The 2024 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) and the World Juniors tournament is here with prospects from many NHL teams. For the Los Angeles Kings, they will send defenseman Otto Salin, who will play for team Finland.
Kings’ Salin to Represent Finland at World Juniors Tournament
The tournament runs from December 26, 2023 through January 5, 2024 in Gothenburg, Sweden. The play will take place at two venues including Scandinavium, which holds 12,044 and will see Group A, consisting of Canada, Sweden, Finland, Latvia, and Germany. Group B will take place at Frolundaborg, which is a smaller venue that seats 6,044. Group B will consist of the United States, Czechia, Slovakia, Switzerland, and Norway. 10 countries will be playing to showcase their younger talent and represent their countries.
This is the “2024” World Junior Championship because the tournament will end with the gold medal game in early January 2024.
Salin was selected by the Los Angeles Kings in the fifth round (148th overall) in the 2022 NHL Draft, and will be one of Finland’s alternate captains, a high honor.
Salin is a native of Helinski, Finland and has previous World Junior tournament experience. He has played for team Finland’s U20 team in both 2022/23 and again 2023/24, producing three assists in six games. This season, he has played for HIFK of Liiga and Kirkland-Vantaa of Mestis, combining for one goal and six assists for seven points in 30 games.
Salin is one of the more well-rounded prospects on defense for the Los Angeles Kings organization. He has yet to make his North American debut with the American Hockey League’s (AHL) Ontario Reign but he is overseas,further developing his game. He may get a look in Ontario at some point this season or make his pro debut next season. This move may depend on how he performs at the World Juniors tournament, which will have many eyes throughout the organization glued to the play of Salin. He has a bright future in the Los Angeles Kings organization. It may be a year or two for him to be in Ontario full-time but he is one to keep an eye on as he develops into a solid, defensive prospect for the Kings.
(photo: hockeyroyalty.com; Pavel Malyugin (photo: hockeyroyalty.com; Ryan Sikes)
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