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Team USA Announces 2025 World Championship Roster

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Team USA has announced the first 18 players on their World Championship roster. The lineup contains all three goaltenders, six of seven defensemen, and nine of 13 forwards. The roster is led by American stars like Clayton Keller, Tage Thompson, and Brady Skjei. That trio will look to take a mixed group of experience to Team USA’s first gold medal appearance since 1960.

The American roster notably features top young players like Frank Nazar, Mason Lohrei, Cutter Gauthier, Logan Cooley, Jackson LaCombe, and Matty Beniers. Beniers offers the most experience on the Men’s Team, having joined USA at the 2021 World Championship and 2022 Winter Olympics. He scored two points in each tournament. Team USA will also continue their trend of bringing collegiate goaltending by adding Los Angeles Kings prospect Hampton Slukynsky to the roster. Slukynsky led the Fargo Force to a USHL championship last season, then won Western Michigan’s starting role and carried the school to their first NCAA National Championship as a freshman this season.

Team USA will still need to add four forwards and one defenseman. The World Championship will run from May 9th to May 25th in Herning, Denmark – giving the Americans a chance to add some more firepower after playoff exits. Jeff Kealty is serving as USA’s general manager, while San Jose Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky heads a coaching staff that also features Pittsburgh Penguins assistant coach Mike Vellucci, Chciago Blackhawks assistant Kevin Dean, and Michigan State University head coach Adam Nightingale.

The current roster is as follows:

F Tage Thompson (Sabres)
F Drew O’Connor (Canucks)
F Frank Nazar (Blackhawks)
F Michael McCarron (Predators)
F Clayton Keller (Hockey Club)
F Cutter Gauther (Ducks)
F Conor Garland (Canucks)
F Logan Cooley (Hockey Club)
F Matty Beniers (Kraken)

D Alex Vlasic (Blackhawks)
D Brady Skjei (Predators)
D Andrew Peeke (Bruins)
D Mason Lohrei (Bruins)
D Jackson LaCombe (Ducks)
D Michael Kesselring (Hockey Club)

G Joey Daccord (Kraken)
G Jeremy Swayman (Bruins)
G Hampton Slukynsky (Kings)

Injury Notes: Capitals, Hakanpaa, Määttä, Kesselring

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The Washington Capitals will have a mess to sort out on defense with Jakob Chychrun (upper-body) and Alexander Alexeyev (personal) each out day-to-day, per Tarik El-Bashir of Monumental Sports Network. El-Bashir also shares that Matt Roy, who has been out since October 12th, is nearing a return but likely won’t play on Thursday.

Chychrun suffered his injury after just four shifts in Washington’s Tuesday night win over the New York Rangers. He was seen nursing his left ribs partway through his final shift, though it’s hard to place exactly when he suffered his injury.

Alexeyev and Roy would stand as the de facto options to fill Chychrun’s top-pair role. But with both also potentially missing Thursday night’s game, the Capitals will have to instead turn towards Rasmus Sandin or Martin Fehervary to fill their role of top left-defender. The team could also turn to the minor leagues for a fill-in, where Hardy Haman-Aktell stands as the top left-defense with three assists in six games to start the year.

Other notes from blue-lines around the league:

  • Defenseman Jani Hakanpaa is nearing his debut with the Toronto Maple Leafs after spending the start of the season on IR with a knee injury, shares David Alter of The Hockey News. Hakanpaa opened the year on long-term injured reserve, nursing an injury that ended his 2023-24 campaign in March. He proceeded to go through contract cartwheels with Toronto throughout the summer, signing with the team in July but not finalizing the deal until September. He joined Toronto’s practices on October 2nd, and even traveled with the team on their recent two-game road trip – all suggesting a return is imminent. Hakanpaa is awaiting clearance from Toronto’s doctors and activation off of LTIR, but figures to support the team’s defensive depth when he returns.
  • The Utah Hockey Club could plan to ice seven defensemen on Wednesday – per Cole Bagley of KSL Sports – with Michael Kesselring returning from illness (link) and Olli Määttä quickly joining the team after trade (link). Kesselring has so far played in all 10 of Utah’s games, and ranks second on the blue-line in scoring with five points. Meanwhile, Maatta has yet to change his stat line at all this season – recording no scoring, no penalties, and no lasting change in +/- through seven games with the Detroit Red Wings. He was flipped to Utah for a 2025 third-round pick, and offers much-needed depth to a Utah club without both Sean Durzi and John Marino for the long-term. Kesselring should maintain his spot on the team’s top pair, while Maatta will join Vladislav Kolyachonok and Maveric Lamoureux in fighting for depth ice time.

