Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Ben Danford is one step closer to making one of his dreams a reality.
The 19-year-old defenseman is one of 44 players named to Team Canada’s World Junior Summer Showcase roster. It’s Danford's first invite to the seven-day event, which is being held in Minneapolis, Minnesota, this year.
“It was super surreal,” he told TSN’s Mark Masters on Monday. “As a kid, you dream of playing on the World Junior team, and getting invited to this showcase, it’s one more step closer to making the team, so it’s pretty surreal.”
Danford is one of 12 defenseman on Canada’s roster at the summer showcase, which also features the number-one pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, Matthew Schaefer, the ninth overall selection last year, Zayne Parekh, Memorial Cup Champion Sam Dickinson, and the 17th overall pick in this year’s draft, Kashawn Aitcheson.
Toronto’s first-round (31st overall) pick in the 2024 NHL Draft grew up watching the World Juniors every Christmas with his family, recalling “four or five” tournaments where Canada captured the gold medal. “If you’re ever able to actually play in the World Juniors for Team Canada, it’s pretty cool.”
His favorite moment in recent memory was at the 2020 World Junior Championship.
“Just recently, watching the one that was in the summer time,” he said, “when (Mason) McTavish saved that one off the goal line, and then they went down and scored, that was pretty crazy.”
The last Maple Leafs prospect to play at the tournament was 2023 first-round (28th overall) pick Easton Cowan. The 20-year-old scored five points (two goals and three assists) in 10 games at the tournament, but Canada was eliminated in the quarter-finals in back-to-back years by Czechia.
Danford, in his first event with Team Canada since capturing gold at the 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup (Under-18), told Masters he received advice from Cowan about attending the Summer Showcase.
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“He texted me just saying good luck and stuff and congrats on the invite. He just said just take it all in,” Danford added. “It’s really fun meeting new people, you know some guys going into this and getting closer with guys on the team and building friendships and chemistry. He’s been great to feed off of that way.”
Danford had a strong year with the OHL’s Oshawa Generals, captaining the team and scoring five goals and 20 assists through 61 games. The 6-foot-2 defenseman attended Maple Leafs development camp in early July and said that while he’s already sturdy, he needs to get bigger and stronger to reach the NHL level.
He added that Jake Muzzin, long-time NHLer, former Maple Leaf, and now a development coach in Toronto, said he needs to make simpler decisions with the puck, rather than overcomplicating things.
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Though when it comes to a camp like the World Junior Summer Showcase, Danford understands that he needs to fit a specific role within the squad.
“I’m a defense-first type of player. They’ve talked about sticking to your role here. Don’t get out of character, so just playing my type of game,” he said. “Offensively, I can try and pitch in a little bit and keep improving that way, but defense first and play a hard, physical style of defense.”
Canada will play four games at the event, with the first being a split-squad game: Team White, which includes Danford, versus Team Red at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Canada will then merge into one team to play Finland on Wednesday, Sweden on Friday, and the United States on Saturday.
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This article originally appeared on The Hockey News: 'It's Pretty Surreal': Maple Leafs Prospect Ben Danford Soaking Up Experience Of World Junior Summer Showcase With Canada
(Top photo of Danford: TSN.ca)