Finland unveiled its preliminary roster for the 2024 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships on Tuesday, with three OHL players included.
A pair of second round NHL Draft picks in San Jose Sharks choice Kasper Halttunen (London Knights) and Minnesota Wild pick Rasmus Kumpulainen (Oshawa Generals) are included on the forward ranks while high-scoring Vegas Golden Knights prospect Arttu Karki (Soo Greyhounds) is on the back end.
Finland looks to rebound from a disappointing quarter-final exit at least year’s World Juniors, with the three OHL players attending camp looking to crack the World Junior roster for the first time.
Halttunen leaves for camp on a 14-game point streak with London, having scored 20 goals in 28 games this season. Kumpulainen currently leads the Oshawa Generals with 27 points (14-13–27) in as many games, and Karki leads OHL defencemen with 16 goals on the campaign.
Finland will play in Group A with Canada, Sweden, Germany and Latvia, opening their tournament schedule on Boxing Day against Canada.
Finland last medalled at the World Juniors in 2022 when they won silver. They claimed their fifth gold medal at the 2019 tournament in Vancouver and Victoria, BC.
https://twitter.com/LondonKnights/status/1734606169367613837?s=20
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