Brad Lauer is headed to the 2026 World Juniors. The Spokane Chiefs head coach will serve as an assistant for Canada at the annual tournament this coming December. Lauer will be part of Dale Hunter's staff, which also includes Gardiner MacDougall and Misha Donskov.
This past year, Lauer led the Chiefs to one of their most successful seasons in franchise history. Spokane finished the campaign with a 45-20-1-2 record while also making it to the WHL Final. Under Lauer's guidance, Spokane had two plays surpass the 100-point mark during the regular season, while both Berkly Catton and Andrew Cristall each had over 40 points during the playoffs.
Als joining Canada's staff this year in Kamloops Blazers' Director of Goaltending Development, Dan De Palma. Just like in Kamloops, De Palma will be Canada's goaltending coach. This is the second straight year De Palma will be at the World Juniors, as he was also part of the 2025 team.
The 2026 World Juniors will begin on December 26, 2025 in Minnesota. Canada will kick off the tournament on opening day and will face Czechia. As for the Gold Medal Game, that is scheduled for January 5, 2026
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