The U.S. will begin its quest for an unprecedented three consecutive gold medals at the World Junior Championship in late July. USA Hockey announced the 42-player roster for its annual World Junior Summer Showcase event, which will help the decision makers evaluate the players in the running to be on Team USA’s roster at the 2026 World Juniors held in the Twin Cities.

• Watch elite junior, college and professional hockey all season on FloHockey
• FloHockey's 2025 World Juniors Coverage
• FloHockey's 2025 NHL Draft Coverage

This year’s Summer Showcase, normally held at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, Michigan, will be at the University of Minnesota’s Ridder Arena. USA will have their candidates, while teams from Sweden, Finland and Canada will also participate in a round-robin style event.

The Americans will be led by head coach Bob Motzko, who previously led the U.S. to gold and bronze medals as World Junior head coach in 2017 and 2018, respectively.

Here’s a look at who was invited to the camp including nine members of last year’s gold-medal winning roster and nine first-round NHL Draft picks.

Team USA World Junior Summer Showcase Roster

Forwards

• Kamil Bednarik, Boston University (NYI)
• Trevor Connelly, Providence (VGK)
• Cole Eiserman, Boston University (NYI)
• Kristian Epperson, Saginaw Spirit/Denver (LAK)
• James Hagens, Boston College (BOS)
• Will Horcoff, Michigan (PIT)
• Ben Kevan, Des Moines Buccaneers/Arizona State (NJD)
• Jacob Kvasnicka, U.S. National Under-18 Team/Penticton Vees (NYI)
• Ryker Lee, Madison Capitols/Michigan State (NSH)
• Cole McKinney, U.S. National Under-18 Team/Michigan (SJS)
• Brendan McMorrow, Waterloo Black Hawks/Denver (LAK)
• LJ Mooney, U.S. National Under-18 Team/Minnesota (MTL)
• Will Moore, U.S. National Under-18 Team/Boston College (BOS)
• Jack Murtagh, U.S. National Under-18 Team/Boston University (PHI)
• Aidan Park, Green Bay Gamblers/Michigan (EDM)
• Max Plante, Minnesota Duluth (DET)
• Cullen Potter, Arizona State (CGY)
• AJ Spellacy, Windsor Spitfires (CHI)
• Teddy Stiga, Boston College (NSH)
• Mac Swanson, North Dakota (PIT)
• Shane Vansaghi, Michigan State (PHI)
• Will Zellers, Green Bay Gamblers/North Dakota (BOS)
• Brodie Ziemer, Minnesota (BUF)

Defensemen

• Henry Brzustewicz, London Knights (LAK)
• EJ Emery, North Dakota (NYR)
• Blake Fiddler, Edmonton Oil Kings (SEA)
• Elliot Groenewold, Quinnipiac (BOS)
• Tanner Henricks, Lincoln Stars/St. Cloud State (CBJ)
• Caeden Herrington, Lincoln Stars/Vermont (LAK)
• Logan Hensler, Wisconsin (OTT)
• Cole Hutson, Boston University (WSH)
• Adam Kleber, Minnesota Duluth (BUF)
• Sam Laurila, Fargo Force/North Dakota (NYI)
• Luke Osburn, Youngstown Phantoms/Wisconsin (BUF)
• Jacob Rombach, Lincoln Stars/Minnesota (NSH)
• Will Skahan, Boston College (UTA)
• John Whipple, Minnesota (DET)

Goalies

• Nick Kempf, Notre Dame (WSH)
• Kam Hendrickson, Waterloo Black Hawks/UConn 
• Cale Heil, Madison Capitols/North Dakota (TBL)
• Jack Parsons, Chicago Steel/Providence
• Patrick Quinlan, U.S. National Under-18 Team/Sarnia Sting/Notre Dame

Instant Analysis

The U.S. is going to have a harder time to make it three straight gold medals as there will be some roster drop-off from the previous two entries. They will have the benefit of home ice advantage and there will also be a number of returning players to guide the next group forward.

USA is a little shallow on the blue line and woefully shallow in net with no clear-cut No. 1 goalie in the mix just yet after having the World Juniors’ best goaltending tandems in each of the last two trips. The forwards have plenty of offensive firepower, but also have the benfit of balance as there are a number of bigger players that can fit into depth roles.

