ESPN

All the Dallas Stars playing at the 2012 World Championship are now finished as the USA, Canada and Sweden were all eliminated in the quarterfinals on Thursday.

Stars forward Loui Eriksson had one goal and one assist, but Sweden lost 4-3 to Czech Republic. Czech forward Milan Michalek scored the game-winner with 29 seconds remaining. Eriksson finished with 13 points (five goals, eight assists) in eight games, leading Sweden in goals and finishing second on the team in points.

Defenseman Alex Goligoski had no points in Team USA’s 3-2 loss to Finland. Finland’s Jesse Joensuu scored two goals, including the game-winner with just nine seconds remaining. Goligoski ended the tournament with five points (one goal, four assists) and a plus-seven rating in eight games.

Stars goalie Richard Bachman, who played in one tournament game, was the backup to Jimmy Howard for Team USA on Thursday.

Forward Jamie Benn had no points in Canada’s 4-3 loss to Slovakia. Slovakia’s Michael Handzus scored a power play goal with 2:28 left, snapping a 3-3 tie. Benn ended up with five points (three goals, two assists) in eight games.

Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen is out for the rest of the tournament for the Finns due to a minor knee injury.

Forward Tomas Vincour, who was on the Czech's travel roster for the tournament, was not among the 25 players his country registered to play in the tournament, so he is not eligible to play any games.

Thursday’s results (quarterfinals)

Slovakia 4, Canada 3
Russia 5, Norway 2
Finland 3, USA 2
Czech Republic 4, Sweden 3

Saturday’s games (semifinals)

Russia vs. Finland, 6:30 a.m.
Czech Republic vs. Slovakia, 10:30 a.m.

Stars defenseman Alex Goligoski had no points and two shots on goal in Team USA’s 5-3 win over Belarus. Goaltender Richard Bachman backed up Jimmy Howard again, but could get the start in Friday’s game when the USA takes on Kazakhstan.

Defenseman Philip Larsen had no points and a game-high six shots on goal in Denmark’s 3-1 loss to Russia on Thursday.

Kari Lehtonen did not dress for Finland, which defeated France 7-1 and improved to 4-0-0 in preliminary round play. Finland plays Canada on Friday.

Tomas Vincour did not play for Czech Republic, which defeated Latvia 3-1.

Thursday’s games

USA 5, Belarus 3
Russia 3, Denmark 1
Finland 7, France 1
Czech Republic 3, Latvia 1

Friday’s games

Kazakhstan vs. USA, 8:15 a.m.
Italy vs. Czech Republic, 9:15 a.m.
Finland vs. Canada, 12:15 p.m.
Russia vs. Sweden, 1:15 p.m.

Stars forward Loui Eriksson picked up an assist as Sweden improved to 4-0-0 with a 5-2 win over Germany at the World Championship on Wednesday.

Eriksson, who is playing on a line with Detroit’s Henrik Zetterberg and Johan Franzen, leads the tournament in scoring with seven points (three goals, four assists) in four games.

Stars forward Jamie Benn had no points, no shots and was even in Canada’s 3-2 victory over Switzerland. Benn again played on a line with Chicago’s Patrick Sharp and Edmonton’s Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.

Forward Tomas Vincour is still with the Czech Republic team at the World Championship, but his chances of playing in the tournament appear to be dwindling. The Czech’s have been adding players to their roster as teams get eliminated from the NHL playoffs. Martin Erat of the Nashville Predators is the latest. Philadelphia’s Jakub Voracek could be next, and if he is added the Czech’s 25-man active roster for the tournament would be filled and there would be no room for Vincour.

Wednesday’s games

Slovakia 4, Kazakhstan 2
Norway 6, Italy 2
Canada 3, Switzerland 2
Sweden 5, Germany 2

Thursday’s games

USA vs. Belarus, 8:15 a.m.
Denmark vs. Russia, 9:15 a.m.
France vs. Finland, 12:15 p.m.
Czech Republic vs. Latvia, 1:15 p.m.

Dallas Stars forward Loui Eriksson had two goals and one assist in Sweden’s 6-4 victory over Denmark at the World Championship on Monday.

Eriksson leads the tournament with six points (three goals and three assists) in three games and is tied for first in goal scoring with three other players, including Canada's Jamie Benn.

Benn had two goals, one assist and a plus-4 rating in Canada’s 7-2 win over France on Monday.

Benn had new linemates Monday, playing with Chicago’s Patrick Sharp and Edmonton’s Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. The trio combined for 11 points (five goals, six assists) in the game.

Benn has three goals in three games. His four points are tied for fifth in the tournament.

