There are a lot of CHL players at this year's World Championship in Minsk and some of them are having a great tournament. A trio of forwards from Skelleftea AIK -- Sweden's Joakim Lindstrom and Oscar Moller and France's Pierre-Edouard Bellemare -- have been particularly dangerous.
by Derek O'Brien
Entering Wednesday's draw, Swedish champion Skelleftea AIK is the top-ranked team in the Champions Hockey League, and at the World Championships in Minsk they're showing why. There are more than 80 players at the tournament that are on the rosters of CHL teams, and three of the top six come from Skelleftea.
Leading all CHL players in offence is Joakim Lindstrom, the Swedish Hockey League MVP of this past season, who has 8 points in six games. He scored a goal or Sweden on Sunday against Canada, assisted by AIK teammate Oscar Moller, who now has 6 points. In sixth place is Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, a key component in France's great start to the tournament, with 5 points. Rounding out the top seven are a pair of Norwegians -- Frolunda's Mathis Olimb and Valerenga Oslo's Morten Ask -- as well as Hamburg Freezer's Thomas Oppenheimer and Geneve-Servette's Karspars Daugavins.
A pair of Slovak defencemen who play in the Czech Extraliga have also been doing a good job of chipping in on offence. Marek Dolega, who's moving from Pardubice to Trinec this off-season, leads all CHL blueliners with 4 points, while Vitkovice's Karol Sloboda and Frolunda's Magnus Nygren both have 3.
In goal, Veleregna's Steffen Soberg stopped 38 out of 39 shots against the Czech Republic. It wasn't enough to get Norway the win, as the game finished 1-0, but it was enough to raise his save percentage to 96.46 and lower his goals-against average to 1.36. Lulea's Daniel Bellissimo has done all he can in goal for Italy, facing a barrage of shots every game and posting the second-best save percentage among CHL goaltenders in Minsk.
Forwards (points)
| Player | Nat team | CHL club | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joakim Lindstrom | SWE | SKE | 6 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 2 | +3 |
| Mathis Olimb | NOR | FHC | 6 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 12 | +2 |
| Oscar Moller | SWE | SKE | 6 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0 | +3 |
| Thomas Oppenheimer | GER | HAM | 6 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +2 |
| Morten Ask | NOR | VAL | 6 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2 | +2 |
| Pierre-Edouard Bellemare | FRA | SKE | 5 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 6 | +4 |
| Kaspars Daugavins | LAT | GEN | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | +6 |
Defencemen (points)
| Player | Nat team | CHL club | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marek Daloga | SVK | TRI | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | +1 |
| Magnus Nygren | SWE | FBK | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | +1 |
| Karol Sloboda | SVK | VIT | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | +2 |
Goaltenders (save percentage)
| Player | Nat team | CHL club | GP | MP | GAA | Sv % | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steffen Soberg | NOR | VAL | 3 | 177 | 1.36 | 96.46 | 0 |
| Daniel Bellissimo | ITA | LHF | 6 | 338 | 3.19 | 90.91 | 0 |
| Rob Zepp | GER | EIS | 4 | 244 | 3.20 | 85.56 | 0 |