Several Red Wings Playing Key Roles for Respective Nations at IIHF World Championships

DETROIT – With Team USA Hockey winning the gold medal as recently as February, the world wasn’t necessarily starving for international hockey this summer. Hockey players are a different breed of competitive however, and many jump at any opportunity to represent their country in a tournament setting.

Red Wings players are no exception to that sentiment, especially since they haven’t had the chance to play past the month of April in over 10 years. Detroit has a slew of athletes participating in the IIHF World Championships, which just completed it’s preliminary stage, with a select few being real difference makers for their home nations.

Michael Brandsegg-Nygård

One of the Red Wings youngest prospects is proving to be one of their most clutch players as well. Michael Brandsegg-Nygård arrived late to the World Championships but made his presence felt in the two preliminary games he played with the Norwegian national team.

Tuesday (May 26th) he scored the game winning goal vs. Denmark just 13 seconds into overtime to give Norway a 4-3 victory. The 15th overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft also found twine off a well executed two-on-one breakaway in a 4-1 win over Czechia a day prior, also standing as the game winning goal.

Although MBN didn’t stick on the Red Wings main roster he did see success as a member of their AHL affiliate in Grand Rapids this season. He had a nasty overtime winner in Game 3 of the semifinals, keeping the Griffins alive in the playoffs. But their demise ultimately freed up Brandsegg-Nygård to join Norway at Worlds and gain some valuable experience.

He and the Norwegians take on Latvia in the Quarterfinals on Thursday, May 28th.

Justin Faulk

Justin Faulk is the newest member of the Red Wings, but that doesn’t mean you can’t be pleased with how he is performing overseas right now.

At 34 years old, Faulk is the oldest player on Team USA that doesn’t have nearly the same firepower its Olympic roster did earlier this year. It is also that age where veteran players like him cherish offseason time to recover from a long and grueling NHL campaign. Instead, Faulk is captaining his squad and doing a solid job of it too.

Two goals in a convincing 7-3 win over Hungary is partly why he leads all USA defensemen in scoring after the group stage. Faulk also runs the point for a Power Play unit that clicked at a 35% clip, best among the 16 nations participating in this tournament.

Team USA just so happens to have a rematch with Canada waiting for them in the first round. You can watch that one on Thursday morning as well.

Lucas Raymond

Raymond had a regular season that many Red Wings fans wished more of. Perhaps he felt the same way and is the reason why he is playing for Sweden right now.

The Swedes are certainly happy he did, as Lucas is tied for the second most points among all skaters at the World Championships. His team might have just squeaked into the quarterfinals, but it wasn’t because of his doing. Raymond logged at least one point in each of the seven preliminary games he appeared in, finishing with five goals and six assists.

Being the last team into the knockout rounds gives Sweden the honor of playing host nation Switzerland on Thursday, who just so happened to lead all teams in goals scored during the prelims.