2025-26 NHL Under-23 Team – Hockey Writers – Commentary

Among the many notable stories of the 2025-26 NHL season was an influx of young talent. Newly signed players are ready for the big league today, some become stars right off the bat. Because of this, this year’s Under 23 team was very difficult to narrow down. However, here are the brightest stars of the group.

First Team Winger Left: Cutter Gauthier, Anaheim Ducks

Say what you want about Cutter Gauthier’s departure from the Philadelphia Flyers, but the Anaheim Ducks benefited greatly from having him on the roster this season. Gauthier led the Ducks in goals (41) and points (69).

In his first season in Anaheim, Gauthier was a talented but inconsistent pitcher. However, after the management fired Joel Quenneville to replace head coach Greg Cronin, there was an uproar. He is still one of the players who scored the most goals in the league and is expected to reach 50 in a duck uniform. Anaheim is loaded with young talent, and a youth revolution has led them to the playoffs for the first time since the 2017-18 season.

Second Team Right Winger: Lucas Raymond, Detroit Red Wings

Raymond has more points than Gauthier, with 76 – although Gauthier has more goals scored (29.2) than Raymond (27.0), and more total shares (8.3) than Raymond (7.9). Still, the 23-year-old Swedish winger may have a bigger impact on his team than Gauthier.

The Red Wings ranked 21st in goals scored (239), but Raymond was very good, with 25 goals and 51 assists in 80 games. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to stop the Red Wings from falling at the end of the season after sitting in one of the top three spots in the Atlantic Division for most of the campaign.

First Team Center: Macklin Celebrini, San Jose Sharks

Celebrini is an easy choice here. The 19-year-old is already a top-five player in the NHL. When he was first drafted by the San Jose Sharks in 2024, many expected him to be a Connor McDavid-like talent three or four years later.

He is already in his second season. Celebrini had 45 goals, 70 assists, and a franchise record 115 points in 2025-26 – ranking third in points by a youngster in a season, behind Wayne Gretzky (137) and Sidney Crosby (120).

Celebrini almost single-handedly put the Sharks in the playoffs, but poor scoring and defensive structure kept them from getting in. With 84 points, they were just behind sixth in the final Western Conference playoff spot. However, Celebrini is already one of the best NHL talents in the league, so San Jose should easily make the playoffs in the future, with defensive depth.

Second Team Center: Wyatt Johnston, Dallas Stars

Celebrini may overshadow Johnston, but Johnston deserves his due. He scored 45 goals and added 41 assists this season, making him and Celebrini the only two players age 22 or younger with more than 40 goals and 40 assists.

He also broke his team’s single-season power play goals record, with 22 goals for a man. He took over the top center spot from Roope Hintz, and his rise is huge for a Dallas Stars team that needed top talent in the middle to compete with the Colorado Avalanche this season.

Shout out to Connor Bedard, too, who has 30 goals and 45 assists, but missed a few games due to various injuries and recovered a bit after a good start to the campaign. He had 37 points in 25 games in October and November, but after injuring his right shoulder on Dec. 12, 2025, against St. Louis Blues, he was no different.

First Team Right fielder: Dylan Guenther, Utah Mammoth

Dylan Guenther has been one of the most under-recruited skaters since entering the NHL in 2022-23. He improved over his four seasons in the league, but this season was his magnum opus as in 79 games, he scored 40 goals and added 33 assists. He is one of the main reasons the Mammoth made the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time and is a franchise legend through and through.

Second Team Right Winger: Ivan Demidov, Montreal Canadiens

Similar to the Ducks, the Montreal Canadiens have a youth revolution. They have two players on this list: Ivan Demidov and defenseman Lane Hutson.

Demidov could be the next Canadian to win the Calder Trophy. The Russian midfielder had 19 goals and 43 assists in 82 games, and has already shown flashes of being a top player. With players like Demidov and Hutson, Montreal’s future is bright.

