MINNEAPOLIS — For Minnesota Duluth rising sophomore defenseman Adam Kleber, the lasting memory for him from
his first IIHF World Junior Championship in 2025
in Ottawa, Canada, was standing on the blue line at the end of the tournament, singing the national anthem of the United States of America.
It’s a memory that fuels the Chaska, Minnesota-native as he practices and plays this week at
USA Hockey’s World Junior Summer Showcase
on the University of Minnesota campus in Minneapolis. The event features squads from the U.S., Canada, Finland and Sweden.
Exhibition games run through Saturday at Ridder Arena.
The showcase is part of the national team selection process for the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship in December and January at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis
at what is currently known as Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.
Duluth
will be hosting pre-tournament games
in December.
Kleber, a 2024 second-round NHL draft pick of the Buffalo Sabres, said he doesn’t want to be listening to any national anthem but his own come January in St. Paul.
United States defenseman Adam Kleber of Minnesota Duluth skates during the 2025 USA Hockey World Junior Summer Showcase on Sunday at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis.
Bjorn Franke / USA Hockey
“You don’t want to be singing any other team’s national anthem. That’s a real motivator, especially having it be in Minnesota,” Kleber said. “We’re playing for a lot more than just a gold medal. We’re playing for our country, the home country.”
Kleber is seeking his second World Juniors gold medal while the U.S. is going after a third straight. He said this week in Minneapolis is about proving to the coaching staff — led by the Gophers’ Bob Motzko — that he can take on a bigger role and be more of an impact player in 2026 than he did in 2025 when he had a single assist in six games.
“I’m just trying to take a bigger role, trying to command more on the ice and have more of a killer mentality out there,” he said.
Minnesota Duluth defenseman Adam Kleber (6) celebrates a second-period goal against Arizona State on Saturday, Feb. 15 at Amsoil Arena in Duluth.
Clint Austin / File / Duluth Media Group
Physically, Kleber has brought a larger presence to the ice. He’s visibly stronger, and taller, than the lanky 6-foot-5, 210-pound freshman who put up two goals and three assists in 33 games last season with the Bulldogs.
Kleber has spent the summer working out back home in the Twin Cities, focusing more on his strength and mobility — being more of an athlete — than his skating. He’s skated less this summer than in the past, but that’s starting to ramp up, he said.
“Just a big, strong, positive presence,” Motzko said in his assessment of Kleber. “All these teams are going to say returning players take that next step. For us, it’s those kids who come back for their sophomore year of college that take those big steps. We watch it year after year.”
Sunday and Monday’s split-squad games for the United States against Sweden and Finland in Minneapolis were Kleber’s first hockey games since the Bulldogs’ season ended on March 15 at Arizona State in the NCHC quarterfinals.
The U.S. will combine its two teams for exhibitions on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday at Ridder Arena.
The Bulldogs still have another two months off before playing games, opening the 2025-26 season with a trip to play the Alaska Nanooks in Fairbanks on Oct. 3-4.
“It’s getting to the point where I’m hitting the wall in the offseason with working out,” Kleber said. “You just want to start playing games and get the season rolling.”
Co-host of the Bulldog Insider Podcast and college hockey reporter for the Duluth News Tribune covering the Minnesota Duluth men’s and women’s hockey programs.