ZURICH - Switzerland's roster for next month's Sochi Olympics features eight NHL players, including Raphael Diaz of the Montreal Canadiens, Yannick Weber of the Vancouver Canucks and Reto Berra of the Calgary Flames.
Berra is one of two NHL goaltenders chosen for the team, along with Jonas Hiller of the Anaheim Ducks. Tobias Stephan, who played just under a dozen games for the Dallas Stars in 2007-08 and 2008-09 is the third. Stephan recently helped Swiss club HC Geneve-Servette to its first Spengler Cup title.
Diaz and Weber are part of a half-NHL Swiss defence along with Mark Streit of the Philadelphia Flyers and Roman Josi of the Nashville Predators. Severin Blindenbacher, Philippe Furrer, Mathias Seger and Julien Vauclair, all of whom play in Switzerland, are the other four defencemen.
Up front, Nino Niederreiter of the Minnesota Wild and Damien Brunner of the New Jersey Devils were the only NHL forwards picked for the team. Missing was Sven Baertschi of the Flames, who was put on Switzerland's "side list" and could be an injury replacement.
Predators prospect Simon Moser, who's currently playing for the AHL's Milwaukee Admirals, made it. Andres Ambuhl, Matthias Bieber, Simon Bodenmann, Luca Cunti, Ryan Gardner, Denis Hollenstein, Martin Pluss, Kevin Romy, Reto Suri, Morris Trachsler and Roman Wick round out the roster.
Ducks defenceman Luca Sbisa, who suffered a torn tendon in his right hand in November, was put on the team's side list. Sbisa's initial time frame for a return to action was mid-January.
NHL.com is the official web site of the National Hockey League. NHL, the NHL Shield, the word mark and image of the Stanley Cup, the Stanley Cup Playoffs logo, the Stanley Cup Final logo, Center Ice name and logo, NHL Conference logos, NHL Winter Classic name, and The Biggest Assist Happens Off The Ice are registered trademarks and Vintage Hockey word mark and logo, The Game Lives Where You Do, NHL Winter Classic logo, NHL Heritage Classic name and logo, NHL Stadium Series name and logo, NHL All-Star logo, NHL Face-Off name and logo, NHL. TV, NHL Premium, NHL After Dark, NHL GameCenter, NHL GameCenter LIVE, NHL Network name and logo, NHL Tonight name and logo, On The Fly, NHL Awards name and logo, NHL Draft name and logo, Hockey Fights Cancer, Because It's The Cup, NHL Green name and logo, NHL Vault, Hockey Is For Everyone, NHL Thanksgiving Showdown name and logo, NHL Centennial Classic name and logo, NHL Centennial Season logo, NHL100 Classic name and logo, NHL Global Series name and logo, NHL China Games name and logo, and Don't Miss A Moment are trademarks of the National Hockey League. All NHL logos and marks and NHL team logos and marks depicted herein are the property of the NHL and the respective teams and may not be reproduced without the prior written consent of NHL Enterprises, L.P. © NHL 2018. All Rights Reserved. All NHL team jerseys customized with NHL players' names and numbers are officially licensed by the NHL and the NHLPA. The Zamboni word mark and configuration of the Zamboni ice resurfacing machine are registered trademarks of Frank J. Zamboni & Co., Inc. © Frank J. Zamboni & Co., Inc. 2018. All Rights Reserved. Any other third party trademarks or copyrights are property of their respective owners. All rights reserved.