And pairs... what a saga. Entirely plausible that the fourth best team is bound for Milan because of citizenship issues.
Agreed. But, I'm not entirely sure which team you view as the 4th best U.S. team. I think 1 and 2 are Kam/ O'Shea and Efimova/ Mitrofanov, with the latter perhaps having an edge for the win and a second straight U.S. championships gold, if Ellie hasn't fully figured out clean throw landings. Third, fourth, and fifth will be a tight battle between Chan/ Howe; Shin/ Nagy; and McBeath/ Parkman. All three of these teams are capable of placing third, or higher. But I don't think there's any doubt that U.S. fed will favor Shin/ Nagy if they skate well. Val Plazas & Max Fernandez are, of course, also in the mix for a top five placement at Nats, and premium assignment consideration.
I think U.S. fed will desire to send Shin/Nagy to the Olympics with K/O, so placements and ultimate Worlds and Olympics assignments will be nail-biting in pairs. Of course, Efi/Mit and McB/Park are not eligible for the Olympics, so I think U.S. fed's preferences may be K/O and Shin/ Nagy for the Olympics, or else K/O and Chan/Howe for the Olympics, which is what I hope will happen.

If the latter case happens, I would expect to see Efi/Mit; Shin/Nagy; and McB/Park at 4CCs (with Val & Max, Liu/Bedard, Flores/Wang, and Williams/Lewer hopefully given other post-Nats opportunities at minor comps, if there are any other late season int'l pairs comps available).
Finally, at Worlds with the luxury of three pairs spots: K/O; Efi/Mit; and Shin/Nagy. In this way, S/N get to have the more important Worlds experience, without being under tremendous pressure to excel. Plus, it would cement S/N having a higher standing for next season's warm-up groups. I will be pissed if U.S. fed tries to send Shin/ Nagy to both Olympics and Worlds.

That would not be fair, due to the number of very deserving U.S. pairs teams. So spread the wealth! If C/H are planning to retire, they are a veteran team who deserve the Olympics experience. Danny may retire soon, too, so this is his final shot at an Olympics.
Meanwhile, McB/Park are a very good team who have had good results this season (better than S/N early on), and they are 2025 U.S. silver medalists). So, I hope McB/Park will be rewarded with a 4CCs slot at least. As well, Val & Max are hungry and showing a bit of improvement by Val on sbs jumps and throws. Plus, their lifts and program concepts have always been stellar.