Bruins, Islanders and Capitals prospects are among the returnees to Team USA's preliminary world junior squad, which will make some cuts before trying to win their third straight gold.
USA Hockey's World Junior Championship roster is beginning to take shape.
The first step was announcing who would be attending its pre-tournament camp in Duluth, Minn. The preliminary roster features 28 players, including nine who helped Team USA win its second straight gold medal last year.
The roster includes three goalies, 10 defensemen and 15 forwards. The final roster will be 25 players, likely made up of three goalies, eight defenders and 14 forwards. That leaves one cut up front and two on the back end.
Standout returnees will lead this team, such as James Hagens (BOS), Teddy Stiga (NSH) and Cole Hutson (WSH). Also returning are forwards Cole Eiserman (NYI), Brodie Ziemer (BUF), Max Plante (DET) and Trevor Connelly (VEG), along with defenders Logan Hensler (OTT) and Adam Kleber (BUF).
Let's break down the roster by positions before diving into the snubs.
Goalies
The Americans' trio in net is along the lines of what was expected, with Nick Kempf (WSH) and Caleb Heil (TBL) likely taking the bulk of the load. Third goalie AJ Reyelts was a bit of a surprise addition, as other candidates, such as Harrison Boettiger and Kam Hendrickson, were tempting options
Defense
On the back end, the names were about as expected.
Chase Reid is draft-eligible this year, while Dakoda Rheaume-Mullen is the only overage undrafted player on the roster. The core of Huston, Hensler and Kleber will likely be supplemented by Luke Osburn (BUF) and Blake Fiddler (SEA) while the rest of the group looks to battle it out for the final couple of spots.
World Juniors 2026: Projecting Team USA
Team USA will try to win its third straight gold medals at the 2026 world juniors, but it might not have the same depth and goaltending as in recent years.
Forwards
The forward group will have six returning players, and all of them are expected to make the team.
That leaves eight potential spots up for grabs.
Kamil Bednarik (NYI), Ryker Lee (NSH) and Will Horcoff (PIT) seem like solid bets to make the final roster. How the Americans fill out their roster is going to be interesting. Players like LJ Mooney (MTL) are specialists, while Shane Vansaghi (PHI) and AJ Spellacy (CHI) could be ideal bottom-six energy guys who can bang and crash their way to success.
Up front, there were a couple of interesting additions to the roster, highlighted by Jacob Kvasnicka (NYI) and Brendan McMorrow (LA). Both players will likely be fringe candidates for the roster, but USA Hockey could view them as potential role players who bring a different element to the team.
Flames, Bruins, NHL Draft Prospects Are Among The Snubs
As with every roster, a few names are left off that raise questions.
Cullen Potter (CGY), Will Zellers (BOS) and JP Hurlbert (2026) all looked like they would earn at least a camp invite. Potter was a first-rounder in the 2025 draft, and he's been very good at Arizona State. Hurlbert currently leads the CHL in scoring as a draft-eligible talent.
On the back end, Jacob Rombach (NSH) is the biggest omission, but with a weak back end, there were some players, such as Will Skahan (UTA) and Lukas Fischer (STL), who could have made a case to be there.
Camp will begin on Dec. 15, with a week of practices before a pair of pre-tournament games against Germany on Dec. 21 and Finland on Dec. 23 to help determine the final roster. The final cuts are expected to be made on Dec. 24.
Team USA opens up the 2026 World Junior Championship against Germany on Dec. 26 as they look to defend their back-to-back gold medals, looking to make it three in a row this year.
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