I would anticipate each of USA’s nine returnees to make the roster if healthy, but beyond that, there are a lot of holes to fill. Top-four defense spots, some top-six options and the starting goaltender position could be battled for all the way through to the December camp just before the tournament begins.

The important steps in finding out who the serious contenders for those spots are will begin now, however.

USA comes into the tournament with plenty of pressure on them to keep the first-ever gold-medal streak going, but they’re definitely going to have to punch above their weight in a tournament field that should include high-end rosters from Canada and Sweden, among other nations. 

The World Junior Summer Showcase is going to provide a great early glimpse of where this U.S. player pool is and where it will need to get to when the puck drops for real on Dec. 26 in St. Paul.

Notable Omissions

There are always going to be a few players who are not invited that are at least notable for one reason or another. 

The only 2025 NHL Draft first-rounder from the U.S. not invited is Chicago Blackhawks pick Mason West. The 6-foot-6 center from Edina High School still has plans to play high school football in the fall, so it really was no surprise to see that he did not make Team USA's camp roster. It might have been worth bringing him in to see where he's at relative to the class as a just-in-case, but with him playing football it's hard to imagine him jumping into a World Junior-caliber tournament with a month's preparation.

One player I was hoping to see in camp, though not surprised he isn't is Chase Reid of the Soo Greyhounds. Reid is a late 2007 birth year, who was invited to try out for the U.S. Under-18 Team at last year's World U18 Championship, but ultimately didn't make the roster. I think he has a chance at being a very high pick in the 2026 NHL Draft and would be an additional puck-mover that could be worth a longer look. Reid started last season in the NAHL before moving to the O and becoming a point-per-game, minutes-munching defenseman. He is absolutely a player they should keep tabs on.

Lukas Fischer, a St. Louis Blues prospect who was in the Summer Showcase last year and had a good showing, was not invited this time around. I think he may have been edged out by some players that simply had better seasons. Fischer didn't take a huge step forward with the Sarnia Sting this year, but I figured he'd be in the mix as the U.S. has plenty of question marks on their blue line at this point.

Avalanche prospect Tory Pitner was another player who was in last year's camp, but not invited this time around. He saw limited action at the University of Denver last season, registering just one assist. 

Where Is The World Junior Summer Showcase?

The World Junior Summer Showcase will be held at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on the campus of the University of Minnesota. The event will feature teams from the U.S., Sweden, Finland and Canada.

When Is The World Junior Summer Showcase?

The World Junior Summer Showcase will run from July 25 to August 2. The first games of the WJSS will be held on July 27 with the final games played on Aug. 2.

World Junior Summer Showcase Game Schedule

Sunday, July 27

• USA White vs. Finland, 1 p.m. CT
• USA Blue vs. Sweden, 4:30 p.m. CT

Monday, July 28

• Finland vs. USA Blue, 1 p.m. CT
• Sweden vs. USA White, 4:30 p.m. CT

Tuesday, July 29

• Canada Red vs. Canada White, 4:30 p.m. CT

Wednesday, July 30

• Sweden vs. USA, 1 p.m. CT
• Canada vs. Finland, 4:30 p.m. CT

Friday, Aug. 1

• Canada vs. Sweden, 1 p.m. CT
• Finland vs. USA, 4:30 p.m. CT

Saturday, Aug. 2

• Sweden vs. Finland, 1 p.m. CT
• USA vs. Canada, 4:30 p.m. CT

NHL Prospect Coverage On FloHockey

The best, and most complete, coverage of the NHL minor league hockey and NHL Draft is found on FloHockey. Don't miss the latest new prospect guides, rankings and more from Chris Peters and the FloHockey staff.

Watch the AHL, ECHL, QMJHL, USHL, And More On FloHockey

FloHockey is the streaming home to some of the best hockey leagues in North America, including the ECHL and more. Check out the broadcast schedule to watch more hockey.

Join The Hockey Conversation On FloHockey Social

• Follow us on Twitter @FloHockey
• Follow us on Instagram @flohockey
• Follow us on TikTok @flohockeytv
• Watch us on YouTube
• Like us on Facebook