Saints Goalie To Represent Team Sweden At World Junior Championships
According to a press release from the Dubuque Fighting Saints, goaltender Marcus Brännman has been selected to represent Team Sweden at the 2023 World Junior Championships (WJC) beginning later this month.
Brännman is in his first year with the Saints, and leads Dubuque goalies with ten starts and 11 appearances. He has posted a 3.28 goals against average and a .901 save percentage. His five wins are tied for the team lead. The Bromma, Sweden native burst onto the scene early this season earning USHL Goaltender of the Week honors after posting a 35 save shutout over the Des Moines Buccaneers in mid-October.
Brännman continues the tradition of success seen from Dubuque goaltenders through recent years. He makes it four straight seasons that our Dubuque Fighting Saints have sent a goaltender to the WJC. He joins Philip Svedebäck, who was a reserve for Sweden last year, Lukas Parik (2020 and 2021), and Erik Portillo (2020).
Along with Brännman, fellow countryman Oliver Moberg has also been selected as a reserve for Team Sweden. Moberg, who is also in his first season with Dubuque, has seen the offensive side of his game blossom. Over his last nine games, Moberg has amassed 11 points and is now a point-per-game player across 15 appearances.
Moberg currently ranks tied for second in the USHL in points by a European born player, only trailing Madison's Miko Matikka. Moberg was selected by the Fighting Saints in the 5th round of this summer’s Phase II USHL draft.
This year's WJC will take place across two separate cities in Canada, Moncton, New Brunswick and Halifax, Nova Scotia. The games begin on December 26, 2022 and wrap up with the gold medal game on January 5, 2023. Team Sweden has medaled in five of the last seven tournaments.