West Notes: Jiricek, Kesselring, Hague

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The St. Louis Blues have reassigned defenseman Adam Jiricek to the Ontario Hockey League’s Brantford Bulldogs (news release). Jiricek was the 16th overall pick in this year’s NHL Entry Draft and will bring a wealth of experience to the Bulldogs, having already accumulated 31 games of professional experience in his native Czechia.

The younger brother of Columbus defenseman David Jiricek has played quite a bit internationally in the last few seasons, including appearances in the U17 World Hockey Challenge, U18 World Hockey Championships, Hlinka-Gretzky Cup & World Junior Hockey Championships.

In other Western Conference notes:

  • Utah Hockey Club defenseman Michael Kesselring is out with an illness and will be a game-time decision tomorrow night (as per Belle Fraser of the Salt Lake Tribune). Kesselring logged almost 23 minutes in ice time last night in a loss against the San Jose Sharks but woke up and was sick with a fever today. The 24-year-old has seen a huge increase in ice time this season, averaging over 20 minutes a night in the absence of top-four defensemen John Marino and Sean Durzi. Kesselring has filled in admirably, posting two goals and three assists in 10 games this season.
  • Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Nicolas Hague has been officially ruled out for tomorrow night’s game against the Los Angeles Kings (as per Sin Bin Vegas). The 25-year-old skated by himself as he ramped up his efforts to get back into the lineup. Hague last played on October 25th and will miss his third consecutive game with a lower-body injury. Kaedan Korczak will likely continue to fill in for Hague on the Golden Knights backend. Korczak has dressed in three games this season, posting a single assist while averaging over 16 minutes of ice time per game.

Utah Re-Signs Michael Kesselring To Two-Year Deal

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The Utah Hockey Club has agreed to terms with defenseman Michael Kesselring on a two-year contract, the team announced today. Per Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff, the contract is worth $2.8MM, which is good for a $1.4MM cap hit.

Kesselring, 24, is coming off a strong rookie season that saw him post five goals, 16 assists, 21 points and a +11 rating with 66 PIMs on the Coyotes blue line. A sixth-round pick of the Oilers in 2018, Edmonton traded Kesselring to Arizona at the 2023 deadline as part of a deal for center Nick Bjugstad.

He was having a strong season with AHL Bakersfield at the time, racking up 13 goals and 22 points in 49 games. After his acquisition, he made his NHL debut with the Yotes. The South Carolina native played in nine games to close out 2022-23, recording his first three major league assists.

Kesselring checks a lot of boxes as a right-shot defender with physicality and size, as well as some offensive upside. He’s one of the bigger bodies on the Utah roster at 6’4″ and 190 lbs and was one of many pending restricted free agents that general manager Bill Armstrong needs to re-up this summer. NHL regulars Sean Durzi, J.J. Moser and Juuso Välimäki all still need new deals.

After producing at a 26-point pace with good possession metrics, $1.4MM seems like a steal for his services, especially on a multi-year deal. Without much NHL experience to his name and virtually no special teams usage last season, though, he likely couldn’t have commanded much more. Evolving Hockey’s contract projection was in line with what Kesselring received in the end (two years, $1.353MM AAV).

With Utah looking to add multiple defensemen on the UFA market this summer, Kesselring will likely slot into a third-pairing role again next season after averaging 15:48 per game in 2023-24. While his effectiveness higher up in the lineup is a question mark, he’s already shown the ability to crush bottom-pairing minutes.

Kesselring’s contract expires in 2026, but he will still have another year of team control and will be an arbitration-eligible RFA.

AHL Shuffle: 4/19/24

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Half the league has played their last games for the 2023-24 campaign, while the other half is gearing up for postseason action starting tomorrow. Either way, squads are making roster adjustments today, whether it’s assigning players back to the minors after their NHL seasons came to a close or recalling reinforcements for their playoff runs. We’ll keep track of all of today’s moves here:

