Canucks prospect Jonathan Lekkerimaki has returned to Sweden

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Cooper Godin
April 15, 2024 (6:38 PM)

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While it was to be expected, Vancouver Canucks top prospect Jonathan Lekkerimaki has left North America and has returned to Sweden in preparation for the 2024 IIHF World Hockey Championship.

Sweden's World Championship camp kicked off on Monday, and Jonathan Lekkerimaki was among those in attendance. The team is getting ready for four upcoming exhibition games against Finland, beginning on Thursday.

"Jonathan Lekkerimäki's WC training camp has officially kicked off. #Canucks

Sweden will play four exhibition games over the next nine days:

April 18, April 19, April 23, April 24." Dave Hall said in a post on X.

Following their four exhibition games against Finland, Lekkerimaki and Sweden will head to Switzerland, then Czechia for more pre-tournament action. Sweden will participate in the 2024 Czech Hockey Games against Switzerland, Czechia and Finland as a warm-up event for the World Championship, with Lekkerimaki expected to take part.

Just days after the Czech Hockey Games, Sweden's World Hockey Championship will get underway in Ostrava. They'll be in Group B alongside the United States, Germany, Slovakia, Latvia, France, Kazakhstan, and Poland, which were promoted from the Division 1A tournament last year.

It's been a hectic year for Jonathan Lekkerimaki. He spent the 2023-24 season in the Swedish Hockey League with Orebro HK, finishing the year with 31 points (19 goals, 12 assists) in 46 games. He also missed a portion of the SHL season by representing Sweden at the World Juniors, where he took home MVP honours after putting up ten points in seven games.

Once Orebro HK were knocked out of the SHL Playoffs, the Canucks brought Lekkerimaki over to North America, where he would appear in six games for AHL Abbotsford, scoring one goal and adding an assist.

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