Decimation continues for Sweden as WJC team loses another player and head coach; Germany also loses players

It looks like the team that will be competing for Sweden at the upcoming World Junior Hockey Championship will be a shell of what it could have been. After word in the last few days that the team had lost two top forwards and a defenceman after they tested postive for COVID-19, comes word that the team has now lost its head coach and another player for the same reason.

According to a release from the team, head coach Tom Montén and assistant coach Anders Lundberg will not be travelling to Canada for the WJC. The team said it's working on replacements, but added this is a very difficult situation. Meanwhile, winger Albin Grewe, a 2019 draft pick of the Detroit Red Wings (66th overall), has also been forced out of camp after a positive test for the novel Corona virus.

Just Monday, the team announced that defenceman William Wallinder will miss the 2021 tournament after testing positive for COVID-19. He was selected 32nd overall by Detroit in the latest draft. Top prospects William Eklund and Karl Henriksson will also not be participating in the tournament.

Meanwhile, two big names for Germany are out of the tournament after positive tests. Lukas Reichel, a first-round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks in 2020, and Nino Kinder will not be participating at the World Juniors

So far, Sweden's camp has been by far the hardest hit by COVID-19 in preparation for the upcoming Wold Juniors, which start on Christmas day. Hopefully, other teams are taking extra precautions as a result. One has to wonder how many more players and/or staff Sweden can lose before it is forced to withdraw from the tournament, or asked not to participate over safety concerns.

Source: Team Sweden

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