Who can play in the 2023 World Juniors? Connor Bedard, Luke Hughes highlight group of potential returners

The 2022 World Juniors are over, as Canada won gold over Finland in a thrilling 3-2 contest on Saturday. So what’s next?

Well, luckily for hockey fans, the next World Juniors tournament is just around the corner. Because the 2022 edition was forced to be played at an unusual time, the turnaround between tournaments is much shorter than normal. The 2023 competition is set to be played at its typical time at the end of December and beginning of January.

Not all players will be able to return, as a good portion have aged out of the tournament and will not be eligible to play in December.

However, there are certainly plenty of talented players, including tournament MVP Mason McTavish, who have the ability to play at the World Juniors for the 2023 tournament.

MORE: McTavish’s goal line save the biggest takeaway from Canada’s gold-medal win

Here are some of the players that are eligible to play again at the 2023 World Juniors.

Who can return to play in the 2023 World Juniors?

The tournament, which is classified as U20, allows only certain players to participate. The easiest way to figure out who is eligible for any of the World Juniors is to take the year of the tournament and subtract 20. For example, at the 2023 tournament, any player who was born in 2003 or later can play at the games.

Let’s look at the players who were at the 2022 edition who can return for the 2023 tourney.

Canada

The reigning gold medalists are going to lose over half of their roster, with only 11 available to play. However, looking at those that can come back, it’s easy to think the team can go for a second consecutive gold.

Connor Bedard, Mason McTavish and Logan Stankoven can all return in December, giving Canada three of its best forwards back. It wouldn’t shock me if McTavish elects not to play, since he should be in the middle of his rookie season with the Ducks. Olen Zellweger can return to the blue line to be the No. 1 defenseman yet again.

USA

The United States have nine players eligible to return for the team that was upset in the quarterfinals. The two key returners will be Logan Cooley and Luke Hughes. After skating in a top-six role, Cooley can take over as the top-line center, while Luke Hughes will continue to see top-pairing minutes on the blue line.

Finland

The Finns are going to need to reconstruct a majority of the roster, especially the blue line, with just seven players eligible for the 2023 tournament. Aleksi Heimosalmi is the lone defenseman who can play in December. The biggest returner will be Joakim Kemell, who finished the tournament second in points out of all skaters.

Sweden

The Swedes have 10 players who could return for the country in December. Simon Edvinsson is one of them, however there is a good chance he will be an everyday player with the Red Wings if he makes the team out of camp. Looking at the forward group, 2022 first-rounders Jonathan Lekkerimäki and Liam Öhgren and 2021 first-rounders Fabian Lysell and Isak Rosén should lead the forward group.

Czechia

Nearly the entire roster for Czechia’s fourth-place team is eligible to return for the 2023 tournament. The loss of Jan Mysak will hurt them the most, as the captain was Czechia’s best player this summer. Michal Gut will be a tough player to replace as well, as he played solid on the second line. However, the entire defensive core can come back, and it is a deep group that can roll three pairings consistently.