Collegians Set for 2026 IIHF World Championships
Image Credit: NHL.com
Who’s headed to Switzerland to represent their country from the NCAA?
Written by Mike Klein
While students from across the country may decide to embark on a European vacation to mark the end of the 2025-26 school year, the handful of NCAA hockey players reporting for national team duty in the upcoming IIHF World Championship tournament in Zurich and Fribourg, Switzerland, expect anything but a relaxing trip.
Unlike the recent Olympic Games, the IIHF World Championship tournament overlaps with the NHL Playoffs, preventing players under contract from wearing their national colors. To fill the gaps, the countries look for players in European leagues and, increasingly, the NCAA ranks. With the collegiate game becoming a more popular stop on the route to professional hockey, a growing number of current NCAA players take the opportunity to appear on the big stage.
As expected, 24 of the 26 players on Team USA’s roster played at least one season of NCAA hockey, including current collegians Michigan State’s Ryker Lee, Notre Dame’s Danny Nelson and 2026 Hobey Baker Award winner, Minnesota Duluth’s Max Plante. Additionally, James Hagens, who signed with the Boston Bruins shortly after his season with Boston College ended in March, will join the Americans overseas.
Image Credit: Clint Austin/Duluth Media Group | Plante in NCAA action this season with the Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs.
Michigan goaltender Jack Ivankovic will make his men’s national team debut for Team Canada, having taken home a bronze medal earlier this year in his second appearance at the World Junior Championships.
Team Austria announced their final roster early on Sunday, with RPI freshman forward Ian Scherzer earning a spot on the team.
Pre-tournament matchups continue in the coming days for several nations, many of whom see NCAA players fighting for the final spots.
Last year, Latvia had the second-highest NCAA players and alumni contingent, and the trend continues this year with collegians Colorado College’s Klavs Veinbergs, Minnesota Duluth’s Kristaps Strastins and Niagara’s Glebs Prohorenkovs all hoping to earn spots on the team.
Image Credit: Casey B. Gibson/Colorado College Athletics | Veinbergs on an offensive attack at home against in-conference opponents Omaha.
Sweden’s pre-tournament roster includes national team stalwart Sascha Boumedienne, who recently announced his transfer from Boston University to Ohio State.
Slovakian Minnesota Duluth goaltender Adam Gajan looks to add another appearance in the national colors to his resume, as well as another trip to Switzerland. This past season, Gajan represented his nation in the Olympics and suited up for the US Collegiate Selects at the Spengler Cup in Davos. Joining him at the pre-tournament camp is Boston College freshman Luka Radivojevic.
Image Credit: Simon French/USCS | Gajan in Spengler Cup action with the first-ever U.S. Collegiate Selects squad.
Finally, Hungarian Bentley forward Márton Nemes has survived several rounds of cuts and hopes to help his country remain in the tournament for the third-straight year. Nemes had previously played for the men’s national team in 2024 in Division I Group A.
While often ignored on this side of the Atlantic Ocean, the annual tournament provides a tremendous showcase for up-and-coming players to show off their skills against some of the world’s best. For NCAA hockey fans, the event features several familiar faces competing on one of the sport’s grandest stages.
The IIHF World Championship begins on Friday, May 15, at 10:20 a.m. Eastern with Finland taking on Germany in Zurich, and Canada facing Sweden in Fribourg.
