It’s December… so you know what that means!
World Junior selection camps will be getting underway soon and we’re less than 30 days away from the 2026 event kicking off.
The world’s best hockey tournament is not only a showcase of top talent, but also a preview into what the NHL will soon look like. Nearly every big-name player in the league has suited up at the WJC.
This year, all the talk surrounds Team USA heading into things. They’ve won back-to-back World Junior gold medals for the first time, and they’ll be defending their crown on home turf. This marks the 50th anniversary of the vaunted tournament and will be played in Minnesota, the self-proclaimed State of Hockey beginning on December 26.
Which Kings prospects are likely to participate this year? Let’s take a look.
United States
This will somewhat be the easiest country to discuss because they just released their selection camp roster earlier today.
Again, this isn’t the list of players who have made the team; that won’t be announced until just one day before Christmas. Instead, this is the group — often referred to as the ‘preliminary roster’ — who will attend selection camp at AMSOIL Arena in Duluth, Minnesota, from Dec. 15-23. Nine players on this list helped Team USA win gold last year, so each of them would be considered locks for one of the final 25 spots on the roster.
Henry Brzustewicz, London Knights, RH Defenseman (31st overall in 2025)
2025-26 Stats: 7 goals, 5 assists, minus-8, 24 PIM in 19 games played
Status: Candidate, not a lock for the team. Part of the issue here is age, not talent. Brzustewicz is just 18 years old — and is already playing in his third OHL season. This is a player coming off winning a Memorial Cup last season and makes up one of the OHL’s best defensive pairing, skating alongside fellow Kings prospect Jared Woolley with London. We’d consider him a lock for next year’s team, even if this year could require a few breaks to fall his way.
Also worth noting, Bob Motzko (University of Minnesota) is the head coach for Team USA this year. It isn’t uncommon for coaches to favor college players, as they’re simply more familiar with them. So, we’ll see how it plays out.
Brendan McMorrow, Univ. of Denver, Left Wing (196th overall in 2025)
2025-26 Stats: 1 goal, 3 assists, plus-3, 4 PIM in 12 games played
Status: Candidate, but a stronger one than most people likely think. The USA coaching staff is said to love his speed. When you’re a bubble player, that’s just what you need when fighting for a roster spot in a tournament like this — a defining characteristic. Every player who gets invited to a WJC camp is a top of the food chain athlete. They’re great at what they do on the ice. However, when culling a list down to the final couple dozen players who get to represent their country, it can often be a razor thin margin. McMorrow just might have that intangible that allows him to sneak onto the roster.
Canada
Carter George, Owen Sound Attack, Goalie (57th overall in 2024)
2025-26 Stats: 3.07 GAA, .900 SV%, 1 SO, 1 assist, 9 wins in 20 games played
Status: One of the true guarantees in this entire article. George, pictured above, served as Canada’s top goalie at last year’s tournament and opened up play with back-to-back shutouts, including a 31 save performance over Finland. His stock has only continued to rise since then. He’s a lifelong Kings fan too, which you can read about here:
Liam Greentree, Windsor Spitfires, Right Wing (26th overall in 2024)
2025-26 Stats: 15 goals, 13 assists, plus-2, 25 PIM in 20 games played
Status: Candidate, even if that doesn’t make much sense on the surface. Despite being in the top-10 in points-per-game for OHL players, Greentree is far from a lock here. After being snubbed last year, this feels pretty similar to the Tyler Toffoli situation from just over a decade ago. Even though Toffoli put up consecutive 100 point seasons with the Ottawa 67s — including campaigns where he scored 57 and 52 goals — the Scarborough native simply couldn’t get a sniff from Team Canada. He just wasn’t one of their guys. Call it politics or whatever other label you want to put on it, it’s just a thing for some reason. Greentree could very well see a similar fate. Sure, he’ll be given a look at camp this month. However, we’d estimate his odds of making the team at around 30%. As one scout put it to us recently, “Greentree is certainly on the outside looking in right now.”
Jared Woolley, London Knights, LH Defenseman (164th overall in 2024)
2025-26 Stats: 6 goals, 11 assists, plus-11, 32 PIM in 24 games played
Status: This is a fun one, only because he’s not a name most expect to see here. While considered a longshot for the team, Woolley is our sleeper pick to make Team Canada. He’s surprised people before and this wouldn’t be as shocking as some might think. As noted with McMorrow above, sometimes having an intangible to set you apart from the pack really helps. This 6-foot-5 rearguard has it; don’t be fooled by his sixth-round selection.
