Cardiff Devils players Mark Richardson, Matthew Myers and goalie Ben Bowns are all in the Great Britain team for their international challenge match against Dinamo Riga this evening (Wednesday).
The match is at Coventry’s Skydome home and is the first of five games for GB ahead of May’s World Championship in Slovakia.
Britain are in the top flight of the World Championships for the first time in almost 25 years and they play Canada, USA, Germany, Denmark, Finland, Slovakia and France (Watch GB clinch promotion 0n video below).
Evan Mosey was a fourth Devil selected by head coach Peter Russell, but he is highly unlikely to skate this evening after missing Cardiff’s last few fixtures after taking a blow to the head during an Elite game against Nottingham Panthers.
Mosey has tweeted that he is on the mend, but the Devils’ medical team are ensuring he doesn’t play again too soon.
Richardson, Myers and Bowns will all be back in action for Devils in Saturday’s Elite League fixture against Coventry Blaze at the Viola Arena (7pm).
Welsh wingers Ben Davies and Jonathan Phillips, both born in Cardiff, are both in the GB squad.
Russell named a 26-man group encounter with top-class KHL Riga at the Skydome (Wednesday, February 6, 7:30pm.
Nottingham Panthers defenceman Tim Billingsley and Coventry Blaze forward Ben Lake are in a GB squad for the first time.
“This game will be a great start to our preparations for the World Championships,” said Russell.
“Riga are a KHL organisation and it will be a massive test for us, but I know the players will be excited for the challenge.
“The truth is we have to learn play against high speed as we are going to be have to be able to handle that in Pool A.
“For me, getting up to that speed and speed of thought will be the biggest challenge for us.”
Great Britain squad
Netminders: Ben Bowns (Cardiff Devils), Jackson Whistle (Sheffield Steelers).
Defence: Tim Billingsley (Nottingham Panthers), Dallas Ehrhardt (Manchester Storm), Mark Garside (Belfast Giants), Steve Lee (Nottingham Panthers), Ben O’Connor (Sheffield Steelers), David Phillips (Sheffield Steelers), Mark Richardson (Cardiff Devils), Zach Sullivan (Glasgow Clan), Paul Swindlehurst (Belfast Giants).
Forwards: Ollie Betteridge (Nottingham Panthers), Jordan Cownie (Dundee Stars), Ben Davies (Guildford Flames), Robert Dowd (Sheffield Steelers), Robert Farmer (Nottingham Panthers), Luke Ferrara (Coventry Blaze), Mike Hammond (Manchester Storm), Lewis Hook (Belfast Giants), Robert Lachowicz (Nottingham Panthers), Ben Lake (Coventry Blaze), Ciaran Long (Manchester Storm, Matthew Myers (Cardiff Devils), Brett Perlini (Nottingham Panthers, Jonathan Phillips (Sheffield Steelers).
Following their clash with Riga, GB play five international challenge fixtures in the UK.
They are involved in a triangular tournament with Hungary and Italy during April followed by two games against KHL side Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod.
GB pre-World Championship schedule:
February
Wednesday: Great Britain v Dinamo Riga (Skydome, Coventry, 7.30pm). Tickets can be bought here
April
Triangular tournament
Friday 19: Great Britain v Italy (Skydome, Coventry)
Saturday 20: Italy v Hungary – Skydome, Coventry
Sunday 21 April: Great Britain v Hungary (Planet Ice, Milton Keynes)
Challenge matches
Saturday 27: Great Britain v Torpedo (Motorpoint Arena, Nottingham)
Sunday 28: Great Britain v Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod (Fly DSA Arena, Sheffield)