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APRIL 2026 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM // 11 A DAM NIGHTINGALE, who just finished his fourth season as the head men's ice hock- ey coach at Michigan State University where he has led the Spartans to the last three Big Ten regular-season championships, will serve as head coach of the 2027 U.S. National Junior Team. The team will play in the 2027 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship, Dec. 26, 2026 – Jan. 5, 2027, in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta. During his time at MSU, Nightingale has led the Spartans to the NCAA Tournament in three of his four campaigns and his USA Hockey experience is wide-ranging, including serving as an assistant coach for the gold medal-winning U.S. Men's National Team at the 2025 IIHF Men's World Championship. The U.S. will enter the 2027 IIHF World Junior Championship having won two of the last three gold medals in the tournament. In addition, the U.S. has earned a medal in eight of the last 11 World Juniors, the best stretch in the history of the country. Team USA will compete in Group B against Finland, Germany, Slovakia and Sweden in the preliminary round at Marchant Crane Centrium in Red Deer. Group A, which includes Canada, Czechia, Latvia, Norway and Switzerland, will play its preliminary round contests at Rogers Place in Edmonton. Two quarterfinals will be played at each venue with both semifinals, along with the bronze and gold-medal games, being staged at Rogers Place. On the international stage, Nightingale has served as head coach for the U.S. in the 2022 IIHF Under-18 Men's World Championship, where Team USA earned silver. In addition, the Cheboygan, Mich., native was an assistant coach for the U.S. at the 2021 IIHF Men's World Championship and served as a video coach at the 2017, 2018 and 2019 IIHF Men's World Championship tournaments and 2015 IIHF World Junior Championship. As head coach of the Spartans, Nightingale has quickly brought the program back to national prominence with highlights including three NCAA Tournament appearances, three Big Ten titles and two Big Ten conference tour- nament championships. The two-time Big Ten Coach of the Year has a 95-44-11 ( W-L-T) record through his first four campaigns in East Lansing, Mich. Prior to his time with Michigan State, Nightingale spent two seasons as a head coach with USA Hockey's National Team Development Program (2020-22) devel- oping some of the top players in their age group. He has also spent time in the NHL with the coaching staffs of the Detroit Red Wings (assistant coach, 2019-20; video coach, 2017-19) and Buffalo Sabres (video coach, 2016-17). Prior to his time in profession- al hockey, he served as head coach of Shattuck- St. Mary's 14U team for two seasons (2014-16), leading the program to a USA Hockey 14U Tier I National Championship in 2016. He also spent two years as head coach of the school's 18U AA program from 2008-10. Between his stints with Shattuck- St. Mary's, Nightingale spent four seasons with Michigan State as the men's hockey team's director of operations, a role in which he oversaw all the team's video and travel needs. P TEAM USA Wings of Wisdom Adam Nightingale Named Head Coach Of 2027 U.S. National Junior Team