Four Canadiens prospects to compete at 2026 World Junior Championship

It’s the most wonderful time of year! While the holidays, merriment and family gatherings are taking place, there’s only one other event I could be talking about, the IIHF World Junior Championship. With the rosters officially announced, and the top prospects in the world descending on the "hockey state" of Minnesota, lets take a look at some Canadiens prospects who will be representing their countries starting on Boxing Day.

Michael Hage

Let’s start off with a Canadian Canadien, Michael Hage. Hage was drafted by the Habs 21st overall in the 2024 NHL draft and has been seen by many as the second line centre of the future for Montreal. his performance with the University of Michigan in the NCAA this season has been simply undeniable. Hage has been tearing up his sophomore season with the Wolverines, accumulating an impressive 10 goals and 18 assists for 28 points in 20 games so far, on pace to surpass his freshman totals of 13 goals, 21 assists for 34 goals in 33 games.

“This is kind of what the goal is all year” Said the 19-year-old from Mississauga, Ontario on getting invited to the Team Canada roster during a press conference at camp. “It’s really special to be a part of a team like this.”

London Knights head coach, and this year’s Team Canada head coach, Dale Hunter, certainly likes what he’s seen from Hage so far. “He’s creative, [can] make plays, smart player.”

“He’s a smart player; he’s played very well this year for Michigan and we’re lucky to have him here.”

Canadiens and Canadian fans can expect a dynamic two-way centre who makes plays with an outstanding amount of hockey IQ, but certainly knows when it’s his time to shoot. In three pre-tournament matches, Hage has played primarily on the second line as a centre and has seen time on the power play units as well. Hage has 1 goal and 4 assists through 3 pre-tournament games, including a 13-2 routing against Denmark.

LJ Mooney

Moving across the border on the 49th parallel, we get to the American LJ Mooney. The Habs selected the shifty forward in the fourth round of the 2025 NHL draft. Let’s get the obvious out of the way: those who know anything about Mooney know he’s undersized. Mooney stands at 5’8”, 165 lbs and plays a game that makes you forget all about that. Mooney is a product of the Team USA National Team Development Program, playing internationally for them since the 2023-2024 U17 World Hockey Challenge.

Mooney is a freshman with the Minnesota Golden Gophers in the NCAA and is scoring at a nearly point a game pace, 4 goals and 11 assists for 15 points in 19 games. The 18-year-old Pennsylvanian is primarily a playmaker, using his speed to rip into the offensive zone and opens up defensive structures to make goals happen. To reiterate, height is just a number to Mooney, and he plays with some serious physicality.

Aatos Koivu

The son of legendary Canadiens captain Saku Koivu, Aatos has been finding his way through the Finnish professional “Liiga” with TPS. He has 2 goals and 5 assists through 30 games during this 2025-2026 season. While he isn’t exactly tearing up that league, the youngest Koivu certainly has shown some serious upside at the international level. Koivu has 6 goals and 2 assists in 10 international matches this year.

Koivu is a solid all-around forward who can play on all ends of the ice. Koivu is built to shoot and certainly has the heavy shot to back it up; he’ll be instrumental in big moments for Finland’s national squad. A third-round pick in 2025, he has some serious upside, and will certainly shine in some moments, but don’t expect the world from him.

Carlos Handel

The 18-year-old German is the only Canadiens defensive prospect to join an international team for the U20 tournament. Handel views the ice well and is a reliable puck mover; he can open up space and is more than comfortable quarterbacking a power play. Handel is in his second season of major-junior hockey with the Halifax Mooseheads of the QMJHL, part of the Canadian Hockey League’s junior system.

Handel finished last season with a respectable 3 goals and 23 assists for 26 points in 52 games and is on a similar pace this season with 12 points in 25 games. He was also named to last season’s QMJHL all star team. Germany is most likely going to have a difficult time at this years tournament if their pre-tournament games are any indicator as in their last game the Americans shut them out in an 8-0 dismantling.

There will be lots to keep an eye on as the tournament kicks off, and Canadiens fans will be treated to watching some prospects go head-to-head. The first chance will see Mooney and Handel as Germany takes on the USA at 5 pm CST on Boxing Day. The full schedule can be found here.