May 9, 2014 - American Hockey League (AHL) Utica Comets Three members of the 2013-14 Utica Comets players have been selected to represent their countries in the 2014 IIHF Men's World Championships that begin today in Minsk, Belarus. Goaltender Joackim Eriksson (Sweden), forward Nicklas Jensen (Denmark) and defenseman Yannick Weber (Switzerland) will participate in the tournament that runs through May 25.

Jensen and Eriksson will face each other in their opening game of the preliminary round on Saturday at 9:45 a.m. EDT. The 16-team tournament is split into two groups and will play a round-robin format before the quarterfinals begin on May 22.

In his first season in North America, Eriksson appeared in an AHL-high 52 games for the Comets. He posted a 24-20-4-2 record with a 2.61 goals-against average and a 0.911 save percentage. He finished third in the league with five shutouts and 1342 saves. A native of Gavle, Sweden, the 24-year-old signed with the Vancouver Canucks on June 17, 2013.

On the international stage, Eriksson has played for Sweden in the 2007 IIHF World U17 Championships and 2008 World U18 Championships as well in both the 2009 and 2010 World Junior Championships. Eriksson and current Canucks goaltender Jacob Markstrom backstopped the Swedes to a silver medal in 2009 and bronze in 2010.

Jensen registered 15 goals and added six assists in 54 games with the Comets this season. He was recalled to Vancouver on March 7 and played in the season's final 17 games for the Canucks. He scored his first NHL goal on March 14 and finished with six points (three goals, three assists) and 10 penalty minutes. A native of Herning, Denmark, the 21-year-old was selected by Vancouver in the first round (#29 overall) of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.

This will be the seventh time that Jensen has dressed for Denmark during international competition. He played for Denmark in the 2013 World Championships and recorded two goals in three games. He has collected three silver medals and one gold medal (2011 Division I Group B) in international play.

Weber was only with the Comets for a short period of time this season but made an impact during his brief stay. He collected seven points (two goals, five assists) in just seven games during late November and early December before he was recalled by Vancouver. He registered 10 points (six goals, four assists) in 49 games with the Canucks.

A native of Morges, Switzerland, Weber is no stranger to the international scene. A mainstay on the Swiss blue line since the 2005 IIHF World U18 Championships, the 25-year-old represented his country three times at the World Junior Championships and also participated in the 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics.

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Three Comets to Play in World Championships