Michigan State Stars Named to 2025 World Juniors Roster
The Michigan State Spartans will be well-represented in the 2025 IIHF U20 World Junior Championships in Ottawa, Ontario.
Michigan State goaltender Trey Augustine and defenseman Maxim Strbak will be participating for their respective countries. Augustine will be in the net for the United States and Strbak will be commanding the blue line for Slovakia.
Both Spartans are veterans of the event. This will be Strbak’s fourth appearance, while it will be Augustine's third.
Slovakia and the United States aren’t scheduled to play in group play, so if Augustine and Strbak did face off, it would be in an elimination game.
In the 2024 World Juniors, Augustine won four starts posting a 1.75 goals against average and a .936 save percentage.
In the 2024 gold medal game against the host country of Sweden, Augustine shined with 24 saves in the United States' 6-2 victory, clinching the Americans' second gold medal in four years.
The Red Wings second-round pick will likely get more starts as he will no longer have to share the net with Boston College goaltender Jacob Fowler, who has aged out of the event.
The Spartans have deep ties to USA Hockey, as Michigan State head coach Adam Nightingale was at the helm of the United States National Development Program from 2020-2022.
Many Spartans have been a part of the program, including forwards Red Savage, Charlie Stramel and Shane Vansaghi.
If Slovakia or the United States make a deep run in the tournament, the chance of Augustine and Strbak returning in time for a key series for Michigan State will be in doubt.
The Spartans host the Wisconsin Badgers at Munn Ice Arena on Jan. 2. The two Big Ten foes are currently tied for second place in the standings with 19 points. However, Wisconsin played the No. 1 team tough, splitting a two-game series earlier in the season.
Then, the Spartans will have a marquee game at Wrigley Field for The Frozen Confines to close the series against Wisconsin on Jan. 4.
This will be the first time Michigan State will play outdoors since the Spartans beat the Michigan Wolverines at Soldier Field in 2015.
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