  • The Bruins have recalled center John Beecher and defenseman Mason Lohrei from AHL Providence. Both will be available for tomorrow’s Game 1 of Boston’s first-round series against the Maple Leafs. The pair of youngsters were assigned to the minors throughout the last week for playing time down the stretch after spending most of the campaign on the NHL roster. They’ll likely be scratches for tomorrow’s contest, but after combining for 93 games played in the regular season, head coach Jim Montgomery won’t hesitate to plug them into the playoff lineup.
  • The Flames have assigned forwards Matthew Coronato and Adam Klapka, defenseman Ilya Solovyov, and goaltender Dustin Wolf to AHL Calgary. The NHL club’s regular season came to an end last night in a 5-1 win over the Sharks, a game all four players involved in today’s transaction played in. Wolf, one of the league’s top goaltending prospects, ended his season on a high note with 16 saves on 17 shots after putting up underwhelming numbers down the stretch for the Flames. All four will play major roles for the Wranglers over the next couple of weeks, at the very least, as they’ve clinched a spot in the Calder Cup Playoffs.
  • The Capitals have recalled goaltender Mitchell Gibson from ECHL South Carolina. The 24-year-old, who has no NHL experience, is in his first full season of pro hockey after spending the last four seasons in collegiate hockey at Harvard. He’ll serve as a Black Ace and emergency backup as their first-round matchup against the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers gets underway. A fourth-round pick of the Caps back in 2018, he has a .899 SV%, 2.56 GAA, three shutouts, and a 22-14-3 record in 42 appearances with South Carolina this year, as well as a .915 SV% and a perfect record in two showings with AHL Hershey.
  • In a similar move, the Predators have brought up netminder Gustavs Grigals from ECHL Atlanta. Undrafted, the Latvian had spent the season in the Nashville organization on a minor-league contract before receiving a two-way deal from the Preds on deadline day. The 25-year-old was excellent last year for UMass-Lowell after transferring from the University of Alaska-Fairbanks, posting a .924 SV% in 24 games and earning Hockey East Third All-Star Team honors. He’s adjusted decently well to the pro ranks, posting a .900 SV% and three shutouts behind a defensively challenged Atlanta squad in 34 appearances with an 11-19-0 record.
  • The Blackhawks have assigned forward prospect Lukas Reichel to AHL Rockford to finish his season. Chicago expected the 21-year-old to take a major step forward in his development this season and supplant himself as a top-six fixture for the future along with Connor Bedard, but it didn’t work out that way. The 2020 first-round pick was arguably among the worst players in the league this season, limited to five goals and 16 points in 65 games with a -29 rating despite seeing second-line looks for much of the season. His average ice time dipped to almost 14 minutes per game by the end of the campaign, however.
  • The Jets have assigned forwards Nikita Chibrikov, Parker Ford, Brad Lambert, and goaltender Collin Delia to AHL Manitoba. Winnipeg recalled the foursome yesterday to provide reinforcements for yesterday’s regular-season finale against the Canucks. Chibrikov and Lambert made their NHL debuts, with the former notching his first NHL goal in the process. Delia backed up Laurent Brossoit while Jennings Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck was given the night off entirely, while Ford was a healthy scratch. Delia was again recalled under emergency conditions later Friday, suggesting he’ll be available as a Black Ace/emergency backup for Game 1 against the Avalanche on Sunday.
  • The Coyotes have made likely the final group of transactions in franchise history, returning forwards Dylan Guenther, Josh Doan, Aku Raty, and defensemen Michael Kesselring and Vladislav Kolyachonok to AHL Tucson. The sale of the team’s hockey operations to Salt Lake City-based Smith Entertainment Group was approved by the NHL’s Board of Governors yesterday, rendering the Coyotes franchise inactive and establishing a new franchise in Utah. The five youngsters will finish the season in the Calder Cup Playoffs with the Roadrunners. Some of these players, likely Guenther and Doan at a minimum, will travel to Salt Lake City and will be a part of that team’s opening-night squad next season. The others may remain in Tucson, which is expected to serve as the Utah franchise’s minor-league affiliate.
  • The Oilers have assigned defenseman Philip Broberg and winger Adam Erne to AHL Bakersfield. The pair were recalled earlier in the week to allow the Oilers to rest stars like Connor McDavid and Evan Bouchard before kicking off their first-round playoff series against the Kings in a few days. They’ll return to playoff-bound Bakersfield for now but will be among the first in line for recalls if necessary.
  • The Kings have assigned forward Alex Turcotte to AHL Ontario. He’d spent most of the last week in the minors on an LTI conditioning loan, but was activated off LTIR and reinstated to the NHL roster on Tuesday. He didn’t play in the Kings’ final game of the regular season last night, though. The 23-year-old presumably won’t be in their Game 1 lineup against the Oilers and will report for playoff action with the Reign.
  • The Islanders have summoned goaltender Jakub Skarek from AHL Bridgeport, per the league’s media site. The 23-year-old comes up to serve as the extra/reserve netminder as the Islanders begin their first-round series with Bridgeport eliminated from playoff contention. The 2018 third-round pick has again struggled in the third-string spot, posting a .888 SV% and 7-22-6 record in 36 appearances for the AHL Isles this year. He was passed over for recalls earlier in the regular season in favor of veteran Kenneth Appleby.

This page will be updated throughout the day.

