Lucas Raymond: Last Detroit Red Wings player still in contention at World Championship
Lucas Raymond is the sole Detroit Red Wings player still standing at the World Championship.
The U.S. will go home from the event empty handed, failing to advance to the semifinals for the first time in four years. The 1-0 loss Thursday to host Czechia means the end of the elite tournament for multiple Wings personnel.
Raymond picked up an assist, his eighth point in eight games, in Thursday's 2-1 overtime victory over Finland. That ended the tournament for Wings defenseman Olli Määttä, and sent the Swedes on to a semifinal against Czechia.
Canada and Switzerland will meet in the other semifinal.
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The Swedes had a 24-8 edge in shots after two periods — the Finns only registered three shots in the second period — and didn't break Emil Larmi until there was 5 minutes left, when Rasmus Dahlin scored from the left circle as Raymond hovered near the net for a possible rebound. The Finns scored an equalizer in the final minute after pulling Larmi for the extra attacker, with Hannes Bjorninen scoring on Filip Gustavsson.
Joel Eriksson Ek scored on a power play in overtime. Final shots favored the Swedes, 35-20.
When the tournament began, the U.S. team featured multiple Wings personnel in goaltender Alex Lyon, defenseman Jeff Petry, goaltending prospect Trey Augustine, and coaches Derek Lalonde and Alex Westlund. Lyon, however, was hurt in the second game and returned to the U.S. Dylan Larkin was among the first players named to the team, but he had to pull out early because of an injury.
With a roster that included NHLers Brady Tkachuk, Matt Boldy, Johnny Gaudreau, Luke Hughes and Zach Werenski (Grosse Pointe, University of Michigan), the U.S. came into the event looking poised to capture a medal. The Americans finished second in Group B standings after the seven-game preliminary round, and ended up drawing the Czechs after they finished behind Canada and Switzerland in Group A standings. The U.S. recorded 36 shots on net Thursday, but couldn't solve Lukas Dostal. Pavel Zacha scored on Charlie Lindgren midway through the game.
In other quarterfinals action, Canada advanced with a 6-3 victory over Slovakia, and Switzerland banked a 3-1 victory over Germany. The Germans failed to advance to the medal round after winning silver in 2023 (Moritz Seider was part of that team, but Germany was unable to secure insurance this year for Seider, because he is a restricted free agent due a lucrative new deal.)
The semis are Saturday, and the medal games Sunday, all in Prague.
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her @helenestjames.
Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her latest book, “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft,” is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.
Feeling a draft
What: 2024 NHL draft.
Fast facts: June 28-29; Sphere, Las Vegas; ESPN.
The Wings’ top pick: No. 15, their lowest first pick since 2016 (No. 20, D Dennis Cholowski).
The top five: 1. San Jose, 2. Chicago, 3. Anaheim, 4. Montreal, 5. Columbus.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings' Lucas Raymond shows hot hand at World Championship
