Denver’s season didn’t end as the Pioneers had hoped, but the program received a strong acknowledgment regardless on Tuesday. Coach David Carle was picked to lead Team USA at the 2024 World Junior Championships.

Carle, who has led DU to a national championship, the past two NCHC regular-season titles and 116 victories in his five seasons, added another prestigious notch to his coaching belt with this honor. He will turn 34 about six months before the tournament begins.

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“It’s a great honor to have the chance to represent our country on the international stage,” he told USA Hockey. “I’m looking forward to the challenge ahead and building a team that will give us an opportunity to bring home a gold medal.”

Carle has been at Denver for 13.5 seasons. The first four were as a student assistant coach under George Gwozdecky, 4.5 more as an assistant coach under Jim Montgomery and the past five as Montgomery’s successor.

The WJC will be held in Sweden, starting the day after Christmas and run through Jan. 5. Team USA won bronze at this year’s event, which rising junior defenseman Sean Behrens was part of. The U.S. won gold most recently in 2021.

Carle’s duties will include overseeing Team USA’s summer showcase in late July in Plymouth, Mich. The roster will be pared from approximately 40 players to 25-28 in mid-December when the team will reconvene for a week before heading overseas.

Depending on Denver’s schedule, Carle could miss as few as two games or as many as six. His DU staff includes former Division I head coaches Dallas Ferguson and Tavis MacMillan.

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