The World Junior Championship always starts on Dec. 26, and the 2026 tournament in Minneapolis and St. Paul is no exception, with Slovakia and Sweden set to break the ice at 1:00 EST on Boxing Day. But in the week leading up to the official puck drop, the 10 participating nations participate in a pre-tournament around Southern Ontario and Minnesota.
As fans have clamoured to watch as much World Junior action as possible, the pre-tournament has become the unofficial kick-off to the World Juniors. It’s a chance for teams to put the final touches on their rosters, whether that’s figuring out lines or making the final cuts before submitting their rosters to the IIHF.
From Dec. 16-23, each team will play two games, with Sweden, Switzerland, and Canada each playing three times. Switzerland kicked off the pre-tournament games with a match against the Minnesota State University (Mankato) Mavericks on Dec. 16, narrowly beating the collegiate team 2-1 in the shootout thanks to the late-game heroics of Jamiro Reber.
While not for anything more than bragging rights, the pre-tournament can have a big impact on what happens on Dec. 26 and beyond. With the games already underway, here’s a quick preview of what to watch for and how to follow the pre-tournament over the next week.
Key Battles To Watch Ahead of Final Cuts
According to the IIHF, teams can only register 22 skaters and three goalies for the World Juniors, meaning that most teams still need to make some final cuts. That’s where the pre-tournament comes in. All these junior players are incredibly talented and deserve their spot on the roster, but because the World Juniors is such a short tournament, players need to find chemistry immediately. An ill-timed mistake could be all that stands between them representing their country and cheering from the sidelines.
Related: Guide to the 2026 World Junior Championship
As of Dec. 16, Switzerland has the largest roster with 29 named players and is, so far, the only team to hit the ice in Minnesota. While you can’t put too much stock into one game, there were some interesting absences from the roster. Utah Mammoth prospect Ludvig Johnsson sat out against the Mavericks, as did Lars Steiner, the 18-year-old phenom playing in the Quebec Maritime Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) and expected to be an early pick for the 2026 Draft. Both are locks for the final roster, so it’s likely that 18-year-olds Cyrill Henry and Mike Aeschlimann were getting a chance to prove what they could do.
Canada, Latvia, Slovakia, and the USA all have 28 players on their roster, meaning that each will be looking to send home at least three skaters. The Canadians invited draft-eligible Carson Carels and undrafted Ethan MacKenzie to their preliminary roster, but there is likely only room for one of them on the blueline. Late addition Marek Vanacker might be the odd one out among the forwards unless Michael Misa’s injury proves too significant to participate next week.
The Americans loaded up on defence for their initial roster, and it’s hard to imagine Asher Barnett, Dakoda Rheaume-Mullen, and Henry Brzustewicz all making the final cut. All three deserve to be on this roster, but with the top four locked down already, they’ll be fighting with the likes of Blake Fiddler, Chase Reid, and Luke Osburn for the final four spots. Team USA’s camp is already looking like a battle.
Czechia, Germany, and Sweden named only 26 players to their preliminary rosters, meaning they have just one cut to make. The Czechs will likely cut one of their nine defenders, with the two most likely candidates being Vladimir Dravecky and Jakub Vanacek, both of whom are draft-eligible this season.
Sweden and Germany will look to cut one of their 15 forwards. Swede Linus Eriksson was at the World Juniors last year, but hasn’t been as strong this season and could be sent home early. The Germans could cut 16-year-old Max Penkin, but he’s been excellent this season and was one of Germany’s top players at the U18 World Juniors last year. Instead, it will probably come down to either Maximilian Brunner or Tim Schütz, two players who weren’t on the 2025 U20 team and are in lower leagues this season.
Only Finland and Denmark enter the pre-tournament without any cuts to make. Fresh off their promotion from Division 1A, the Danes will be trying to find anything that works over the short tournament, while Finland will be looking for who will anchor their top line if Konsta Helenius stays with the Buffalo Sabres.
Aatos Koivu and Emil Hemming seem like good bets, but it will be interesting to see who joins them. Julius Miettinen and Max Westergård have been excellent this season with their home clubs, but don’t count out Atte Joki, who sits second in U20 scoring in the Liiga.
There will be several goaltending battles throughout the training camps and pre-tournament games, but the most interesting will be who starts for the Americans. Initially, Nicholas Kempf had the inside track with Caleb Heil the most likely backup, but on Dec. 11, USA Hockey announced 18-year-old Brady Knowling was added to the training camp roster. The 6-foot-5 netminder was excellent at the CHL-USA Prospects Challenge and could upset AJ Reyelts’ bid to be the team’s third goalie.
Schedule
Watching pre-tournament action can be challenging, but not impossible. Canada’s first two games will take place in Kitchener and London and will be broadcast live on TSN. Other games will be harder to find, but Minnesota’s North Star Sports & Entertainment Network announced it will carry the whole tournament, but whether it will be on its free online stream is unconfirmed. USA Hockey TV will also carry games, but requires a subscription to watch.
All start times are in Eastern Standard Time (EST).
Dec. 16
Switzerland 2 – Minnesota State (Mankato) 1 SO
Dec. 17
7:00 – Canada vs. Sweden
Dec. 19
7:00 – Finland vs. Germany
7:00 – Czechia vs. Latvia
Dec. 20
7:00 – Canada vs. Sweden
Dec. 21
4:00 – USA vs. Germany
7:00 – Latvia vs. Slovakia
7:00 – Denmark vs. Switzerland
Dec. 22
7:00 – Slovakia vs. Czechia
Dec. 23
6:00 – Finland vs. USA
7:00 – Denmark vs. Canada
7:00 – Switzerland vs. Sweden
