BLOG: All Six Blackhawks Advance at 2024 World Championships

The 2024 IIHF World Championships move on to the knockout round on Thursday morning, with all six Blackhawks participants advancing with their respective countries after seven round robin games. 

Connor Bedard (Canada), Seth Jones (USA), Philipp Kurashev (Switzerland), Petr Mrazek (Czechia), Lukas Reichel (Germany) and Alex Vlasic (USA) all will be in action on Thursday with a spot in the semifinals on the line. Check out the full schedules for the participating Blackhwks below, and catch select action on NHL Network throughout the tournament.

CONNOR BEDARD - CANADA

No player had a better start to the tournament than Connor Bedard, who notched a pair of goals in each of the opening two games for Canada against Great Britain and Denmark.

The Calder Trophy finalist's point total cooled down over the final five games of the preliminary round as Canada faced stiffer competition in Group A, but Bedard still finished third on the Canadian roster with six points (5G, 1A) in seven games. His five goals finished tied for fifth-most in the competition.

"He just reads the play so well,” Buffalo’s Dylan Cozens, who led Canada in points with 10, told reporters of Bedard early in the tournament. “He’s confident and poised with the puck. He has the ability to see the whole ice and be a threat at all times. It's spectacular."

Canada finished first in Group A with an undefeated 5-0-2-0 record in the preliminary round, and will now face Slovakia in the quarterfinal round at 9:20 a.m. on Thursday morning.

LUKAS REICHEL - GERMANY

A late addition to the German roster after the Rockford IceHogs were eliminated from the AHL's Calder Cup playoffs, Lukas Reichel made an immediate impact.

He finished the preliminary round with seven points (3G, 4A) in just five games -- with the forward's points coming over Germany's final four games, all wins, to finish third in Group B and earn a spot in the knockout round following a 1-2 start. Reichel was the team's third-leading scorer down the stretch and his four assists tied for the lead over the final four games.

Germany will face Switzerland and fellow Blackhawk Philipp Kurashev in the quarterfinal round on Thursday at 9:20 a.m.

SETH JONES & ALEX VLASIC - USA

A duo of Blackhawks blueliners -- Seth Jones and Alex Vlasic -- played in all seven games for the U.S. squad in Ostrava. Jones, who served as an alternate captain for the Americans, finished second on the U.S. roster with an average of 21:09 in ice time per game and added five assists as well, tied for the most among defenseman. Vlasic skated 14:11 of ice time per game and added two assists in his first World Championships appearance.

The Americans finished with a 5-1-0-1 record and placed second in Group B. They will now face Czechia in the quarterfinal round on Thursday at 1:20 p.m. -- a meeting against netminder Petr Mrazek, who they normally defend in Chicago. 

PETR MRAZEK - CZECHIA

Petr Mrazek played two games for the host nation in the preliminary round, including a shutout victory in a 4-0 win over Austria on May 17. The veteran also backstopped Czechia to a 6-3 win over Norway on May 11. 

Czechia finished third in Group A and will face the U.S. on Thursday at 1:20 p.m. in the quarterfinal round. 

PHILIPP KURASHEV - SWITZERLAND

Forward Philipp Kurashev played in all seven games for Switzerland in the tournament, posting two assists and an average of 13:34 of ice time. The Swiss finished second in Group A during the preliminary round and will now face Germany on Thursday at 9:20 a.m.