AHL’ers excel at World Inline Championships

Rickard Wallin, who has spent most of the last three seasons with the Houston Aeros, helped Sweden claim the 2005 IIHF Inline Hockey World Championship this weekend in Kuopio, Finland.

Wallin, a member of the Aeros’ 2003 Calder Cup championship team, tied for second in the tournament with 19 points in six games, and his 14 assists were tied for the top total. Sweden went 6-0, beating arch-rival Finland 4-2 in Saturday’s championship tilt.

Wallin, who had nine points (2g, 7a) in a 19-1 win over Austria on July 11, has played 178 games with the Aeros, totaling 110 points (39g, 71a). He was selected in the sixth round of the 1998 NHL Entry Draft by Phoenix, and acquired by Minnesota in exchange for center Joe Juneau on June 23, 2000.

The United States captured the bronze medal at the event with a 6-0 win over the Czech Republic on Saturday. Troy Milam, Jeff Giuliano and Doug Nolan of the Manchester Monarchs, Ernie Hartlieb of the Grand Rapids Griffins and Brad Parsons of the Portland Pirates represented the U.S. in the tournament.