CALGARY, Alberta – With less than one month until the puck drops on the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship, Hockey Canada has announced the 32 players who have earned an invitation to Canada’s National Junior Team selection camp, set for Dec. 10-13 at TD Place in Ottawa, Ontario.

Four goaltenders, 10 defencemen and 18 forwards were selected by U20 head scout Al Murray (Regina, SK) and the management group, which includes Peter Anholt (Naicam, SK/Lethbridge, WHL) and Brent Seabrook (Tsawwassen, BC), with support from Scott Salmond (Creston, BC), senior vice-president of high performance and hockey operations, Benoit Roy (Sudbury, ON), director of hockey operations, and player development coach Scott Walker (Cambridge, ON/Guelph, OHL). Head coach Dave Cameron (Kinkora, PE/Ottawa, OHL), U17 head scout Byron Bonora (Brooks, AB) and goaltending consultant Dan De Palma (Kamloops, BC/Kamloops, WHL), as well as coaches and general managers from across the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), also provided input.

“We are excited to announce the 32 players who have earned invitations to selection camp in Ottawa, and begin the road to our ultimate goal of winning a World Junior Championship gold medal on home ice,” Murray said. “This is a talented group of young players that is determined to represent Canada with pride over the holidays, and we expect a highly competitive camp with several difficult decisions when determining our final roster.”

Among the 32 players competing for a chance to represent Canada at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship in Ottawa are seven players who were named to the roster for the 2024 World Juniors (Bonk, Cowan, Molendyk, Ratzlaff, Rehkopf, Wood, Yager), as well as eight who won gold at the 2024 IIHF U18 World Championship (Beaudoin, Brunicke, George, Ivankovic, Luchanko, Martone, McKenna, Schaefer) and three who captured a gold medal at the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup (Ivankovic, McKenna, Schaefer).

Selection camp will include a pair of games against a team of U SPORTS all-stars, Dec. 12 at 3 p.m. ET and Dec. 13 at 12 p.m. ET. Fans looking to secure their seat for the selection camp games can purchase tickets at HockeyCanada.ca/WorldJuniors, with two-game packages starting at $52 and individual-game tickets starting as low as $35. Both games will also be livestreamed at HNLive.ca.

Following selection camp, Canada’s National Junior Team will travel to Petawawa, Ontario, for a four-day training camp at the Silver Dart Arena, Dec. 15-18, in preparation for the 2025 World Juniors. Team Canada will also take on Switzerland, Sweden and Czechia in pre-tournament action on the Road to the World Juniors.

“We are thrilled for the 32 players who have earned the opportunity to compete for a spot on Canada’s National Junior Team at the World Juniors, and we look forward to a starting the final piece of our evaluation process at selection camp,” Anholt said. “We are also excited to bring our team to Ottawa and Petawawa, and to give fans an opportunity to see the best under-20 Canadian players take on a U SPORTS all-star team before the start of the tournament.”

The 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship begins on Boxing Day with four games, which includes Canada taking on Finland at the Canadian Tire Centre at 7:30 p.m. ET. TSN and RDS, the official broadcast partners of Hockey Canada, will once again provide extensive coverage of the event, broadcasting all 29 tournament games and all three Team Canada pre-tournament games.

Hockey Canada has also announced the return of Canada’s Ultimate 50/50, presented by Tim Hortons, which is bigger than ever for the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship. For the very first time, fans in 11 Provinces and Territories can participate in the World Juniors and support grassroots hockey initiatives in their community by purchasing 50/50 tickets for three main draws (Dec. 4-26, Dec. 26-31, Dec. 31-Jan. 5). Net proceeds will support the growth and retention of hockey, women’s and girls’ hockey and initiatives that make the game safer. For more information, please visit HockeyCanada5050.ca.

For more information on Hockey Canada and Canada’s National Junior Team, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along via social media on Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok.

CALGARY, Alberta – Hockey Canada has unveiled the 18 players who will be a part of Canada’s National Para Hockey Team at the 2024 Para Cup, Dec. 8-14 in Charlottetown, P.E.I.

Three goaltenders, five defence and 10 forwards were selected by head coach Russ Herrington (Unionville, ON/York University, OUA) and Adam Janssen (Richmond Hill, ON), manager of hockey operations. Assistant coaches Steve Arsenault (Spruce Grove, AB), Mike Fountain (Gravenhurst, ON), Liam Heelis (Georgetown, ON), Boris Rybalka (Vernon, BC) and Greg Westlake (Oakville, ON) also provided input.

