World Cup of Hockey 2016 Team North America Roster Prediction
By Ryan Ritchie
World Cup of Hockey – Team North America 16-Player Roster Prediction
Perhaps no team is generating more interest for this year’s World Cup of Hockey than newly introduced Team North America, consisting of Canada/United States brightest young stars. A long list of emerging rookies in 2015-16 are making this one of the most highly debated rosters.
Who is eligible to be selected for Team North America? (via NHL.com)
The players for Team North America will be selected from a pool of the best young hockey players from Canada and the United States. Those players must be 23 or under as of Oct. 1, 2016 (i.e., must have a date of birth on or after Oct. 2, 1992) and will be available for selection exclusively by Team North America.
Coaching Staff:
Peter Chiarelli, General Manager (Edmonton Oilers GM)
Stan Bowman, Associate General Manager (Chicago Blackhawks VP/GM)
Ryan Jankowski, Director of Operations (Hockey Canada)
Adam Graves, Special Assistant to the General Managers
Pat Verbeek, Director of Player Personnel
Paul Fenton, Director of Player Personnel (Nashville Predators Assistant GM)
Todd McLellan, Head Coach (Edmonton Oilers Head Coach)
Rules and Format:
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2016 NHL World Cup of Hockey will feature eight teams (Team Canada, Team USA, Team Russia, Team Sweden, Team Czech Republic, Team Finland, Team North America, Team Europe). The tournament will be held in September 2016, and is a group effort with the NHL and NHLPA, in association with International Ice Hockey Federation.
The rules differ from that of IIHF held tournaments, and will follow NHL rules, with games being played on NHL-sized ice surfaces. Because of the league’s involvement, fans can expect to see far less European players than we’re used to seeing at World Championships or Olympics in the 2016 NHL World Cup of Hockey.
Previous World Cup of Hockey roster predictions and more in-depth information can be found here.
16-Player Roster Predictions:
| Team Canada | Team North America | Team Europe | Team Sweden |
| Team Russia | Team Finland | Team Czech Republic | Team USA |
2016 NHL World Cup of Hockey – Rosters and Groupings:
23 players, 20 skaters, 3 goalies
Group A: Team Canada, Team Czech Republic, Team Europe, Team USA
Group B: Team Finland, Team North America, Team Russia, Team Sweden
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Team North America 16-Player Roster Projection:
G Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets
G John Gibson, Anaheim Ducks
D Aaron Ekblad, Florida Panthers
D Dougie Hamilton, Calgary Flames
D Jacob Trouba, Winnipeg Jets
D Morgan Rielly, Toronto Maple Leafs
D Seth Jones, Columbus Blue Jackets
F Johnny Gaudreau, Calgary Flames
F Sean Monahan, Calgary Flames
F Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
F Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche
F Jack Eichel, Buffalo Sabres
F Jonathan Huberdeau, Florida Panthers
F Dylan Larkin, Detroit Red Wings
F Brandon Saad, Columbus Blue Jackets
F Max Domi, Arizona Coyotes
Both Gibson and Hellebuyck have cemented their names on this roster. The third spot might belong to Pittsburgh’s Matt Murray, but there’s a few other names in the mix, such as, Zach Fucale and Malcolm Subban.
Ekblad and Hamilton are locks for Team North America. Whether the likes of Trouba, Rielly, and Jones are named on Wednesday or not, the trio should at least be there after the dust settles. Other names battling for a spot include Nathan Beaulieu, Ben Hutton, Colin Miller, Noah Hanifin, Cody Ceci, Matt Dumba, Colton Parayko, Damon Severson, and Connor Murphy, among others.
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All the names minus Max Domi should be named on Wednesday as the obvious choices. There’s a lot of debate for the remaining spots. Whether Domi is named on Wednesday or not, he should be there in September. Other names battling for spots include Sam Bennett, Sam Reinhart, Boone Jenner, Auston Matthews, Alex Galchenyuk, Mark Scheifele, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Ryan Strome, Anthony Duclair, Bo Horvat, and Robby Fabbri, among several others.