Ostersund 2017 factfile: Sweden

Team preview ahead of Paralympic Winter Games Qualification Tournament 07 Oct 2017
Imagen
a group of Para ice hockey players on the ice with their medals

Sweden's most recent success was a silver medal at the 2015 World Championships B-Pool

ⒸKarl Nilsson
By IPC

With just a few days to go until the World Para Ice Hockey Paralympic Winter Games Qualification Tournament in Ostersund, Sweden, we’re taking a closer look at each of the five teams competing for the chance to appear at PyeongChang 2018.

The host nation are the favourites to top the Tournament. They missed out on PyeongChang 2018 qualification after being shut out by Italy at the 2017 Worlds Championships A-Pool. The nation had not won a medal at a Paralympics or Worlds A-Pool since they took world bronze in 2004. Since then, Sweden has been hopping between the A-Pool and B-Pool. The squad, however, is among the experienced group in Ostersund.

Paralympic Winter Games

Salt Lake 2002 – bronze

Nagano 1998 – bronze

Lillehammer 1994 – gold

World Championships history

2015 World Championships B-Pool – silver

2012 World Championships B-Pool – silver

2009 World Championships B-Pool – silver

2004 World Championships A-Pool – bronze

2000 World Championships A-Pool – bronze

1996 World Championships A-Pool - gold

Key players

Star forward Per Kasperi and veteran defenseman Niklas Ingvarsson have been a one-two punch for Sweden, helping their team take the silver medal at the 2015 World Championships B-Pool to jump back into the A-Pool. At the 2017 Worlds A-Pool, Ulf Nilsson was named Best Goalkeeper at the after making 144 saves.

Roster

Offence:

No. 17 Daniel Cederstam

No. 14 Kenth Jonsson

No. 7 Goran Karlsson

No. 8 Per Kasperi

No. 9 Martin Magnevill

No. 10 Robin Meng

No. 6 Peter Nilsson

No. 18 Peter Ojala

No. 20 Niklas Rakos

Defence:

No. 15 Christian Hedberg

No. 21 Marcus Holm

No. 3 Niklas Ingvarsson

No. 11 Rasmus Lundgren

Goalkeepers:

No. 84 Andreas Neuman

No. 5 Ulf Nilsson

Head coach: Erik Vikstrom

Ostersund 2017 runs from 9-14 October. The top three finishers will earn the last qualification spots available at PyeongChang 2018, joining Canada, Italy, Norway, South Korea and the USA in March.

Live coverage and the game schedule are available on the official Ostersund 2017 site.