COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Registration is now open for the 2026 World Junior Championship Coaching Symposium, set for Jan. 3-4, at the Saint Paul RiverCentre in Saint Paul, Minn.
Click here to sign up for this one-of-a-kind event, featuring exclusive access to some of the top hockey minds from around the world.
The event, held in conjunction with the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship in Saint Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota, will include 10 presentations from a world-class lineup of speakers. In addition, attendees will also hear from U.S. Hockey Hall of Famer Bill Guerin, general manager and president of hockey operations for the NHL’s Minnesota Wild and also the GM of the 2026 U.S. Olympic Men’s Ice Hockey Team.
The theme of the symposium is coaching the teenage hockey player, focusing on teaching players ages 12-17. Attendees will receive four continuing education credits to utilize within the USA Hockey Coaching Education Program.
Speakers also include Scott Sandelin, head coach of University of Minnesota-Duluth men’s hockey team. Since becoming head coach of the Bulldogs in 2000, Sandelin has led the team to three NCAA national championships (2011, 2018, 2019), and six NCAA Frozen Four appearances (2004, 2011, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021).
Ken Martel, USA Hockey’s senior director of player and coach development, and Joe Bonnett, manager of player development for USA Hockey and head coach of the U.S. Under-17 Select Team that won the 2024 Under-17 Five Nations Tournament, will also speak at the event.
Additionally, John Lind, the Swedish Ice Hockey Association’s director of research and education, and Thomas Magnusson, head of goaltending development for the Swedish Ice Hockey Association will present at the event. They will be joined by Tobias Johanssen, general manager of IF Troja-Ljungby in the Hockeyettan league in Sweden, and current European scout for the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning. Additionally, Dr. Joe Baker, who currently serves as a professor of sport science at the University of Toronto, will serve as a speaker.
The IIHF World Junior Championship semifinals will take place following the conclusion of the event on Jan. 4 at the nearby Grand Casino Arena, with puck drop times set for 3:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. CT. Tickets are on sale now and available here.
