2025 IIHF World Junior Championship

Team USA World Juniors Roster Analysis: Breaking Down The Defensemen

Team USA World Juniors Roster Analysis: Breaking Down The Defensemen

Zeev Buium will lead Team USA's relatively inexperienced defense corps. Chris Peters breaks down the strengths and weaknesses of each player.

Dec 20, 2024 by Chris Peters
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Team USA is going to have to get a lot out of its blue line in order to contend for the gold medal for a second straight year. This is the area of the roster that has the least amount of experience on USA’s roster with three returning players, only two of which were regulars on last year’s team.

There’s no question that Zeev Buium is the anchor to this group. He is the best NHL prospect, but also has the most proven track record of any player. Buium won the Under-18s, World Junior and NCAA title all in the span of a year, playing sizable roles each time, but now he is going to be USA’s bona fide No. 1 defenseman. More on him in a bit.

I thought the most surprising cut that Team USA made to finalize its roster was sending North Dakota blueliner EJ Emery (NYR) home. I think they’ve got a lot of strength on the right side of their blue line, but Emery’s elite performance at last year’s World U18 Championship, to me, was evidence that he can thrive against the best competition. 

We have less evidence of that for Adam Kleber and Colin Ralph, each of whom have limited international experience and both only have a few months of college hockey under their belts. That's not to say that neither can rise to the occasion and play at this level, we just don't have as much evidence of that at this early stage of their careers. One of those two players may end up as the No. 8 defenseman, but both are the biggest blueliners on USA's roster, too. That size on the back end may be needed with limited size up front.

The rest of USA's blue line has played at least in a U18 Worlds or in high-level NCAA games that we've been able to see them challenged, and most have performed especially well in those settings. But experience is definitely going to be a topic of conversation when the Americans go head-to-head with Canada in one of the most difficult environments any of these players have ever played in on New Year's Eve.

Despite some questions about the overall balance of Team USA’s blue line, it has some players that it can lean on a lot. Buium is going to play a boatload of minutes and I’d expect Drew Fortescue to be right there with him in terms of usage, especially at five-on-five.

Let’s take a closer look at all eight of the players picked for Team USA’s blue line.

Zeev Buium, Denver (MIN)

Perhaps one of the most talented blueliners in the tournament this year, Buium is USA’s clear No. 1 option. He will be on USA’s top power play unit, play the most minutes and be a force at five-on-five at both ends of the ice. Buium has played a ton of high-level, critical games. He scored a goal in last year’s gold medal game and ate minutes for Denver as they won a national title. His all-around game has improved to such a degree that you almost want him to play the toughest matchups against opposing teams’ top lines. His defensive game and confidence in his own end has grown so much in the last year, making him one of USA’s most critical players in this tournament. If he thrives the way he’s capable of in the major minutes he’ll play, he has a chance to be one of the best defensemen of this tournament. In 18 games with Denver this season, he has 20 points.

Paul Fischer, Notre Dame (EDM)

Drafted by St. Louis and later included in a trade to the Edmonton Oilers, Fischer is in his second season at Notre Dame. He is a steady defenseman who is definitely more of a defender than an offensive force. He does have nine assists in 18 games for the Irish this season, but he’s never been one to really carry offensive play. He can make a good first pass and gets pucks out of the zone. Fischer plays a simple game, sound positionally and physical when necessary. He’s not a big player, but he has a good defensive stick, engages with the body and can protect his own end efficiently. I would not be surprised to see him killing penalties for the U.S.

Drew Fortescue, Boston College (NYR)

Fortescue is another player that will be looked to for shutdown reasons. He is a 6-foot-2 defender with good skating ability and he can play physical enough to put pressure on opposing forwards. Fortescue’s offensive prowess is limited as he’s more of a get it up the ice and get it out of the zone kind of puck-mover. He can use his feet well and showed at last year’s World Juniors, play at the pace needed to be difficult to get around. I expect he’ll play some significant minutes. Though a left-shot, he can play on his off side when needed and I think he’ll end up killing penalties and being a relied-upon five-on-five defender.

Logan Hensler, Wisconsin (2025)

A slick-skating blueliner with some size, Hensler is at his best when he’s keeping things simple. He can defend at a higher level and has just enough offense to be considered a potential two-way threat, but that’s been inconsistent over the years. Hensler is likely going to be battling it out for a depth role on Team USA’s blue line, and with eight defensemen could end up as a scratch a few times. However, he has valuable international experience and has played good minutes with Wisconsin this season as a true freshman. The 2025 NHL Draft eligible looks like he can be a first-round pick in this year’s draft, but we’ll still want to see him moving pucks more effectively and contributing more on the scoresheet if he is to solidify that status.

Cole Hutson, Boston University (WSH)

Outside of Buium, Hutson is going to be another major source of offense from the back end. He is expected to key USA’s second power play and be a significant factor on the man advantage. He will have to build more trust with his puck management to be playing bigger minutes, but USA doesn’t have a whole lot of the dynamic element that Hutson can bring to a shift. The blue line is fairly vanilla and Hutson is anything but. The last two years, his older brother Lane has been a critical piece to USA’s offensive attack and Cole will likely have to be as well in his role with Team USA.

Adam Kleber, Minnesota Duluth (BUF)

A towering defenseman with good mobility and defensive sense, Kleber’s freshman season at Minnesota Duluth has really only been OK. I like the player an awful lot and believe in his upside as a pro prospect, but the WJC is a lot more about the here and now. Kleber still has to prove himself a little bit more to be a trusted asset on USA’s back end. That said, he held his own at the summer camp and has played some significant minutes for UMD as a true freshman. He’s only picked up one assist and if he’s going to play for USA, it’s likely in a depth role as a potential six or seven.

Aram Minnetian, Boston College (DAL)

Minnetian was on the team last year, but never got into a game as he was a reserve. That said, he got a chance to see what this tournament is all about up close, and was able to practice and prepare as if he were playing. More of a two-way defenseman in his junior days with the NTDP, Minnetian has found the points harder to come by in college. He has skill and can really skate, but he’s at five points in 16 games with BC. He’s another player that can be a bit difficult to figure out where he slots, but he’s a right-shot option that can move pucks and make enough plays to potentially move his way into a more prominent role amid an inexperienced D corps.

Colin Ralph, St. Cloud State (STL)

A 6-foot-5, athletic defenseman who has solid mobility and some physical edge, Ralph has made a nice transition to college hockey from the prep ranks. He went straight from Shattuck-St. Mary’s to St. Cloud and has worked his way into a strong role as a top-four defenseman in his first NCAA season. With Huskies head coach Brett Larson on staff for Team USA, it’s not a real surprise to see Ralph make it, but this is a different animal. Ralph has never played in an international event for USA Hockey. This is a big jump from anything he's seen before, which is why there’s just enough uncertainty about what role he’ll ultimately play for this team.

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