Penguins’ Rickard Rakell to replace Golden Knights’ William Karlsson on Sweden’s 4 Nations Face-Off team

Pittsburgh Penguins right winger Rickard Rakell will join Team Sweden at the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off, reports Swedish journalist Per Bjurman.

Through 53 games with the Penguins this season, Rakell has approached point-per-game production in collecting 23 goals and 22 assists to sit second in team scoring with 45 points, behind only captain Sidney Crosby.

A veteran of 774 career contests with the Anaheim Ducks and Penguins, Rakell has racked up 224 goals and 270 assists for 494 points, underscored by the 2017-18 campaign with Anaheim when he reached a career-high 69 points. Rakell again cracked the 60-point plateau when he put up 28 goals and 32 assists with the Penguins in 2022-23. Rakell, 31, was originally chosen 30th overall by Anaheim in the 2011 NHL Draft.

In international competition, Rakell has twice captured a gold medal, beginning with the 2012 World Juniors where he put up five points counting two goals and three assists en route to a first-place finish. Rakell also took home gold with Sweden at the 2018 IIHF World Championship, putting up a team-leading 14 points counting six goals and eight assists through 10 contests to later earn a spot on the tournament’s All-Star Team.

For Karlsson, the Golden Knights forward has been sidelined for the past six games due to a lower-body ailment. On the season, the 32-year-old has posted seven goals and 11 assists for 18 points in 38 games. Through 723 total appearances with the Ducks, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Golden Knights, Karlsson has tallied 177 goals and 258 assists for 435 points. Karlsson posted a career-high 78 points with the Golden Knights in 2017-18.

The inaugural 4 Nations Face-Off will take place February 12-20 and will be co-hosted by Boston and Montreal. The tournament will see redenitions from Canada, Finland, Sweden, and the United States compete for international hockey supremacy.