it’ll be a good experience. It’s going to be in a great country. There’s a lot to visit. My family will most likely be coming down and I’ll get to spend time with them. I’m really excited and looking forward to it.”"
Veleno also mentioned that he’s looking forward to playing for Detroit Red Wings assistant coach Alex Tanguay who has been selected for Canada’s coaching staff. Team Canada has been orchestrated by general manager Doug Armstrong who serves in the same role with the St. Louis Blues. Steve Yzerman is also part of Canada’s brain trust operating as the assistant general manager.
Arizona’s Andre Tourigny is Canada’s head coach. Tourigny coached Canada at the World Juniors to a Gold Medal victory in 2020 with Veleno on the squad. Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde will be an assistant coach for Team USA under David Quinn, who will serve as the head coach. Quinn is currently the bench boss of the San Jose Sharks.
Defenseman Olli Maatta said this past Monday that he isn’t sure if he will go to represent Finland, who will look to defend their Gold Medal last season. Maatta last played at the Worlds in 2021. Jake Walman broke out for the Detroit Red Wings this past season, playing on the top pairing alongside Seider sure seems interested in playing at the Worlds. Walman joked that we’d need to wait to see which country he would represent because he has dual citizenship. Walman was born in Toronto. With Armstrong and Yzerman at the helm, it seems like Canada will be the destination, but if he’s somehow overlooked (unlikely), he can always fall back to play for Team USA.
Andrew Copp and Ville Husso will join Dylan Larkin and Moritz Seider, opting to sit out and rest their bodies as they focus on next season. The Detroit Red Wings are expected to take another step forward next year and need their top players healthy and ready to go come training camp.