Former University of Denver standout Patrick Wiercioch of the Ottawa Senators has joined Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh) and Dan Hamhuis (Vancouver) for Team Canada’s World Championship team after their NHL teams were ousted in the first round of the playoffs. The Avalanche has four players on the team in forwards Matt Duchene, Ryan O’Reilly, Nathan MacKinnon and defenseman Tyson Barrie.
The 2015 World Championship begins Friday in the Czech Republic, and Canada is the big favorite.
Wiercioch, 24, is the only Canadian on the 23-man roster to have played NCAA hockey. He was a healthy scratch when the Avalanche played at Ottawa last fall but finished as the Senators’ No.