The World Championships always feature a nice mix of players from the NHL and European leagues, which has helped raise the profile of some of these players outside of their home countries. When scrolling through the names on the line-ups of the 44 clubs in this year's Champions Hockey League, names like Steffen Soberg, Mathis Olimb, Olli Palola, Niclas Burstrom, Tomas Rolinek, Martin Sevc, Herberts Vasiljevs, Marek Daloga and Thomas Oppenheimer stand out as players who played significant roles for their national teams in Minsk. Now they're trying to make a mark for their respective clubs outside of domestic play as well.

For others who have played in past World Championships but were passed over in 2014, due to age or other reasons, this is a chance to show that they can still perform on the world stage. Kloten Flyers goaltender Martin Gerber has played for Switzerland in eight World Championships but, at age 39, missed the last tournament due to an injury. If he can steal some games in which his team gets outshot, we may see him one more time. Mikko Maenpaa of JYP Jyvaskyla has played for Finland twice, most recently in 2012. With three points in two games from the back end, he's showing he might be worth considering again. No players from Denmark's 2014 roster came from the country's lone CHL representative this year, SonderjyskE Vojens. Defenceman Mads Bodker has played seven times before, though, and at age 26, certainly has years left to offer his national team.