With their teams eliminated from the post-season, these OHL players get the chance to represent their country in this year's IIHF U18 Men World Championship
The 2026 IIHF U18 Men’s World Championship began on Wednesday and the 10 participating countries have announced their 25-man rosters for the tournament ahead of the first game in Slovakia.
There are 13 players from the OHL in this tournament. Most of them are representing Canada but there are a few representing the USA and Czechia as well:
Team Canada
Alessandro Di lorio – Sarnia Sting (C)
Callum Croskery – Soo Greyhounds (D)
Carter Hicks – Brampton Steelheads (D)
Dima Zhilkin – Saginaw Spirit (LW)
Gavin Betts – Kingston Frontenacs (G)
Jean-Christoph Lemieux – Sudbury Wolves (RW)
Kohyn Eshkawkogan – Ottawa 67’s (D)
Lucas Ambrosio – Erie Otters (D)
Ryder Cali – North Bay Battalion (C)
Thomas Vandenberg – Ottawa 67’s (C)
Zhilkin had the most regular season points in this group of players with 75 points in 59 regular season games. That’s the third most points on the Spirit and puts him in the top 20 of the entire league.
Meanwhile, Eshkawkogan scored 53 points in 68 regular season games. That puts him in eighth for the most points by an OHL defenseman.
Both players are eligible for the 2027 NHL Draft.
Team USA
Brooks Rogowski – Oshawa Generals (C)
Levi Harper – Sarnia Sting (D)
Rogowski scored 15 goals and 42 points in 46 games this season. he finished the season fifth in goals and tied for third in points on the Generals despite playing fewer games than the players ahead of him. He’s projected to be picked by the end of the second round in this June’s NHL Draft.
Levi Harper was another high scoring defenseman in the OHL this season, scoring 57 points in 68 games. He finished the season with the fifth most points among defensemen. He’s eligible for the next year’s draft
Team Czechia
Ondrej Rumi – Ottawa 67’s (D)
Rumi scored 10 goals and 28 points in 66 regular season games. Among defensemen on the 67’s, he scored the second most goals the fourth most points. He was also one of the best players in the league at staying out of the penalty box, with only four penalty minutes in the regular season. He’s eligible for the upcoming Draft.