Defenseman Alex Goligoski had no points, no shots and an even rating in Team USA’s 4-2 loss to Slovakia. Richard Bachman did not play for the Americans. He was the backup to Jimmy Howard for the third straight game.

Defenseman Philip Larsen had one assist for Denmark in Monday's loss to Sweden.

Tomas Vincour did not play for the Czechs, who defeated Norway 4-3 on Monday.

Monday’s results

Canada 7, France 2
Czech Republic 4, Norway 3
Slovakia 4, USA 2
Sweden 6, Denmark 4

Tuesday’s games

Belarus vs. Kazakhstan, 8:15 a.m.
Latvia vs. Italy, 9:15 a.m.
Finland vs. Switzerland, 12:15 p.m.
Russia vs. Germany, 1:15 p.m.

Dallas Stars forward Loui Eriksson had two assists as Sweden defeated Czech Republic 4-1 Saturday at the World Championship.

Eriksson, who again played on a line with Henrik Zetterberg and Johan Franzen, has three points (one goal, two assists) in two tournament games.

Forward Tomas Vincour did not play for the Czechs.

Team USA beat Canada 5-4 in overtime. Alex Goligoski had no points, five shots on goal and a plus-one rating for Team USA.

Goaltender Richard Bachman served as the backup to Jimmy Howard for the Americans.

Jamie Benn had no points and was even for Canada.

Saturday’s results

Switzerland 5, Kazakhstan 1
Russia 5, Latvia 2
USA 5, Canada 4 (OT)
Sweden 4, Czech Republic 1

Sunday’s games

France vs. Kazakhstan, 4:15 a.m.
Denmark vs. Italy, 5:15 a.m.
Finland vs. Slovakia, 8:15 a.m.
Russia vs. Norway, 9:15 a.m.
Switzerland vs. Belarus, 12:15 p.m.
Germany vs. Latvia, 1:15 p.m.

Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen opened the 2012 World Championship with a shutout, stopping all 21 shots he faced as Finland defeated Belarus 1-0 in the first day of games at the tournament.

Lehtonen faced just two shots in the opening period but stopped 12 in the second and then seven in the third in posting the shutout.

Here’s a look at how the other Dallas Stars players fared on day one of the World Championship:

*Forward Jamie Benn scored the first goal of the game in Canada’s 3-2 win over Slovakia. Benn began the game on a line with Anaheim’s Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry.

*Forward Loui Eriksson had a power play goal in Sweden’s 3-1 victory over Norway. Eriksson played on a line with Detroit’s Henrik Zetterberg and Johan Franzen. Joining that line on the power play unit when Eriksson scored his goal were Ottawa’s Daniel Alfredsson and Erik Karlsson.

*Defenseman Alex Goligoski had two assists and a plus-two rating in the USA’s 7-2 victory over France. Goligoski, who was second on the USA in ice time with 22:06, was paired with Carolina’s Justin Faulk.

*Richard Bachman served as the backup to Detroit’s Jimmy Howard, who stopped 21 of 23 shots for the Americans.

*Defenseman Philip Larsen had no points, three shots and a minus-two rating as Denmark lost 2-0 to Czech Republic. Forward Tomas Vincour did not play for the Czechs.

Friday’s results

USA 7, France 2
Germany 3, Italy 0
Canada 3, Slovakia 2
Czech Republic 2, Denmark 0
Finland 1, Belarus 0
Sweden 3, Norway 1

Saturday’s games

Switzerland vs. Kazakhstan, 7 a.m.
Latvia vs. Russia, 9:15 a.m.
Canada vs. USA, 11 a.m.
Sweden vs. Czech Republic, 1:15 p.m.

The 2012 World Championship gets underway Friday in Sweden and Finland, and seven Dallas Stars players are at the tournament.

Defenseman Alex Goligoski and goaltender Richard Bachman are playing for the United States. Forward Jamie Benn is playing for Canada. Loui Eriksson is among the several NHL players on Sweden’s roster. Kari Lehtonen is the Finland’s No.1 goaltender. And Philip Larsen is suiting up for Denmark.

Stars forward Tomas Vincour is with the Czech team, but it’s still not clear if he’ll be playing in the tournament. He apparently won’t be playing Friday since he was not among the players registered by the Czechs on Thursday. The Czechs registered only the 20 players who would dress for Friday’s game against Denmark.

The Teams

Group H (Helsinki, Finland): Belarus, Canada, Finland, France, Kazakhstan, Switzerland, Slovakia, United States

Group S (Stockholm, Sweden: Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Norway, Russia, Sweden

The Format

The preliminary round features round-robin play within each group. The top four teams in each group after the preliminary round will advance to the quarterfinals, which will be played within each group with the first place team playing the fourth place team and the second place team playing the third place team.

