Surely you're not talking about the same Swedish team that didn't have Sundin, Forsberg, and Naslund?
Yeah, I can definitely see how losing in the quarterfinals at the last WHC, and placing 4th at the World Cup translates into 'right in the thick of things'.
They're not better than Canada, Russia, or the Czech Republic. That isn't even debatable. Finland beat the US at the World Cup, and they tied at the WHC (With both teams having a depleted lineup). They have better goaltending, and could possibly beat any country in chemistry. Notch goes to Finland. You say Sweden doesn't have goaltending? Last time I checked the US doesn't have Vezina candidates in their goal either. Sweden has more capable forwards than the US, and a better defense. If Naslund, Alfredsson, Forsberg, Sundin, and all the supporting cast (Zetterberg, Modin, Sedins) show up, I don't think you can beat them. Their 2nd and 3rd lines will be better than the USA's 1st.
Finland has a mediocre defense, but their goaltending more than makes up for it. Sweden has shaky goaltending, but their forwards could blow any team out of the water. Both countries' positives greatly outweigh their negatives. Then you have the US, who has average goaltending, average defense, and average forwards. Let's not even get into their piss poor leadership. There's nothing great about their lineup. Nothing that can steal them a game. Nothing that puts them over the top. My ranking still stands.
1. Canada
2. Russia
3. Czech Republic
...
4. Finland
5. Sweden
6. USA