Finland
Petteri Rimpinen, Liiga-Kiekko-Espoo, Goalie (152nd overall in 2025)
2025-26 Stats: 2.74 GAA, .898 SV%, 1 SO, 7 wins in 20 games played
Status: He’s as solid of lock as Geroge is for Canada. Rimpinen has been a star goalie for Finland at the U-18s and other international tournaments. He’s their guy this year and if Finland has any thoughts of leaving Minnesota with a medal, a big performance in net will likely be necessary. Along with the USA and Canada, it’s been Finland who has found the most WJC success in recent years. Can they make some noise again this year? USA and Finland play each other in a pre-tournament game on Dec. 23. Don’t think of that as a regular preseason contest. It’s one to watch heading into the WJC just a few days later.
For more on Rimpinen, see here: LA Kings Select Petteri Rimpinen at No. 152 – What You Need to Know
Czechia
Vojtech Cihar, Czechia-HC Energie Karlovy Vary, Forward (59th overall in 2025)
2025-26 Stats: 4 goals, 4 assists, minus-2, 8 PIM in 27 games played
Status: Considering he’s expected to serve as one of the alternate captains for Czechia, Cihar is another of the Kings prospects considered a lock for the tournament. He’ll also slot in as the team’s top line left wing, so expect to hear a lot about him throughout the tournament. Outside the big-four nations, it’s Czechia who has proven to be the most difficult out at recent WJCs. They left last year’s event with a bronze medal — after eliminating Canada in a quarterfinal game, then later beating Sweden. This built upon their silver medal finish two years prior. Don’t count them out this time around either. They shouldn’t be taken lightly.
For more on Cihar, see here: LA Kings Select Vojtech Cihar at No. 59– What You Need to Know
Slovakia
Jan Chovan, Sudbury Wolves, Center/Right Wing (184th overall in 2025)
2025-26 Stats: 6 goals, 9 assists, minus-17, 2 PIM in 25 games played
Status: Although he’ll be competing for a highly coveted spot on the Slovakian roster, Chovan enters this month in a pretty good spot. Word coming out of last month’s tournament in Europe was that the coaching staff felt Chovan was their best forward. He also was an alternate captain at the event. This should all but secure his spot for the upcoming WJC. He’s also played for his native country at multiple levels, including the U-17 and U-18 tournaments, where he also wore an ‘A’ on his sweater. Last year, he made his World Junior debut, recording a goal and one assist in five games. He’s currently playing about 13-17 minutes per night in the CZE league, near the top of TOI for most young forwards among his peers there.
For more on Chovan, see here: LA Kings Select Jan Chovan at No. 184 – What You Need to Know
The WJC Schedule
All USA and Canada games (and many others, as well) will be televised by NHL Network.
December 26
Sweden vs. Slovakia, 1 p.m. ET
Denmark vs. Finland, 3:30 p.m. ET
Germany vs. United States, 6 p.m. ET
Canada vs. Czechia, 8:30 p.m. ET
December 27
Slovakia vs. Germany, 2 p.m. ET
Latvia vs. Canada, 4:30 p.m. ET
USA vs. Switzerland, 6 p.m. ET
Denmark vs. Czechia, 8:30 p.m. ET
December 28
Sweden vs. Switzerland, 2 p.m. ET
Finland vs. Latvia, 4:30 p.m. ET
December 29
Germany vs. Sweden, 1 p.m. ET
Finland vs. Czechia, 3:30 p.m. ET
Slovakia vs. USA, 6 p.m. ET
Canada vs. Denmark, 8:30 p.m. ET
December 30
Switzerland vs. Germany, 2 p.m. ET
Latvia vs. Denmark, 4:30 p.m. ET
December 31
Switzerland vs. Slovakia, 1 p.m. ET
Czechia vs. Latvia, 3:30 p.m. ET
USA vs. Sweden, 6 p.m. ET
Canada vs. Finland, 8:30 p.m. ET
January 2
Quarterfinal 1, 2 p.m. ET
Quarterfinal 2, 4:30 p.m. ET
Quarterfinal 3, 6 p.m. ET
Quarterfinal 4, 8:30 p.m. ET
January 4
Semifinal 1, 4:30 p.m. ET
Semifinal 2, 8:30 p.m. ET
January 5
Third-place game, 4:30 p.m. ET
Championship game, 7:30 p.m. ET
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