Martin Fehervary is joining up with Team Slovakia for the 2024 World Championship. The slick defender is the first Washington Capitals player confirmed to represent his country at this year’s tournament.
Washington’s early exit from the 2024 NHL playoffs allows Caps players to join up with their national teams well before the first games begin. This year’s tournament will take place in Prague and Ostrava, both in Czechia, and will kick off on May 10.
Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan told reporters on Tuesday that Fehervary would compete in the tournament, with former NHL winger and current general manager of the Slovak Ice Hockey Federation Miroslav Šatan confirming the news the following day.
Martin Fehervary will join our national team on Monday. Great news for 🇸🇰 hockey fans. 🍀👍🏻🍀 pic.twitter.com/tFsyzLRM9x
— Miroslav Šatan (@miro81s) May 1, 2024
This will be Fehervary’s fourth time playing for Slovakia at a World Championship; he made his debut at the men’s tournament in 2018 before the Capitals drafted him. Despite the Capitals missing the playoffs entirely in 2023, Fehervary opted to rest rather than compete in that year’s tournament, so this will mark his first time back with Team Slovakia since 2022.
At the 2022 tournament, the Bratislava native scored a goal in a 4-3 win over Kazakhstan. He regularly plays on his country’s top defense pairing, as he normally does for the Capitals in the NHL.
Šatan previously announced five other NHLers playing for Team Slovakia this year. Alongside Fehervary, Seattle’s Tomáš Tatar, Montreal’s Juraj Slafkovský, New Jersey’s Šimon Nemec, Calgary’s Martin Pospíšil, and Anaheim’s Pavol Regenda have all joined the roster.
Dobré správy pre našich hokejových fanúšikov…na MS 2024 v Ostrave nás posilní týchto 5 hráčov z NHL. pic.twitter.com/hsRxAQ9aSu
— Miroslav Šatan (@miro81s) April 23, 2024
As things currently stand, Fehervary is the lone Capitals player to accept an invite. Charlie Lindgren turned one down from Team USA to rest up for next season and go turkey hunting with his grandfather. Dylan Strome also confirmed he would not play for Team Canada. As of Tuesday, MacLellan confirmed that Fehervary was the only Capital he knew would attend the tournament.
Rasmus Sandin played in last year’s games for Team Sweden but his status for this year remains unknown after a head injury he sustained late in the regular season.
