Denmark before the World Cup: the team has to deal with the absences of its leaders. Can Denmark at least match its all-time high?

Danish hockey is on the rise and the Nordic team would like to confirm this fact at the upcoming championship. This time, however, coach Heinz Ehlers has to deal with the excuses of key players. Can his team pull itself together and at least equal its historic result of 8th place?

Excuses from the NHL and traditional European players

The Danes won’t be able to count on a trio of their NHL compatriots in Prague. The invitations were rejected by three forwards Nikolaj Ehlers from Winnipeg, Oliver Bjorkstrand from Seattle and Lars Eller from Pittsburgh. In addition, traditional mainstays Peter Regin, Frans Nielsen and Mikkel Boedker have retired. Philip Larsen and Nicklas Jensen have also apologized to Ehlers, so the 87-year-old coach will have to look for new team leaders.

One of them should be Markus Lauridsen. The thirty-three-year-old quarterback will be making his tenth World Cup appearance.

Markus Lauridsen will also have something to say going forward, as the defenseman won the team’s scoring at the Beijing Olympics and has not been left behind in the previous three championships.

The Danes will rely on a solid defense

Federik Dichow Nissen is expected to take over from Dahm in goal. The Swedish HV71 goalkeeper was in great form at the end of this season, as evidenced by his 94.3% save percentage in the barrage. The defensive line will be backed up by his brother Oliver from TPS Finland, in addition to the aforementioned Markus Lauridsen from Frankfurt.

They will want to rely mainly on teamwork, as the tenacious Danes have been one of the most troublesome opponents in recent championships, conceding only 2.8 goals per game. But their defence is ageing, with the average age even exceeding 30 years. Twenty-five-year-old Oliver Joakim Larsen of Jukurit, who finished in the top ten in the Finnish league in scoring among defensemen, could be the future.

Will Russell and Blichfeld continue the Swedish form?

The main offensive face should be Patrick Russell. The player with NHL experience had a great year in the Swedish league this year, scoring twenty-one goals. Joachim Blichfeld of Växjö had a similar season. Mikkel Aagaard, another Swedish compatriot, was the best scorer in the preparation.

Frederik Storm and Morten Poulsen, who will be making their thirteenth and twelfth World Championship appearance respectively, will also provide experience to the attack. The new blood should be injected into the offensive veins of the only 19-year-old Oscar Fisker Mølgaard. However, the Danes lack more quality and do not have a very wide squad, so one can expect them to work hard to score goals.

Not very good preparation and a strong group

The preparation for the championship itself suggested that. Denmark played six games in that competition, five of them against Norway. The Danes managed to win the first two of them, but in between came a 4:5 defeat to France. However, in the last three games the Norwegians have been victorious, although in two cases it has gone to extra time. Denmark will play a dress rehearsal against Poland tonight.

The Danes will rely on the backbone of the team, which has remained the same for a long time, in addition to their fight and resilience. It may also help that they are hosting the next championship together with Sweden and cannot drop down a category.

Therefore, they will not have pressure on their shoulders and can think of advancing. But to do that they will have to break into the top four in a strong Group A, where they will face Austria, Canada, Norway, Czech Republic, Great Britain, Switzerland and Finland in turn.

World Championship nominations:

Goalkeepers:
Frederik Dichow Nissen (HV71, SWE), Mathias Seldrup (Esbjerg), William Rørth (Rødovre).

Defenders:
Phillip Bruggisser (Fischtown, DEL), Oliver Lauridsen (TPS, FIN), Oliver Joakim Larsen (Jukurit, FIN), Nicholas B. Jensen (Fischtown, DEL), Matias Lassen (Malmö, SWE), Markus Lauridsen (Frankfurt, DEL), Jesper Jensen Aabo (Klagenfurt, ICEHL), Anders Koch (Aalborg).

Forwards:
Alexander True (Charlotte, AHL), Christian Wejse ((Fischtown, DEL), Felix Scheel ((Fischtown, DEL), Frederik Storm (Cologne, DEL), Joachim Blichfeld (Växjö, SWE), Mathias From (Herning), Mikkel Aagaard (MODO, SWE), Morten Poulsen (Herning), Nick Olesen (Oskarshamn, SWE), Niklas Andersen (Augsburg, DEL), Oliver Kjær (Esbjerg), Oscar Fisker Mølgaard (HV71, SWE), Patrick Russell (Linköping, SHL), Phillip Schultz (Esbjerg).

Source: IIHF, Hockey.cz