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Throughout the day teams are announcing their final rosters for the upcoming World Cup of Hockey.

While a couple of Calgary Flames' players have already been featured on rosters - Jakub Nakladal made Czech while Jyrki Jokipakka made Finland - a deserving Flames player has been snubbed.

That player is Mikael Backlund who, for some reason, was left off Team Sweden.

I agree with most of Sweden's picks up front, however, I am confident saying Backlund is a better option than a few guys who made the team over him. Among them are Carl Soderberg and Marcus Kruger, although more so the latter.

For comparison sake, let's take a look at their underlying numbers over the last two seasons.

View post on imgur.com

I should note that Kruger plays the most extreme minutes of the three as he plays a heavy defensive role and starts his shifts almost exclusively outside of the offensive zone. That undoubtedly has an impact on his numbers.

In saying that there is no debate Backlund brings more to the table offensively. He has also been Calgary's best defensive forward for a number of years now and can more than hold his own playing tough minutes.

People will suggest that Backlund is a top-6 center while Kruger knows his role and is better suited for the 4th line but I don't buy that for a second. Good players adapt to any situation.

Backlund has shown the ability to drive possession and produce points while playing tough competition in Calgary. Why wouldn't you want him playing in your bottom-6 feasting on lesser competition?

By choosing Kruger over Backlund I think the Swedes are making themselves more one-dimensional and throwing away a potential advantage when it comes to depth.

Apparently the decision makers see things differently.

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