First Team Left Defenseman: Lane Hutson, Montreal Canadiens

Hutson’s journey to fame has been wild. Unlike all the other players on the list so far, he was drafted by the Canadiens in the second round, 62nd overall, in 2022, and so far, he has been one of the best acquisitions of general manager Kent Hughes. He won the Calder last season, and his second season was even better.

Through 82 games, Hutson had 12 goals and 66 assists. He ranks third among all defensemen in assists, behind Quinn Hughes (69) and Evan Bouchard (71). He also excels at his position, boasting a plus-36 rating and defensive shares of 6.4, which is second only to Moritz Seider (6.6) and Esa Lindell (6.6).

Second Team Left Guard: Matthew Schaefer, New York Islanders

Matthew Schaefer, like Celebrini, almost singlehandedly let the New York Islanders into the playoffs. The first overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft had 23 goals and 36 assists in 82 games and tied the NHL rookie defenseman scoring record with Brian Leetch.

His performance led the Islanders to an impressive start to the season, sitting in one of the top three spots in the Metropolitan Division, but a 1-5-0 record in April pushed them out of the playoffs. Schaefer is already one of the two best defensemen in the league, but the Islanders are an old team around him. The development of Viktor Eklund and Calum Ritchie will be key to helping Schaefer in the future.

First Team Right Defenseman: Brock Faber, Minnesota Wild

After acquiring Hughes this offseason, Brock Faber’s elite talent on the Minnesota Wild’s right side was easy to ignore. He had a career-high 15 goals and 36 assists in 80 games. The Wild acquired Faber from the Los Angeles Kings for Kevin Fiala in 2022, and while Fiala has been good for the Kings (when healthy), Faber will be the cornerstone of the Wild’s defense for a while.

Second Team Right Guard: Brandt Clarke, Los Angeles Kings

Brandt Clarke’s inclusion on the list shows how rare it is to see a young right-shooting defenseman contribute in a meaningful way. The crazier part is that Clarke still has room to grow. This season, he had eight goals and 32 assists in 82 games. He led all Los Angeles Kings defensemen in points, even surpassing Drew Doughty. He should be the blue anchor once Doughty hangs up the skates.

However, after his elite performance at the 2023 World Junior Championships, Clarke still has untapped potential. Next season will be critical for his development, and the Kings would be wise to find a better partner for him than Joel Edmundson.

First Team Goaltender: Jesper Wallstedt, Minnesota Wild

I’ve been waiting for top prospect Jesper Wallstedt to emerge, and he didn’t disappoint this season. Wallstedt went 18-9-6 in his 35 games, boasting a .915 save percentage (SV%) and a 2.61 goals-against average (GAA).

Now the Wild have a problem. Starter Filip Gustavsson is very good, but Wallstedt could be even better. Does Minnesota trade one of them to improve center depth? Other teams, like the New Jersey Devils, are a goaltender away from a deep playoff run.

Second Team Goalie: Yaroslav Askarov, San Jose Sharks

When Askarov was rising through the NHL ranks, his Nashville Predators had the same problem the Wild have now. Nashville had Juuse Saros in net, but Saros became an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2023-24 season, and Askarov looks like a long-term fixture.

The Predators decided to extend Saros, and traded Askarov to the Sharks. So far, the 23-year-old has not been able to perform at his best. He went 21-20-4 through 47 starts, with a .883 SV% and a 3.63 GAA.

However, there are not many goalkeepers who have started as many games as Askarov at a young age, so there is hope that he will eventually develop into a striker for the Sharks for a long time. Perhaps a more stable veteran in net could help Askarov’s development.

Complete First and Second Teams:

First Team:

Leaders:

Cutter Gauthier – Macklin Celebrini – Dylan Guenther

Defenders:

Lane Hutson – Brock Faber

Goalkeeper:

Jesper Wallstedt

Second Team:

Leaders:

Lucas Raymond – Wyatt Johnston – Ivan Demidov

Protector:

Matthew Schaefer – Brandt Clarke

Goalkeeper:

Yaroslav Askarov