In the semifinals the winners will crossover groups. Group H 1st vs. 4th winner will play Group S 2nd vs. 3rd winner. Group S 1st vs. 4th winner will play Group H 2nd vs. 3rd winner.

The two semifinal winners will play for the gold and the two semifinal losers will play for the bronze.

Links

International Ice Hockey Federation (Official tournament site)
IIHF YouTube Channel
USA Hockey
Hockey Canada

Friday’s Schedule (Times are Central)

USA vs. France, 4:15 a.m. (NBC Sports Network)
Italy vs. Germany, 5:15 a.m.
Slovakia vs. Canada, 8:15 a.m.
Denmark vs. Czech Republic, 9:15 a.m.
Finland vs. Belarus, 12:15 p.m.
Norway vs. Sweden, 1:15 p.m.

FRISCO -- Since Kari Lehtonen made the full time jump to the NHL back in 2005 he hasn’t seen much playoff action. Just two Stanley Cup playoff games to be specific. That’s why he’s looking forward to the chance to play for Finland at the 2012 World Championship.

“I want to get used to playing in May and extend the season. That’s what you need to do when you are ultimately in the playoffs and going deep there,” Lehtonen said. “I think that will be great for me to make the summer a little shorter and keep playing.”

Lehtonen’s two NHL playoff games came in 2007, when the Atlanta Thrashers were swept in the first round by the New York Rangers. That year was also the last time he played in May, helping lead Finland to a silver medal at the World Championship, posting a 4-2-0 record with a 1.93 goals against average, and earning best goaltender of the tournament honors.

The Stars netminder sees the tournament experience as similar to the playoffs, where goaltending can be key to a team’s success.

“I’ve done it a few times and you have to try to find your best mode. It’s so short, you have to be on your game totally, because there’s going to be a couple of other goalies that will be for sure,” Lehtonen said. “It’s the same thing probably as a playoff situation. It’s always goalie battles and you try to be the better one. I think that’ll be good for me to get that experience again.”

Lehtonen does have postseason experience besides those two NHL playoff games back in 2007. He led Jokerit to the Finnish Elite League championship in 2002 and was named the playoff MVP. He led the Chicago Wolves to the AHL’s Calder Cup Finals in 2005.

But he hasn’t played beyond the NHL regular season for several years, and the Stars see this chance for Lehtonen to play at the Worlds as a good building block for the Dallas netminder.

“Whenever you get a chance to see what it feels like to playing in May, it’s a good experience,” said Stars coach Glen Gulutzan.

Lehtonen won’t be the only Stars player playing in May. So will Jamie Benn (Canada), Loui Eriksson (Sweden), Alex Goligoski (USA), Richard Bachman (USA), Philip Larsen (Denmark) and Tomas Vincour (Czech Republic).

“I do think it’s important, and I think they’re good experiences,” said Stars GM Joe Nieuwendyk. “In the case of some of these guys, they want to make a good impression and get some international experience with the Olympics right around the corner again, and I think that’s all part of it. In the case of Kari, I think it’s important that he plays under that microscope and backstops his country. I think it will be good for him.”

Lehtonen and the Finns will be under a microscope. The tournament is being played in Finland and Sweden. Finland, currently ranked No. 1 in the world and a tournament favorite, will play all of its games in Helsinki.

But it will also be a trip down memory lane for Lehtonen, who played his junior hockey and in Finnish Elite League for Jokerit Helsinki.

“I don’t think that hurts to go back after 10 years since I left, and to go back to the same building,” Lehtonen said. “I think that will be pretty cool.”

And it will be a chance to get some valuable experience as well.

2012 World Championship

When: May 4 – May 20

Where: Helsinki, Finland and Stockholm, Sweden

Who: 16 teams including the United States, Canada, Sweden, Finland, Russia, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Slovakia, Germany, Norway, Denmark, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Italy and France

Television: NBC Sports Network will carry all the Team USA preliminary round games, all four quarterfinal games, a semifinal game and the gold medal game

This is the latest in a series of updates on the top prospects of the Dallas Stars. This one looks at forward Scott Glennie, who played his first full professional season with the Texas Stars of the AHL.

Glennie, Dallas’ first round pick (8^th overall) in 2009, registered 37 points (12 goals, 25 assists) in 70 games for Texas. He missed all but the first couple days of training camp and the first three games of Texas’ season due to a concussion. He missed the last two games of the season with a wrist injury.

