The reigning 2024 World Junior champions Team USA is back. They will put on another show at the 2025 World Junior Championship (WJC), with a new look mixed with familiar faces from the previous tournament. The squad had an impressive run last year, beating Sweden in the gold medal game 6-2. They haven’t won back-to-back WJC titles in the tournament’s history. However, this year’s team could look as strong as last year’s — it was stacked in the previous year but left out many great talents still eligible for this year’s team.
Below is the projected roster of forwards, defensemen, and goaltenders who could potentially make the final cut for the 2025 tournament. Let’s look at which names could return and who could make their first appearance representing the blue, white, and red at the 2025 WJC in Ottawa.
Team USA’s Forwards
This is what their forward lineup should look like heading into this tournament, with a lot of well-known prospects returning:
| Left Wing | Center | Right Wing |
| Cole Eiserman | Ryan Leonard | Gabe Perreault |
| Quentin Musty | James Hagens | Brodie Ziemer |
| Trevor Connelly | Max Plante | Carey Terrance |
| Teddy Stiga | Oliver Moore | Shane Vansaghi |
| Joe Willis |
Despite losing offensive firepower in Jimmy Snuggerud, Rutger McGroarty, Frank Nazar, Cutter Gauthier, and Isaac Howard, who were vital to winning gold, Team USA could welcome back Ryan Leonard, Gabe Perreault, and Oliver Moore; however, one player who is questionable to make a return is Will Smith as it depends whether the San Jose Sharks will allow him to go along with Team Canada’s Macklin Celebrini, who was selected first overall in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft. A new forward who will be crucial to their first line is forward Cole Eiserman, selected 20th overall by the New York Islanders and was very good in the U18 World Championship, where he put up 10 points in seven games, including nine goals, which were the most in the tournament.
James Hagens is another talent who will likely make his U20 WJC debut. He is projected to be the first overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft and, if so, will be the most recent American first-overall pick since Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews in 2016. Hagens put up a whopping 22 points in seven games at the U18s and will be one to watch out for on their second line, as it will most likely be Eiserman, Leonard, and Perreault playing on the first line for most of the tournament. Hagens plays with Boston College, where he has 11 points in nine games.
On the bottom lines, the new additions of Trevor Connelly, Max Plante, Carey Terrance, and many more new forwards will likely be considered potential third and fourth-line players for this rejuvenated roster. Connelly is a player who was expected to make the roster in the 2024 World Juniors; while there was no reason given on why he didn’t make it, there was a controversial social media post he posted two years ago floating around him, which he agreed to take diversity training for before being drafted 19th overall in the by the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2024 NHL Draft. Team USA was also very deep in talent last year, so that could also be why he barely missed the cut for the final roster.
Connelly definitely would’ve gone higher in the draft; however, the focus on playing him must now be high. He’s been incredible in his first season with Providence College in the NCAA, putting up seven points in six games and earning Hockey East Rookie of the Week honors.
Besides Connelly being on the wing, playing Max Plante will be crucial to USA’s third- and fourth-line center position. Plante, who was selected 47th overall by the Detroit Red Wings in the 2024 NHL Draft, is going to be helpful for both USA’s offensive and defensive game as he is a two-way skilled player who will provide a lot of playmaking and lock down on defense for their bottom lines. He also made a big impression in the 2024 World Junior Summer Showcase. Team USA finished the tournament in the top 10 in points (four), with two points in his debut game with the University of Minnesota-Duluth, and finished the 2024 U18s with 11 points in seven games.
On the last lines of offense, Moore could be a definite return to Team USA in the 2025 WJC. He’ll bring a lot of experience to their bottom lines, as he had three points in the 2024 WJC while playing on the third line. On the right wing, if Smith does not get the green light to go to the WJC this year, it will open up some room as it bumps Brodie Ziemer up to the second line and Perreault to the first line. That would leave the fourth line wide open for a spot for Michigan State forward Shane Vansaghi, who’s projected to be selected in the late first and early second rounds of the 2025 NHL Draft. Vansaghi, while not getting an invite to the 2024 WJC Summer Showcase, has proven to be very good for Michigan State, posting eight points in 10 games so far.
Joe Willis would be a suitable pick on the reserve for this roster, considering his experience in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and his fantastic performance at the 2024 WJC Summer Showcase with five points in three games. An honorable mention here for the reserve slot would’ve been Brandon Svoboda, who finished second in points at the 2024 WJC Summer Showcase with five points in three games. However, the center position was loaded, and these were the ones that played way better than Svoboda.
