2026 World Junior Hockey Championship predictions: Podium, MVP, more

The 2026 World Junior Hockey Championship begins Friday in Minneapolis-St. Paul, and theScore is eager to weigh in on how the tournament will unfold.

Members of theScore's hockey editorial staff - Michael Bradburn, Kyle Cushman, John Matisz, Sean O'Leary, and Josh Wegman - took a crack at predicting the medalists and individual award winners.

Podium

None of our editors think a three-peat is in the cards for the United States, which has nine returning members from its 2025 squad. Only one of our editors has the Americans even reaching the gold-medal game. Instead, Canada is the most popular pick to take home the gold after disastrous quarterfinal exits in the last two tournaments. If Sweden wins, as Bradburn predicts, it would snap a 13-year gold-medal drought. No European country has won the event since Finland in 2019.

Tournament MVP

Three different Canadians being chosen speaks to the talent on this year's roster. Martone, the No. 6 pick in June, should be a physical force in his second world juniors at 6-foot-3 and 210 pounds. Misa, the No. 2 pick, is the reigning CHL scoring leader and already has seven NHL games under his belt. A strong tournament from McKenna could cement his status as the top draft choice in 2026.

If Sweden is going to win gold, it'll need huge production from Frondell, the 2025 third overall section.

Top forward

A forward winning tournament MVP doesn't always result in that player being named top forward, as we saw in 2021 and 2024. Cushman is giving this honor to Hagens, the 2025 No. 7 pick who played a key role for Team USA at last year's event with five goals and four assists in seven games.

Top defenseman

Hutson led all players - not just defensemen - with 11 points at last year's world juniors but lost out on top D-man honors to Sweden's Axel Sandin-Pellikka. He'll look to change that this time around while playing a huge role for the Americans. Parekh, a controversial omission from Canada's 2025 squad, is arguably Hutson's biggest competition. Parekh has played 11 NHL games this season and is one of two defensemen in OHL history with multiple 30-goal seasons (the other being Bobby Orr). And don't sleep on Jiricek, who's expected to anchor an underrated Czech blue line.

Top goaltender

George wasn't the problem for Canada at the 2025 tournament, registering a .936 save percentage in four outings. That performance gives him a leg up for the team's starting role, but he could be pushed internally by Jack Ivankovic and Joshua Ravensbergen - both of whom have better numbers this season. The Finns are a goalie factory, so don't be shocked if Saarinen, a 2024 third-round pick, makes a name for himself. It's unclear who will start for the Swedes, but the 6-foot-5 Goos has arguably the most upside of the team's netminders.