Four LA Kings to Represent Countries at 2023 IIHF World Championship

Four LA Kings players will compete for their respective countries at the 2023 IIHF Men's World Championship when the tournament opens tomorrow, May 12, in Tampere, Finland and Riga, Latvia.

Forward Martin Chromiak will represent Slovakia, forward Carl Grundstrom will represent Sweden and goaltender Cal Petersen and forward T.J. Tynan will represent the United States. Tournament play opens tomorrow at 6:20 a.m. PT with Petersen, Tynan and the United States facing host Finland in Group A play while Chromiak and Slovakia take on Czechia in Group B action in Riga. Also in Group A, Grundstrom and Sweden face Germany at 10:20 a.m. PT. All games will be broadcast in the United States on NHL Network.

Chromiak, 20, recently completed his first full American Hockey League (AHL) season with the Ontario Reign, appearing in 55 games and posting 28 points (15-13=28). The Ilava, Slovakia native led all Reign rookies in goals and points, while ranking second in assists. Chromiak, who previously represented his nation twice in IIHF play at the 2021 IIHF World Junior Championship and 2018 IIHF Under-18 Men's World Championship, has registered four points (3-1=4) in 12 games for Slovakia.

Grundstrom, 25, set career highs in nearly all statistical categories this past season with the Kings, including: games played (57), goals (12), assists (7), points (19), shots (90), hits (144) and takeaways (14). He also added an assist in six Stanley Cup Playoff games. The Umea, Sweden native played for his home country in last year's event, tallying two points (1-1=2) in five games. Grundstrom also skated for Team Sweden at three other IIHF tournaments, including two IIHF World Junior Championships (2016, 2017) and one IIHF Under-18 Men's World Championship, and has registered 15 points (8-7=15) in 24 appearances.

Petersen, 28, split the 2022-23 season between the Kings and Ontario Reign, owning a 5-3-2 record with 3.75 goals against average (GAA) and an .868 save percentage (SV%) in 10 NHL games. In 40 AHL games, he guided the Reign to a Calder Cup Playoffs berth behind a 16-20-4 record with two shutouts, a 2.88 GAA and a .904 SV%. The Waterloo, Iowa native returns to the IIHF Men's World Championship after backstopping the U.S. to a bronze-medal finish at the 2021 IIHF Men's World Championship where he earned Best Goaltender honors after registering a 5-2-0 record, 1.29 GAA, .953 SV% and two shutouts in seven contests.

Tynan, 31, led the Ontario Reign in scoring for a second consecutive season with 81 points (8-73=81) in 72 games, ranking third in the AHL in scoring and the league-leader in assists. He was named to the AHL's Second All-Star Team and made his fourth-career appearance at the league's All-Star Classic in February. The Orland Park, Illinois native skated for Team USA at last year's tournament, registering five assists in six contests. This is the third time he will represent the U.S. after also doing so at the 2012 IIHF World Junior Championship. In 12 games with Team USA, he has registered nine points (1-8=9).