Before diving into the player selections, let’s start with the participating teams: USA, Canada, Sweden, and Finland. Both the USA and Sweden have already announced their rosters for the event, which will be held in Minneapolis from July 25 to August 2. Canada and Finland will unveil their lineups at a later date.
As expected, James Hagens will suit up for Team USA, joined by William Zellers—another unsurprising selection. Will Moore shouldn’t surprise anyone at this point (but read Team Canada Below). A bit more unexpected is the inclusion of Elliott Groenewold, though it doesn’t come as a shock to me. I was a big fan of his play last season at Quinnipiac.
To qualify for the tournament, players must be under 20 years old as of December 31, 2025. As a result, Chris Pelosi—who participated last year—is no longer eligible. The same goes for Loke Johansson, who missed the cutoff by just 17 days and would otherwise be a lock for Sweden’s roster. Kristian Kostadinski, another member of last year’s Swedish squad at the showcase, has also aged out.
Of Course, the Bruins don’t have any Finnish prospects so, don’t be looking for them.
As noted, Canada has yet to announce its roster. Will Moore (American and Canadian Citizenship) seems to have the strongest case for an invitation, but is highly unlikely since he’s been invited by the Americans. Jonathan Morello and Dean Letourneau remain long shots.
Good luck to all the prospects and here’s to hoping they have a great showcase and get strong consideration for the holiday tournament in December-January.
*NOTE: Because Will Moore has not represented Canada or the USA at an IIHF tournament, he is eligible to represent the country of his choice. Once he commits to one country, he must represent that country at all future tournaments.
Dom - Hockey 