Team USA’s Defensemen
The biggest hit in terms of players lost this year will come to their defense, which was loaded in the last two years; here’s how it should shape out in this year’s tournament:
| Left Defense | Right Defense |
| Zeev Buium | EJ Emery |
| Cole Hutson | Logan Hensler |
| Drew Fortescue | Will Skahan |
| Lukas Fischer |
Team USA will lose Lane Hutson, Eric Pohlkamp, Ryan Chesley, and Seamus Casey on their defensive lines; however, out of all the eligible returns to the roster, Zeev Buium and Drew Fortescue look like they will most likely return with the way the roster has turned out. The top two defensive lines could be good this year, with the potential pair of Zeev Buium and EJ Emery taking the first line, which would be a reasonable fit. Buium, a 2024 12th overall pick by the Minnesota Wild, was one of the top defensemen last year at the WJC, finishing with five points in seven games, including three goals to lead all defensemen in goals, and had the highest plus/minus in the tournament. Buium won the NCAA Championship last year with the University of Denver, where he finished the season with 50 points in 42 games and was a Hobey Baker Award nominee.
For the first-line defense, putting Emery there makes sense, considering his decent finish to the 2024 U18s with six points in seven games. He is currently getting settled in points-wise in his first year in the NCAA with the University of North Dakota with one point in 11 games played. Emery, a 31st overall pick in the first round of the 2024 NHL Draft by the New York Rangers, will also be excellent on the penalty kill, so he has to be a top consideration for this team to fill in the cracks.
Cole Hutson and Logan Hensler are noticeable additions that could pair up on the second line. Hutson, whose brother Lane won gold with Team USA last year, will be looking to succeed in his role as one of the top defensemen, as he was the defenseman with the most points in both the 2023 and 2024 U18 tournaments, which helped USA win gold in 2023. Hensler, who would best fit the defense partner for Hutson as they were both in the 2024 U18 WC together, is projected as a top 10 pick. This 2025 WJC tournament would be an excellent chance for him to raise his stock as he has made a great impression already in the U18 WC, finishing with six points in seven games.
Team USA could bring back Drew Fortescue for some experience, extra grit, and a new addition to their bottom defensive pair with Will Skahan. Fortescue, who finished with four points in seven games at the 2024 WJC last year, was a key defenseman for the USA’s bottom defensive pair. He should be a lock for this year’s team and certainly brings many valuable tools to the roster, such as great skill along the boards and breakaway passes. Skahan seems like the best partner for Fortescue as a lockdown defenseman who can contribute to Team USA’s penalty kill and is doing reasonably well with Boston College in the NCAA, recording three points in nine games so far.
In the reserve slot, Lukas Fischer would be another lockdown option to add in case of any last-minute injuries; Fischer has yet to play on the USA National teams and world tournaments, so this would be a first. He is the captain of the Sarnia Sting in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), where he currently has nine points in ten games. An honorable mention who could make this roster is Charlie Trethewey, who is projected to be selected in the top 15 in the 2025 NHL Draft.
Team USA’s Goaltenders
Goaltending has been the USA’s bread and butter for the past five or so years in the WJC, and here’s how it could look like in 2025:
| Goaltenders |
| Trey Augustine |
| Nicholas Kempf |
| Hampton Slukynsky |
When it comes to goaltender performance on Team USA, it’s worked out great at the WJC, including last year, when the Red Wings’ 41st overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, Trey Augustine, produced some of the best goaltending in the tournament. He finished with a 4-0-0 record and a .936 save percentage (SV%), a 1.89 goals-against average (GAA), and a gold medal to represent the worth of his performance. He will likely be back for the 2025 WJC for his third and final year in the tournament. He even got invited to play for Team USA at the 2024 IIHF World Hockey Championship, where he finished with a record of 2-2-0 in four games played, a .929 SV%, and a 1.89 GAA.
An excellent backup who could make his WJC debut is Nicholas Kempf. He was invited to play for the USA in the 2024 WJC Summer Showcase, where he finished 0-1-0 with a .887 SV% and a 2.75 GAA. He also played in the U18 WC, where he was 5-1-0, had a .919 SV%, and a 1.89 GAA. In the NCAA with the University of Notre Dame, he has a record of 1-3-0 through four games but has a .913 SV% and a 2.82 GAA. To finish it off, the third goaltender who looks like he is in great shape ahead of this tournament is Hampton Slukynsky, who owns a 2-1-1 record with Western Michigan University, followed by a .944 SV% and a 1.72 GAA.
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