“The Para Cup is an exciting event as we showcase our game to Canadians across the country, and we are thrilled to bring the tournament back to Charlottetown this year,” Herrington said. “We are anticipating strong competition from China, Czechia and the United States, but we have prepared a competitive group set to represent Canada next month.”

The roster features 16 players who won a gold medal at the 2024 World Para Hockey Championship in Calgary (Armstrong, Boily, Burnett, Cozzolino, Dixon, Dunn, Halbert, Henry, Hickey, Jacobs-Webb, Kingsmill, Kovacevich, Lavin, Lelièvre, McGregor, Watson).

Canada’s National Para Hockey Team selected its roster from the 32 players who participated in evaluation camp, Sept. 27–Oct. 2 in Elmira, Ontario.

TSN and RDS, the official broadcast partners of Hockey Canada, will broadcast the medal games on Saturday, Dec. 14; please check local listings for details. All preliminary-round games and both semifinals will be livestreamed at HNLive.ca.

For more information on Hockey Canada and Canada’s National Para Hockey Team, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along via social media on Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok.

Effective for the 2025-26 season, Hockey Canada participants will notice a change in the structure of their annual service fees that directly support benefits provided by the national governing body, including sport safety and hockey development initiatives.

Participants will pay $41.41 in service fees next season, including insurance, which is an increase of $11.68.*

The majority of the increase is related to the participant assessment fee, which has not been raised in over 20 years.

The participant service fees will be structured as follows:

• Assessment fee will increase from $3.00/participant to $10.00/participant
• Sport Integrity fee will increase from $2.94/participant to $4.50/participant
• Hockey Canada Registry fee will be $3.12/participant
• Participant insurance fees will not increase for the 2025-26 season and remain $23.79/participant.

We thank you for your understanding of these changes to our service fees for next season that are necessary to ensure the development, sustainability and safety of Canada’s hockey system.

*In Quebec, participants will pay $39.00, which is an increase of $10.12, as they have a different fee structure based on provincial legislation.

CALGARY, Alberta – Hockey Canada and Force Sports have announced The First Whistle, a new program designed to reduce barriers to entry for officials, including for women and individuals from underrepresented communities.

Primarily targeting newly certified officials, the program looks to increase registrations by using jerseys loaned to approved minor hockey associations and limiting the cost barriers for prospective officials.

“Officiating is such a tremendous way for participants of all ages to be involved in hockey and we recognize that across the country, there are existing barriers impacting entry-level opportunities for interested officials,” said Dan Hanoomansingh, manager of officiating for Hockey Canada. “In partnership with Force Sports, we hope that The First Whistle can help minor hockey associations recruit more officials and ultimately create lifelong engagement with hockey for participants in the program, which will benefit Hockey Canada, our Members and participants.”

“Through this program and our partnership with Hockey Canada, Force Sports hopes to reduce the barriers to entry for those wanting to try officiating,” said Dave Martin, president of Force Sports.

More information about the Hockey Canada Officiating Program can be found here.

To learn more about Hockey Canada, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along through social media on Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok.

CALGARY, Alberta – Hockey Canada has announced the 60 players from the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) who have earned invitations to Canada East and Canada West selection camp in advance of the 2024 Junior A World Challenge.

Beginning Dec.3, the invitees will gather in Calgary to participate in practices and play a pair of intrasquad games as part of the final evaluation process by management and coaching staffs.

The final East and West rosters will be named Dec. 5 in advance of the tournament, which runs from Dec. 9-15 in Camrose, Alberta.

The Canada East roster will be selected from the CJHL’s five eastern leagues: the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League (NOJHL), Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL), Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL), Ligue de hockey junior AAA du Québec (LHJAAAQ) and Maritime Hockey League (MHL). Canada West will include players from the four western leagues: the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL), Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL), Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) and Superior International Junior Hockey League (SIJHL).

“This is the first time since 2022 we are taking the opportunity to hold a camp before naming our teams for the Junior A World Challenge,” said Scott Salmond, senior vice-president of high performance and hockey operations. “In partnership with the CJHL, we have identified the top 60 Junior A players in the country. We expect a competitive three days before we narrow our rosters down to the two teams that will proudly represent Canada in Camrose.”

Ahead of the tournament, the Canadian teams will play a pair of pre-tournament games on Dec. 7. Canada East will face off against Sweden at the Drumheller Memorial Arena at 3 p.m. MT, while Canada West will play the United States at 4:30 p.m. MT at Co-Op Place in Wetaskiwin.

