World Junior Championship, launching pad for future NHL stars, arrives in Minnesota: ‘It’s the coolest thing ever’

Playing in a hostile environment was all that came to mind for a young Brock Faber when he pictured what the World Junior Championship would be like.

But when the Wild defenseman finally made it to the tournament, the animosity he expected didn’t come from a sold-out crowd … because there wasn’t one.

“It was so weird,” Faber said.

Despite competing in Canada in what should have been a tense environment for Team USA against its top rival, the arena in Edmonton was almost empty because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“You score a goal and nothing seems to happen,” said Wild right wing Matt Boldy, who was on the 2021 U.S. roster alongside Faber.

When the Americans captured gold by shutting out the Canadians 2-0, there wasn’t an outcry, only the sound of exuberant players on Team USA celebrating.

“Probably helped us a little bit not having 15,000 Canadian fans in the stands,” said Seattle center Matty Beniers. “But yeah, it was definitely different.”

For the first time since 2005, the tournament is back in the State of Hockey, with Grand Casino Arena and 3M Arena at Mariucci hosting the 11-day under-20 showcase that begins Dec. 26.

The future of the sport will be on full display at the event. Like skating on outdoor rinks and early-morning practices, the World Junior Championship is a rite of passage for many NHL stars.

“It’s the coolest thing ever,” said Faber, a Maple Grove native who played for the Gophers before joining the Wild. “You definitely want to be on that team. You definitely think when you’re that age that you have to be in order to make it here, which obviously isn’t true.

“But it’s a sweet tournament.”

The list of former World Juniors participants is impressive, from all-time greats like Wayne Gretzky, Mike Modano and Peter Forsberg to modern-day phenoms like Edmonton’s Connor McDavid, Toronto’s Auston Matthews and new Wild defenseman Quinn Hughes.

Minnesota has hosted tournament games twice: In various locations in 1982 and at Thief River Falls in 2005.

“This is the best place in the U.S. to have the World Juniors, just how much hockey means to the people here,” said Dallas Stars goalie and Lakeville native Jake Oettinger. “It would be great if they could get a state tournament-type turnout.

“It’s obviously close enough to Canada, so I’m sure they’ll be plenty of Canadians coming down, and hopefully we give USA some great support, and hopefully they can get a three-peat.”

Carolina forward Jackson Blake figures the atmosphere will compare to the high school state tournament, and Blake has appeared in both.

He scored in double overtime to lead Eden Prairie past Lakeville South in the 2021 Class 2A final. He then took a break from North Dakota to suit up for the Americans at the 2023 World Juniors in Canada, where the U.S. finished third.

“I’m sure this place will be jam-packed every single game, especially the U.S. games.”

Oettinger thought it was “awesome” when Christmas was over as a kid because that meant he could watch the World Juniors.

John Gibson put on a goaltending clinic in 2013 to backstop Team USA to a gold medal, and that’s when Oettinger knew how much the competition meant to the country. Oettinger would go on to make the U.S. cut twice: First as the third goalie on the 2017 gold medal-winning team, then as part of the Americans’ bronze-winning squad the following year.

Oettinger credited USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program for contributing to the country’s World Juniors success. The U.S. has reached the podium 14 times — and won seven golds — since the program was founded in 1996.

Team USA’s eight medals over the past 10 tournaments — four golds, a silver and three bronzes — are the most of any country.

Calgary forward Joel Farabee felt like the 2019 tournament was one last hurrah for him and NTDP teammates, like Hughes, he’d been playing alongside.

“You get the buzz, and you feel like an NHL player,” Farabee said. “So, I think just that part of it is cool.”

Every time Dallas forward Jason Robertson is in Vancouver, he remembers being there for the 2019 World Juniors.

Carolina defenseman K’Andre Miller was in Vancouver and at the 2020 tournament in the Czech Republic.

“Representing my country was such a big honor,” said Miller, a former Minnetonka High School standout. “These guys getting to play hockey in front of these type of fans and to get to travel the world at such a young age and really get the experience, it’s unbelievable.”

NHLers will be paying attention to the results.

Seattle defenseman and Burnsville native Ryan Lindgren still follows the tournament after winning gold in 2017 against Canada in Montreal, which is one of his favorite hockey memories.

“World Juniors is something I look back on very fondly,” Lindgren said, “and grew up watching it, grew up always wanting to play in it.”

Hockey is Farabee’s job, and he watches the NHL with that focus, identifying systems and structures.

But he can be a fan when it’s World Juniors time, calling it a “breath of fresh air” to tune in for the games.

Of the 30 players named to Team USA’s preliminary roster, all but three have already been drafted to the NHL, and those three are draft eligible in 2026. Sixteen were taken in the first or second rounds.

The final 25-player roster is expected to be announced by Christmas Eve after the team’s training camp in Duluth.

Bob Motzko is returning as head coach after the Gophers coach was behind the U.S. bench in 2017 and 2018, winning gold and bronze medals.

“That’s kind of where you get to see where you’re at against all the other people around your birth year,” Blake said. “It was a great experience and definitely a learning curve to kind of know where I was at in that process. But it definitely helped me. Gave me some confidence, too, to make that team and help me grow up.”

The tournament isn’t accessible to everyone, however.

“Everyone takes different paths to get to the NHL,” Beniers said. “There’s no right one, but that definitely is a good marker for guys to see where they’re at and see if they can make that team and help their country win World Juniors or perform and get some notice from scouts or teams.

“It’s definitely a great tournament for exposure.”

The hockey world is watching, and prized prospects become household names in the World Juniors spotlight.

“That’s kind of the start of the biggest stage for a lot of these kids, U18 Worlds and then this,” Boldy said. “It’s such a watched and beloved tournament, so it’s hard to beat it.”

Who: The best under-20 players from each country are in the 10-team tournament.

When: Preliminary round games start Dec. 26, with the bronze and gold medal games on Monday, Jan. 5.

Group A: United States, Sweden, Slovakia, Germany and Switzerland will play preliminary round games at Grand Casino Arena.

Group B: Canada, Finland, Denmark, Czechia and Latvia will play preliminary round games at Mariucci.

The games: The tournament schedule is here.

Format: The top four teams in each pool advance to the quarterfinals Jan. 2.

The favorites: Team USA won the past two tournaments. There are nine Minnesotans on the team’s 30-player roster, which must be cut to 25 before the tournament. The U.S. coach is Bob Motzko of the Gophers. He led the Americans to gold in 2017 and bronze the following year.