Team Canada aims to improve on their back-to-back fifth-place finishes at the World Junior Championship, their worst consecutive performances since 1979-1980. An entirely new process has been implemented for how they will build their roster, and London and Kitchener will help them prepare for the tournament. 

The 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship returns to the U.S. state of hockey, Minnesota, for the first time since 1982. With just over 800 miles separating Minneapolis from London and Kitchener, both OHL organizations will host a pre-tournament game of Canada versus Sweden. 

The Kitchener Memorial Auditorium will host the first match on Dec. 17. London’s Canada Life Place will host the second game on Dec. 20. Both games will start at 7 pm EST. 

As mentioned, Canada’s management team has changed things up. They will not be conducting a selection camp in December this time around. Instead, they will be holding a training camp in Niagara Falls, Ontario, from Dec. 12-22, with a smaller group of players than we’re used to seeing. 

Canada hopes that several former OHL players will be made available to them for the event. San Jose Sharks top prospects Sam Dickinson and Michael Misa would be locks on the team if lent by the organization. Matthew Schaefer has a 10% chance at the moment to be loaned, considering his incredible start with the Islanders. 

The silver lining for Canada is in between the pipes, which is a position they have not had a ton of previous success in. 

Owen Sound Attack’s Carter George and former Brampton Steelheads’ Jack Ivankovic occupied the crease for Team Canada at last year’s event and were terrific. George is the frontrunner to be the starter. However, Ivankovic has gotten off to a sensational start in the NCAA with the University of Michigan, batting a 7-1 record with two shutouts, a 1.38 goals-against-average, and a .937 save percentage. 

Canada lost last year’s event due to a lack of offensive talent and scoring. Leaving certain high-end skilled players like Beckett Sennecke, Zayne Parekh, and Michael Misa off their roster proved to be detrimental, and all three have started in the NHL and may not be available for Canada. 

Hosting two pre-tournament games against another nation, which we assume will be in medal contention at the event, is a smart decision by management. But they need to ensure they pick the right players to avoid another disappointing finish. 

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