The puck drops on the tournament Dec. 9 when Canada East, the 2023 silver medallist, opens against the United States at 3 p.m. MT, followed by Canada West, the defending gold medallist, facing Sweden at 7:30 p.m. MT.

Of the 16 gold medal games at the Junior A World Challenge, 13 have featured at least one Canadian team. Canada East will look to earn its first gold medal, having won silver eight times (2006, 2007, 2010, 2011, 2016, 2019, 2022, 2023) and bronze once (2008), while Canada West has won gold six times (2006, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2017, 2023), silver three times (2008, 2009, 2012) and bronze twice (2013, 2018).

For more information on Hockey Canada and the 2024 Junior A World Challenge, please visit HockeyCanada.ca/WJAC, or follow along via social media on Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok.

CALGARY, Alberta – Hockey Canada has announced a three-year partnership extension with Canlan Sports through the 2026-27 season that will continue to welcome over 80,000 adult recreational hockey participants to Canada’s sanctioned hockey system, and allow both organizations and Hockey Canada’s Members to collaborate on initiatives to grow the game across the country.

In addition to its adult recreational programming, Canlan runs learn to skate and select introductory hockey programs for participants, helps to deliver minor hockey tournaments, and provides practice and game ice for minor hockey associations across Canada with its 11 sports complexes in British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario and Saskatchewan.

“Hockey Canada’s partnership with Canlan is critical to helping us grow the game at all levels and we are excited to work with them to introduce more youth and adults to hockey,” said Darren Cossar, senior vice-president of member engagement for Hockey Canada. “Together with our Members, we have a tremendous opportunity to build on our partnership with Canlan to enhance the programs offered to participants and learn from the successes of the Adult Safe Hockey League (ASHL) and ASHL Affiliate Leagues.”

The partnership between Hockey Canada and Canlan began in 2011 and will celebrate 15 seasons during the 2025-26 campaign.

“We’re excited to continue our partnership with Hockey Canada as we look to highlight all of the positive benefits the game of hockey has to offer participants and the growth opportunities for the sport with different audiences across the country,” said Joey St-Aubin, president and CEO for Canlan Sports.

Throughout the partnership, Hockey Canada and its Members will continue to work with Canlan to welcome new participants to the game, including women and girls, new Canadians, families facing financial barriers, and equity-deserving groups.

To learn more about Hockey Canada, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along through social media on Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok. To learn more about Canlan Sports, please visit canlansports.com.

CALGARY, Alberta – Hockey Canada has announced the 23 players who will wear the Maple Leaf with Canada’s National Women’s Development Team as part of the Women’s Euro Hockey Tour, Dec. 11-15 in Tampere, Finland.

Three goaltenders, seven defence and 13 forwards were selected by Cherie Piper (Scarborough, ON), senior manager of scouting and player development, in consultation with head coach Alison Domenico (Ottawa, ON/University of Ottawa, OUA), as well as assistant coaches Rachel Flanagan (Pontypool, ON/Toronto, PWHL) and Tara Watchorn (Newcastle, ON/Boston University, HE), and goaltending consultant Katie Greenway (Guelph, ON/University of Guelph).

“The 23 players that will represent Canada are a testament to the depth we have within our program and our ongoing effort to continue developing our athletes at all levels,” Piper said. “The Women’s Euro Hockey Tour will give our staff a unique opportunity to assess our development athletes in international competition, and we look forward to watching these players compete in Finland and evaluating player growth this season.”

The roster includes eight players who captured gold at the 2022 IIHF U18 Women’s World Championship in Madison, Wisconsin (Adam, Amos, Baxter, Henderson, Law, MacLeod, Murphy, Swiderski), as well as seven players  who won gold at the 2023 U18 Women’s Worlds in Östersund, Sweden (Amos, Baxter, Kraemer, Law, Murphy, Pais, Venusio) and three players (Kraemer, Murdoch, Venusio) who won bronze at the 2024 edition of the tournament in Zug, Switzerland.

The six-team tournament features Canada in Group B with Czechia and Sweden, while Group A includes Finland, Switzerland and the United States. Canada will open the Women’s Euro Hockey Tour against Sweden on Dec. 11 at 8 a.m. ET/5 a.m. PT and will take on Czechia to wrap up the preliminary round on Dec. 12 at 12 p.m. ET/9 a.m. PT.

“The Women’s Euro Hockey Tour is a fantastic opportunity for our National Women’s Development Team to gain valuable experience on the international stage,” said Dylan Rockwell (Calgary, AB), senior manager of hockey operations. “This tournament will be an important step in the development and assessment of our athletes for the future of Team Canada looking ahead to the Olympic quadrennials in 2030 and 2034.”