Evening Snapshots: Malinski, Kesselring, Kemp

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To make a roster spot for their newly signed veteran forward Zach Parise, the Colorado Avalanche announced they have reassigned defenseman Sam Malinski to their AHL affiliate, the Colorado Eagles. This reassignment will mark the fourth time that Malinski has been sent down to the AHL this season.

Called up on emergency loan in each of his four promotions to the Avalanche this season, Malinski has been quite effective in Denver, scoring three goals and 10 points in 22 games, averaging just over 14 minutes of ice time per night. In similar numbers to the NHL, Malinski has played in 20 games an hour north in Fort Collins for the Eagles, scoring three goals and nine points altogether.

Unlikely to be his last time playing for the Avalanche this season, Malinski has been one of the few bright prospects to rise through the ranks of the organization over the last several years. Still, Malinski was only acquired last season as an undrafted free agent coming out of Cornell University, and is a touch old compared to most prospects, already being 25 years old.

Other snapshots:

  • A little past the halfway point in the third period in the team’s most recent game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Arizona Coyotes defenseman Michael Kesselring was given a double-minor for a cross-check on Maxwell Crozier, as well as a game misconduct. Today, the NHL’s Department of Player Safety delivered some supplemental discipline to Kesselring for the play in questioning, fining him a total of $2,408.85, the maximum allowable find under the current Collective Bargaining Agreement.
  • Recalled only yesterday before the team’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks, the Edmonton Oilers announced they have reassigned defenseman Philip Kemp to their AHL affiliate, the Bakersfield Condors. Although not suiting up in last night’s game against the Blackhawks, Kemp was recalled for a lengthier callup only a few days ago, spending time on the Oilers from January 9th to January 23rd. Luckily, Kemp was able to make his NHL debut on January 13th against the Montreal Canadiens but was only able to play in about two minutes of that contest.

Injury Notes: Pelech, Dermott, Tinordi, Athanasiou

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The New York Islanders have announced that defenseman Adam Pelech will be out day-to-day with a lower-body injury. The 29-year-old was on the ice for the team’s optional morning skate but was a late scratch for this evening’s game against the Boston Bruins. He has been in and out of the lineup this week having previously missed the Islanders 4-3 OT loss against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday. Pelech did return to the lineup on Tuesday against the Minnesota Wild but took a maintenance day yesterday before the morning skate today.

Pelech has just a single assist in ten games thus far this season but has averaged over 20 minutes of ice time per game when available. The Islanders seventh defenseman Samuel Bolduc has filled in for Pelech during his absences including tonight as he is slotted beside Scott Mayfield. While Bolduc has played hard, he has struggled to fill the void left by Pelech and has no points in eight games.

In other injury notes:

  • The Arizona Coyotes have announced that defenseman Travis Dermott will be out of the lineup week-to-week with an apparent upper-body injury. The Coyotes called up Michael Kesselring yesterday to work in Dermott’s absence, although it is likely that recent healthy scratch Josh Brown will slot into Dermott’s place and Kesselring will serve as the team’s seventh defenseman. Very little is known about Dermott’s ailment or when he suffered the injury but for now it appears at least for the time being that Dermott’s absence will be an extended one. Dermott has a single assist in ten games so far this season and is currently a -4.
  • The Chicago Blackhawks have announced that defenseman Jarred Tinordi left tonight’s game and will not be returning. The 31-year-old left without any obvious reason or clear injury and no specifics have been given yet. Tinordi drew back into the lineup tonight for the first time since last Saturday and was tasked with replacing Nikita Zaitsev. Tinordi has dressed in eight games on the season and has a single assist while playing roughly 16 minutes a night.
  • The Blackhawks also announced that forward Andreas Athanasiou will not be returning to tonight’s game after suffering an apparent injury. Athanasiou left the game near the end of the second period although little is known as to the reason why. The 29-year-old was a healthy scratch recently and has struggled so far this season with no goals and four assists in ten games. Last year he posted 20 goals and 20 assists in 81 games and seemed to have more jump in his game.

West Notes: Blueger, Toninato, Kesselring

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Patrick Johnston of The Vancouver Province is reporting that Vancouver Canucks center Teddy Blueger is getting close to making his Canucks debut. The 29-year-old has yet to dress this season after he was injured in a preseason game in early October while blocking a shot. Neither Blueger nor the Canucks have specified what the issue is with Blueger, but Johnston believes the injury is a bone bruise.

Blueger practiced with the Canucks today for their full practice, it was the first time he has done so since he suffered the injury on October 6th. The native of Riga, Latvia skated with a group of fourth liners in Sam Lafferty, Nils Höglander, and Anthony Beauvillier. The Canucks could certainly use Blueger’s penalty-killing prowess as they have been as bad shorthanded this year as they were last year with a success rate of just 77.3%.