“It was a bit of a slow start with the injury there, but I think the second half went pretty well. I got my feet underneath me,” said Glennie. “It’s just getting used to the game. It took me a little while to get used to the pace, how fast and big the guys are. I think I am used to that now.”

Glennie had only two points in his first 13 games, but picked up the pace when Dallas made some roster moves in late November.

“When Tomas Vincour went up (to the NHL), Scott got a lot more ice time and he ran with it,” said Scott White, Texas Stars GM and Dallas’ Director of Minor League Operations. “His game is better. He’s learned what he needs to do to get better. He has some elements that our organization needs – quick, good hands, right shot, has the ability to score. All in all, his improvement has been steady from November on once he got healthy.”

During a stretch that ran from early January to late March, Glennie put up 26 points (8 goals, 18 assists) in 34 games.

“All the games I’ve seen down there, to me, he’s been one of the best players in the game. Until Jack (Campbell) got there, he was our youngest player,” said Les Jackson, Dallas Stars Director of Player Personnel. “He has a good season, not as far as goal scoring, but in the sense of learning how to be a pro, what it takes to show up every day and what it means to put the work in and train to be a good player every night.”

The 21-year-old got his first taste of NHL action in Dallas’ final game of the season, picking up no points and two penalty minutes in 9:35 of playing time.

Glennie, who played center and right wing in Texas this past season, should get a good look at Dallas’ training camp in September.

“I sense he got himself a real good foundation of what it takes to be a pro, and I don’t think he is that far from the NHL,” Jackson said. “He’s got all the tools that fit into the new game. He’s got skill, he’s smart and he’s got scoring ability. It will just be a matter of where we are in the fall. If he goes back to Texas that won’t be a bad thing for him, it will be a good thing. I suspect at the end of the day he’ll come up here and be a good NHL player.”

Dallas Stars forward Tomas Vincour had to earn a spot on the Czech roster for the World Championship, and he’s apparently done that.

The Czechs announced the roster of players heading to the World Championship after defeating Russia 2-1 in the final game of the Kajobet Hockey Games on Sunday, and Vincour is one of the 15 forwards on the list.

The Czechs said Sunday they are leaving the option to make changes to the current roster if they are able to add NHL players eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Vincour had no points in Sunday’s game, but picked up one goal in four games while playing for Czech national team at the Kajobet tournament and the Euro Hockey Challenge.

Vincour joins fellow Stars Jamie Benn (Canada), Loui Eriksson (Sweden), Kari Lehtonen (Finland), Alex Goligoski (USA), Richard Bachman (USA) and Philip Larsen (Denmark) at the World Championship.

Lehtonen made 26 saves as Finland defeated Sweden 4-1 at the Kajotbet Hockey Games Sunday. Lehtonen, who stopped 57 of 58 shots in two starts, was named the tournament’s best goaltender.

Benn had no points and no shots on goal in Canada’s 2-1 shootout victory over Switzerland in a World Championship exhibition game on Sunday. Canada and Switzerland have another exhibition game on Tuesday.

The World Championship gets underway Friday in Sweden and Finland.

A couple notes for a Saturday morning in late April.

*Dallas Stars defense prospect Jamie Oleksiak (1st round/2011) and forward prospect Brett Ritchie (2nd round/2011) are headed to the Ontario Hockey League championship series. Their Niagara IceDogs team defeated Ottawa 3-2 last night to take to the Eastern Conference championship series in five games. Niagara will face the London Knights in the OHL finals, which get underway Thursday.

Oleksiak has two assists and a plus-5 rating in 15 playoff games. Ritchie has two goals, six assists and a plus-one rating in 15 games.

*Stars forward Tomas Vincour had no points and two shots on goal as Czech Republic lost 3-2 in overtime to Finland at the Kajotbet Hockey Games today. Vincour has no points in two games.

Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen, who shut out Russia on Thursday at the tournament, did not get the start today.

The tournament, which is being played in Czech Republic, is a tune-up for the World Championship. It wraps up tomorrow with Finland playing Sweden and Czech Republic taking on Russia.

The World Championship begins next week, but teams have been playing exhibition games in preparation for the tournament.

Dallas Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen stopped all 31 shots he faced Thursday as Finland defeated Russia 2-0 at the Kajotbet Hockey Games, a tune-up for the World Championship.

Stars forward Tomas Vincour had no points and one shot on goal in the Czech’s 5-3 win over Sweden in the other tournament game.

Fellow Stars forward Loui Eriksson isn’t playing for Sweden at the tournament. He is expected to join the team early next week.

The tournament, which is being played primarily in the Czech Republic, runs through Sunday.

Stars forward Jamie Benn and Team Canada play Switzerland in an exhibition game Tuesday.

Defenseman Alex Goligoski, goaltender Richard Bachman and Team USA have an exhibition game against Sweden on Tuesday.

Defenseman Philip Larsen and Denmark host Italy in an exhibition match Tuesday.

The World Championship begins May 4 in Finland and Sweden.

There was a behind the scenes shake up at the Dallas Stars offices in Frisco on Monday as some senior executives were let go.

Among those fired Monday were Assistant Vice President, Communications Rob Scichili, Senior Director of Game Entertainment and Events Jon Adams and Manager, Digital Media Lane Pate.

The changes in the front office have been going on for a while. Chief Financial Officer Robert Hutson had been let go previously.

Player/prospect notes

*Stars forward Tomas Vincour had one goal in two games for Czech Republic at the Euro Hockey Challenge over the weekend. Vincour, who is still in the mix for a spot on the Czech’s roster for the World Championship, will be playing for his country at the Euro Hockey Tour, which begins on Thursday.

Stars defenseman Philip Larsen also played at the Euro Hockey Challenge, picking up no points in two games for Denmark. Larsen is on Denmark’s roster for the World Championship, which gets underway May 4 in Sweden and Finland.

*Stars defense prospect Jamie Oleksiak (1st round/2011) and forward prospect Brett Ritchie (2nd round/2011) each picked up an assist as Niagara defeated Ottawa 5-2 Monday night in the Ontario Hockey League playoffs. Niagara leads the OHL’s Eastern Conference Finals 2-1. Game 4 is Wednesday night.

*Dallas Stars forward prospect Emil Molin’s Brynas team won the Swedish Elite League Championship, defeating Skelleftea, which featured Dallas defense prospect John Klingberg. Molin (4th round/2011) had one assist and a plus-three rating in 10 playoff games, but didn’t see a lot of ice time. Klingberg (5th round/2010) had four assists and a minus- six rating in 16 playoff games.

*The Idaho Steelheads, Dallas’ ECHL affiliate, had its season end Sunday when it was knocked out of the playoffs with a 2-1 overtime loss to Las Vegas, which won the second round series in five games.

Hockey Canada announced its first 17 players for the 2012 World Championship, and Stars forward Jamie Benn is among that group.

Benn, who has represented Canada at the World Junior Championship, is one of 11 forwards on the roster. Other forwards include Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, John Tavares, Jordan Eberle and Jeff Skinner.

"Whenever you get a chance to play in May, it is a good experience. Plus, they are playing with some elite players over there," Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said. "For Benny, it's maybe a chance to play with Getzlaf, Perry, Tavares and those type of players, guys of his caliber. They make each other better, so it will be a good experience."

The announcement on Canada's roster and the list of players is here.

Stars defenseman Alex Goligoski and goaltender Richard Bachman were on Team USA's initial list of players, which was released yesterday. Texas Stars goaltender Jack Campbell is expected to be added to the roster as well.

Goaltender Kari Lehtonen is expected to play for Finland, forward Loui Eriksson is playing for Sweden, defenseman Philip Larsen will play for Denmark and Tomas Vincour is under consideration for the Czech squad.

The tournament, which gets underway May 4, will be played in Helsinki, Finland and Stockholm, Sweden.

FRISCO -- The Dallas Stars underwent physicals, held exit interviews and cleaned out their lockers today, but several players will continue to play hockey this spring, suiting up for their countries at the World Championship.

Among that group will be Jamie Benn, who is expected to suit up for Team Canada.

“I think I am going to go,” Benn said. “It will be a good experience for a young guy like me, and I be surrounded by some pretty good players. I guess that is the next step for me, and I am looking forward to it.”

Defenseman Alex Goligoski and goaltender Richard Bachman were among the first 17 players named to the USA roster today.

“It’s a great opportunity,” said Bachman.” I am looking forward to going to Europe and checking out all that stuff. It’s brand new to me.”

Stars goaltending prospect Jack Campbell is expected to be the No. 3 goaltender for the United States.

It appears Kari Lehtonen will be playing for Finland, one of the host countries of this year’s tournament. He believes it will be a good experience for him.

“I want to get used to playing in May and extend the season. That’s what you need to do when you are ultimately in the playoffs and going deep there,” Lehtonen said. “I think that will be great for me to make the summer a little shorter and keep playing.”

Loui Eriksson will play for Sweden, the other host country.

Defenseman Philip Larsen will play for Denmark.

Tomas Vincour has been approached by the Czech Republic. Trevor Daley was asked to play for Team Canada, but declined because his wife is expecting a child.

The World Championship, which will be played in Helsinki, Finland and Stockholm, Sweden, gets underway May 4.