Canada’s National Women’s Development Team will participate in the Women’s Euro Hockey Tour for the first time. With joint commitment from Czechia, Finland, Sweden and Switzerland, the December stop on the Women’s Euro Hockey Tour will feature Canada and the United States annually through 2028, aside from the 2026 Olympic year.

For more information on Hockey Canada and Canada’s National Women’s Development Team, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow through social media on Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok.

OTTAWA, Ontario – Hockey Canada has announced that beginning Dec. 26, fans in the National Capital Region will be able to experience the excitement of the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship with free admission to Fan Fest, which is open to fans of all ages throughout the tournament.

Open each game day at Aberdeen Pavilion from 2-10 p.m. ET, Fan Fest is a licensed venue and will host watch parties for all games and include live bands, DJs, hockey programming, exhibits, merchandise kiosks and much more.

On Dec. 31, Fan Fest will broadcast Canada’s preliminary-round finale against the United States at 7:30 p.m. ET and remain open until midnight, when New Year’s Eve fireworks will light up the sky. 

“The most exciting part about Fan Fest at the World Juniors is that there truly will be something for everyone, whether you’re a fan of one of the competing teams in the tournament or a family looking to celebrate having one of the most iconic hockey events in the world being hosted in Ottawa,” said Dean McIntosh, senior vice-president of revenue, fan experience and community impact for Hockey Canada. “With Fan Fest taking place steps away from TD Place and the Ottawa Christmas Market, we anticipate there will be no better place to gather and watch the World Juniors than at Aberdeen Pavilion from Boxing Day to when the gold medals are handed out on Jan. 5.”

More information about Fan Fest can be found here.

Exhibition games against U SPORTS All-Stars

Hockey Canada has also announced that as part of Canada’s National Junior Team selection camp in Ottawa, Team Canada hopefuls will play two games against the U SPORTS All-Stars on Dec. 12 and 13.

Tickets will go on sale at HockeyCanada.ca/Tickets on Nov. 20 following a presale for Hockey Canada Insiders.

Livestream information will be announced in the coming weeks.

Indigenous engagement

Hockey Canada has collaborated with the Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg First Nation, Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation and Mohawks of Akwesasne, three local Indigenous communities to integrate Indigenous elements into all facets of the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship.

Each community will receive a minimum of 100 tickets for their youth to attend games and have activation space for cultural showcases at Fan Fest.

As well, Esso will present each player of the game with specially designed canoe paddles, while all 350 TELUS volunteers will receive beaded belt bags.

There will also be a Team Canada jersey designed by an Indigenous artist showcased throughout activations during the tournament.

First game program for New Canadians

More than 150 New Canadians will be welcomed to their first hockey game at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship.

Families will receive tickets, transportation to and from the game, Hockey Canada merchandise and in-game recognition as part of the program, which is being added to the World Juniors for the first time.

Community engagement events

Hockey Eastern Ontario will also run development sessions leading up to and throughout the World Juniors, including skill sessions and instructional streams in five of the communities hosting competing teams before the World Juniors.

Additional initiatives that will increase accessibility and sustainability will be announced in the coming weeks, with the World Juniors vying to achieve certified sustainable event status from the Council for Responsible Sport.

The 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship was awarded to Ottawa in June 2023 following a successful bid partnership between the Ottawa Senators, Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group (OSEG), Ottawa Tourism, Hockey Eastern Ontario (HEO), the City of Ottawa and the Province of Ontario.

Tickets remain available for select World Juniors games.

To learn more about Hockey Canada, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along through social media on Facebook, X and Instagram.

OTTAWA, Ontario – Hockey Canada’s 13 Members have re-elected Gillian Apps and Amanda Fowler to the Hockey Canada Board of Directors and elected Daniel Fontaine, with all three set to serve three-year terms.

“We are excited to have Gillian and Amanda re-elected and look forward to welcoming Daniel to our board after a year of tremendous progress,” said Jonathan Goldbloom, chair of the Hockey Canada Board of Directors. “Our board is wholeheartedly committed to being part of the solution to transform the culture of hockey and will continue to share our important work with Canadians.

“As a former national team athlete, outgoing director Corey Hirsch brought critical insights to our board deliberations and we are counting on him to remain involved as we focus on the player pathways in the months and years ahead.”