The Canucks take on the Ottawa Senators tomorrow night in Ottawa, and if Blueger can’t make his return then, it could happen before the end of their road trip.

In other West notes:

  • The Winnipeg Jets have returned forward Dominic Toninato back to their AHL affiliate the Manitoba Moose. The 29-year-old was called up by the Jets on October 20th but did not dress in an NHL game and will now head back to the AHL where he has a goal and an assist in two AHL games this season. The Duluth, Minnesota native is just two years removed from dressing in 77 games for the Jets in a single season and will likely receive another call-up later in the season should the Jets run into injury issues.
  • The Arizona Coyotes have recalled defenseman Michael Kesselring from their AHL affiliate the Tucson Roadrunners as they get set to head out on a five-game road trip. Kesselring has yet to dress in an NHL game this season but has spent some time with the Coyotes. The club made the move today to add emergency depth in case they need it while they are away from home. Kesselring has dressed in six AHL games with the Roadrunners this season and has been held scoreless. Last season, the 23-year-old played nine games with Arizona, posting three assists.

Snapshots: Ehlers, Arizona, Anaheim, Washington

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Winnipeg Jets forward Nikolaj Ehlers will be healthy for the team’s opening game against the Calgary Flames. The star has been dealing with neck spasms and wore a non-contact jersey through part of training camp. Ehlers missed multiple pre-season games, calling into question his availability for opening night, although it seems he’s mounted a recovery in the second half of camp.

Ehlers has had a closer relationship with injured reserve in recent years, spending six weeks on the list with a hernia last season. He scored 38 points in the 45 games he did appear in during the 2022-23 season. This was a 69-point scoring pace, which would have been the most points of Ehlers’ eight-year NHL career. His career totals are up to 523 games, 176 goals, and 396 points. His scoring is an important attribute of Winnipeg’s top-six. The team will hope he’s moved on from his injury bug as he suits up for the start of their 2023-24 campaign.

Other notes from around the league:

West Notes: Coyotes, Blueger, Beauvillier

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After sending them down to AHL Tucson earlier in the week, the Arizona Coyotes announced Sunday they’ve recalled defensemen Michael Kesselring and Vladislav Kolyachonok. The 23-year-old and 22-year-old defensemen, respectively, combined for 11 games played in the NHL last season.

Arizona makes the recalls as they battle injury uncertainty with some of their defensemen. Head coach André Tourigny told PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan earlier Sunday that multiple defenders were “dinged” up in Saturday’s 7-1 preseason drubbing of the Anaheim Ducks. Carrying Kesselring and Kolyachonok on the active roster for now gives the Coyotes some flexibility as they make their final roster choices ahead of Monday’s opening night roster deadline. Arizona must submit a cap-compliant roster of no more than 23 players before 4 p.m. CT tomorrow. That roster limit may have precipitated today’s choice to send forward Dylan Guenther, who does not require waivers, to AHL Tucson. While the team has not issued a comment, it may be that the Coyotes plan on carrying 12 forwards and nine defensemen when they submit their roster tomorrow to account for the uncertainty surrounding some of their defenders’ availability for Friday’s season opener against the New Jersey Devils. With Kesselring and Kolyachonok in the ranks, the Coyotes are now carrying ten defenders, so it’s likely one of them will return to Tucson within the next 24 hours.

Elsewhere in the Western Conference this weekend:

  • Vancouver Canucks forward Teddy Blueger is sidelined on a day-to-day basis with an undisclosed bruise, which left him off the ice today for practice. That wasn’t Blueger’s idea, however, as head coach Rick Tocchet told Sportsnet’s Randip Janda that he didn’t want to risk exacerbating the Latvian pivot’s injury. The Canucks’ regular season opener is in three days against the Edmonton Oilers, and the offseason free-agent addition is expected to make his Vancouver debut centering the fourth line. Blueger, 29, recorded 16 points in 63 contests last year split between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Vegas Golden Knights, for whom Blueger was the 13th forward en route to their first Stanley Cup championship.
  • Sticking with Vancouver, winger Anthony Beauvillier is also currently absent from the team’s practice ranks thanks to a bout with the flu. He is day-to-day and, as it stands, could miss the season opener Wednesday. The Canucks, who are currently roster juggling to maximize the potential LTIR relief from defenseman Tucker Poolman’s contract, will need clarity on Beauvillier’s status after tomorrow’s roster deadline to make any corresponding recalls from AHL Abbotsford.

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