Robertson, Caufield headline USA's preliminary WJHC roster

The United States announced its preliminary roster for the 2021 world juniors on Monday.

The 29 selected players - 10 returnees from the 2020 squad - will convene in Plymouth, Michigan, for training camp beginning Dec. 6. The tournament starts Christmas Day in Edmonton.

"We have a talented group and we’ll have some tough decisions to make," general manager John Vanbiesbrouck said. "We continue to benefit from a deep player pool, and that’s credit to all of the organizations and volunteers developing the next wave of American talent."

Forwards

The United States have plenty of first-round talent up front; the group is headlined by blue-chip prospects Robertson, Caufield, and Turcotte. Zegras is another player to watch, as he led the club in scoring at last year's tournament with nine assists in five games.

Defense

The American defensive corps is also ripe with promising prospects, primarily Sandersson - the fifth overall pick in 2020 - as well as York, and Thrun.

Goalies

USA's greatest strength may be in goal. Knight posted a .931 save percentage in 33 games at Boston College last season and is expected to take the No. 1 spot. Meanwhile, Wolf won CHL Goaltender of the Year in 2020 after a dominant campaign with the Everett Silvertips that saw him post a 34-10-2 record along with a .935 clip and 1.88 goals-against average.

The United States is coming off a disappointing sixth-place finish at last year's event in Ostrava, Czech Republic. USA's quest for redemption starts on Christmas with a heavyweight tilt versus Russia.