Apps chairs Hockey Canada’s women’s and girls’ hockey steering committee, which published a national discussion paper in October and is preparing a blueprint for growing the game that will be published in the first half of 2025, while Fowler chairs the sub-committee that is overseeing the creation of the new national team athlete committee.

A proud citizen of the Métis Nation, Daniel Fontaine is the chief executive officer of MICHIFCO Consulting and has extensive experience in government relations, policy development and communications.

Fontaine graduated from the University of Manitoba and Langara College and has also volunteered on a number of boards, including the New Westminster Minor Hockey Association, Douglas College, SafeCare BC, the BC College of Psychologists and the Canadian Association for Long-Term Care.

More information on the Hockey Canada Board of Directors can be found here.

To learn more about Hockey Canada, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along through social media on Facebook, X and Instagram.

SARNIA, Ontario – Canada White has won back-to-back gold medals at the U17 World Challenge after defeating Canada Red 3-1 in the gold medal game on Saturday evening.

After a scoreless opening period, Canada White found the back of the net twice in 3:02 to take a 2-0 lead. Jean-Christoph Lemieux (Belleville, ON/Windsor, OHL) opened the scoring before Mathis Preston (Penticton, BC/Spokane, WHL) buried a one-timer that stood as the game-winner with less than five minutes remaining in the second period. Preston’s clincher was his tournament-leading sixth goal.

“This is the best feeling in the world, and I am so proud of these guys. We had to face a bit of adversity throughout the tournament, but I am so happy we were able to [win gold] today,” said Preston. “The puck was not going in for me in the preliminary round, but I kind of broke through in the medal round and I am happy I was able to contribute. I could not have done it without such great teammates around me.”

Adam Valentini (Toronto, ON/Chicago, USHL) rounded out the scoring for White less than four minutes into the third period, firing a shot from the slot past Canada Red netminder Carter Esler (Okotoks, AB/Spokane, WHL). Red would pull within two on a Braidy Wassilyn (Campbellville, ON/Niagara, OHL) goal, but it fell short as White goaltender Gavin Betts (Toronto, ON/Pickering, OJHL) turned in an exceptional 38-save performance.

“This feels surreal. Representing Canada and winning a gold medal is something that I have dreamed about since I was a young kid, and to be able to take in this moment with our group is an incredible feeling,” said Betts. “I do not think I will every forget the moments we experienced at this tournament, and it has been an incredible experience getting to wear the Maple Leaf.”

“Everything started to click for us in our quarterfinal game. Going through the loss against Sweden [to finish the preliminary round] made us stronger and prepared us for the gold medal game, and I believe that helped us come out on top,” said Canada White head coach Mathieu Turcotte (Kirkland, QC/Blainville-Boisbriand, QMJHL). “I am extremely proud of our guys, and I think our team had one of the best performances I have ever seen, especially considering these are 16-year-olds in a high-pressure game. They are champions for life and they all deserve it.”

A full game summary game be found HERE. 

Following the gold medal game, Hockey Canada announced the 2024 U17 World Challenge all-star team:

• Goaltender – Betts, Canada White
• Defence – Keaton Verhoeff (Fort Saskatchewan, AB/Victoria, WHL), Canada Red
• Defence – Landon DuPont (Calgary, AB/Everett, WHL), Canada Red
• Forward – Preston, Canada White
• Forward – Marcus Nordmark, Sweden
• Forward – Victor Plante, United States

Sweden defeats U.S. 5-4 in overtime to win bronze; Finland finishes in fifth place

Earlier in the day, Sweden rebounded from a 6-4 loss to Canada White in the semifinals to win the bronze medal for the second year in a row, defeating the United States 5-4 in overtime. 

Elton Hermansson was the overtime hero, firing a shot past American goaltender Luke Carrithers on a breakaway 16 seconds into the extra frame to secure Sweden’s 10th medal at the U17 World Challenge, and sixth bronze.

The teams traded goals in the first period before Vilgot Lidén gave Sweden a 3-2 lead just over two minutes into the middle frame. Casey Mutryn evened the score on the power play less than five minutes into the third before Nils Bartholdsson netted a power-play goal of his own to give the Swedes a 4-3 lead. With less than two minutes remaining and the American net empty, Mutryn jammed home his second of the afternoon to send the game to overtime.

In the fifth-place game, Vilho Vanhatalo netted the lone goal 3:33 into the second period to secure a 1-0 win for Finland over Czechia. Oskari Ahmajärvi turned in a 28-save shutout, while Martin Psohlavec made 31 saves for the Czechs.

For more information on Hockey Canada and the U17 World Challenge, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along via social media on Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok.