MILANO.

Finland faces Switzerland in the Olympic quarter-finals on Wednesday.

Switzerland has reached the final in the last two World Championships. The team has many strong players.

– Switzerland is a good hockey country. Two times in a row in the World Championship final. There are some of the same guys who have been in the World Championships, they have good chemistry. We need to play at our very best, Mikko Rantanen said after the Lions’ practice.

– An excellent team of course, considering how they have performed in the World Championships lately. The league level is high, there are top players from Europe. Of course, there are also top players from the NHL, Lions captain Mikael Granlund added.

We asked Rantanen, Granlund, and Anton Lundell who is Switzerland’s most dangerous player.

– [Roman] Josi is someone to watch out for. He supports the attacks a lot. The forwards need to come back quickly to help the defense because they like to attack with four. Josi is a big part of that, Rantanen said.

– And among the forwards, there are those NHL players. [Kevin] Fiala is injured, but [Nico] Hischier, [Timo] Meier, and those guys, big and strong fellows.

– They have top players, I don’t want to single anyone out. There are top guys in defense and offense in the league, Granlund said.

What about Lundell’s view?

– They have those NHL players, Hischier and Josi and others. We just need to be aware of their strengths and when they are on the ice. Otherwise, it depends more on how we play. If we can make it a tough night for them and apply pressure, that’s the important thing.

Jaakko Perttilä
X: @JaakkoPerttila

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