Switzerland will fill its roster at the 2018 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship
with Nashville Predators players Roman Josi and Kevin Fiala. Both players are expected to land in Copenhagen on Sunday morning.

A Swiss trio at Nashville that also includes Yannick Weber became available after the Predators had lost Game 7 of the second playoff round against the Winnipeg Jets and Switzerland had two spots open on the roster that will be used for Josi and Fiala.

Nashville Predators captain Josi has good memories of World Championships in Scandinavia. In Stockholm 2013 he led Switzerland to a historic silver medal and was voted Most Valuable Player of the 2013 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship. It will be the seventh World Championship participation for the 27-year-old Berne native.

Josi finished his seventh season with the Predators. He had his big breakthrough the season after winning Worlds silver with Switzerland and finished this season with 53 points (14+39) and a +24 rating in 75 regular-season games. With an average ice time of 24:28 he was the skater with the most ice time of the Predators. He also appeared in 13 playoff games notching four points (0+4).

For 21-year-old forward Fiala it will be the third World Championship after 2014 and 2015 when he played the World Championship and the World Junior Championship in the same year (and also the U18 World Championship in 2014).

After having split time between the NHL and AHL in the previous years, Fiala spent his first full NHL season with a career high 48 points (23+25) from 80 NHL games. In 12 playoff games he had three goals and an assist.

MARTIN MERK

http://https://www.new-iihf.com/en/events/2018/wm/news/2800/two-preds-for-switzerland
--- SBBSecho 3.04-Win32
* Origin: TequilaMockingbird Online - Toms River, NJ (1:266/404)