Hockey Canada named the first 17 players on the roster for the 2012 IIHF World Championship. The tournament will be held May 4-20 in Helsinki and Stockholm.
Among those named were five players who skated in the 2012 NHL All-Star Game -- Maple Leafs defenseman Dion Phaneuf, Stars forward Jamie Benn, Oilers forward Jordan Eberle, Ducks forward Corey Perry and Islanders forward John Tavares.
The Oilers' Devan Dubnyk and the Hurricanes' Cam Ward were the only two goaltenders named to the team so far.
"We are extremely happy with the response we have received from players and are very pleased with the group that we have been able to assemble to date," said Oilers president Kevin Lowe, who is serving as Canada's GM for the tournament. "We are looking forward to getting together as a team in Zurich and going for gold in Helsinki."
Serving as assistant GMs are Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli and Maple Leafs Senior Vice-President of Hockey Operations Dave Nonis. No coaching staff has been named for the team.
Hockey Canada will fill out the roster further after teams are eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs. They can carry a maximum of 22 players -- including three goalies -- and can add up to two additional players after the first three games.
Joining Phaneuf on the blue line will be the Flames' Jay Bouwmeester, the Blue Jackets' Marc Methot and the Canadiens' P.K. Subban.
Other forwards selected to the were Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf, the Jets' Evander Kane and Andrew Ladd, Oilers rookie Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Ryan O'Reilly of the Avalanche, the Lightning's Teddy Purcell and the Hurricanes' Jeff Skinner
Contact Adam Kimelman at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @NHLAdamK
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