Waterloo Black Hawks alumni Tommy Novak and Max Sasson will play for the United States Men's National Team during the 2026 International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship beginning next week in Zurich.
USA Hockey announced its preliminary roster for the competition on Tuesday. Both former Hawks will be on the ice in a world championship-level competition for the first time in their careers. Novak played in Waterloo during the 2014/15 season; Sasson was a Black Hawk in 2020/21.
Dylan Samberg and Cal Petersen were the last former Black Hawks to represent the U.S. during a World Championship, both in 2023 when the competition was held in Finland and Latvia. Petersen and Jack Drury are the most recent Waterloo alumni to win a medal during the event from Team USA's bronze run in 2021.
During Novak's lone season with the Black Hawks, he averaged better than a point per game, notching 14 goals and 34 assists in 46 appearances. He was Waterloo's second-leading scorer and generated the club's highest assist total. That winter, Novak represented the U.S. at the World Junior A Challenge. In the gold medal game against Denmark, Novak scored the winning goal in overtime after notching a pair of assists earlier in the 3-2 contest. The Nashville Predators selected Novak during the third round of the 2015 NHL Draft following his season in Waterloo.
In October of 2021, Novak made his NHL debut with the Predators. Since then, he has played in 285 regular season games. Novak was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins late in the 2024/25 season. This winter, he appeared in all 82 Penguins games, recording 16 goals and 26 assists. Across his NHL career, Novak has scored 65 times and assisted on 94 other goals.
Sasson was Waterloo's leading scorer during the COVID-altered 2020/21 season. On the ice for 48 of 53 Hawks games, that year was the most productive of Sasson's three USHL campaigns. He scored 20 goals and generated 29 assists. Both marks exceeded his combined totals from two seasons with the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders. Sasson tied for the league lead with four shorthanded goals in 2020/21.
After attending Western Michigan University, Sasson signed with the Vancouver Canucks, reaching the NHL early in the 2024/25 campaign. This season, he played in 66 games, notching 13 goals and six assists. The 25-year-old is on track to make his 100th NHL appearance early in 2026/27.
Last spring, the United States won gold at the World Championship for the first time since 1933. This year's competition will take place from May 15th through 31st. During the opening stage, the United States will play games against Switzerland, Great Britain, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Hungary, and Austria.
