Canada has won three of the last four gold medals at the IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship, and four of the last six. For the first time in four years, however, the tournament will be held outside of Canada. The 2020 tournament in Czechia was also won by Canada, in overtime against Russia.
If that sentence doesn’t make it seem long enough ago for you, consider the fact that many players on the current Canadian team have said they grew up watching Alexis Lafrenière in that very tournament.
The Canadians are always going to be considered contenders at this tournament, and this year is no exception. They are probably not the prohibitive favourites when compared to the United States, and they will have to play both Finland and Sweden in group play. They did get an unexpected boost with Matthew Poitras joining the team from the Boston Bruins in the NHL.
Team Canada final roster
| # | Player | Position | League | Current team (NHL) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Scott Ratzlaff | G | WHL | Seattle Thunderbirds (BUF) |
| 30 | Mathis Rousseau | G | QMJHL | Halifax Mooseheads |
| 31 | Samuel St-Hilaire | G | QMJHL | Sherbrooke Phoenix |
| 7 | Jorian Donovan | D | OHL | Brantford Bulldogs (OTT) |
| 3 | Jake Furlong | D | QMJHL | Halifax Mooseheads (SJ) |
| 4 | Noah Warren | D | QMJHL | Victoriaville Tigres (ANA) |
| 5 | Oliver Bonk | D | OHL | London Knights (PHI) |
| 23 | Ty Nelson | D | OHL | North Bay Battalion (SEA) |
| 13 | Maveric Lamoureux | D | QMJHL | Drummondville Voltigeurs (ARI) |
| 24 | Denton Mateychuk | D | WHL | Moose Jaw Warriors (CBJ) |
| 8 | Owen Beck | F | OHL | Peterborough Petes (MTL) |
| 9 | Nate Danielson | F | WHL | Brandon Wheat Kings (DET) |
| 12 | Fraser Minten | F | WHL | Saskatoon Blades (TOR) |
| 15 | Matthew Poitras | F | NHL | Boston Bruins |
| 17 | Macklin Celebrini | F | NCAA | Boston University (2024) |
| 18 | Matthew Wood | F | NCAA | University of Connecticut (NSH) |
| 20 | Carson Rehkopf | F | OHL | Kitchener Rangers (SEA) |
| 21 | Owen Allard | F | OHL | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds |
| 22 | Jordan Dumais | F | QMJHL | Halifax Mooseheads (CBJ) |
| 26 | Matthew Savoie | F | WHL | Wenatchee Ice (BUF) |
| 27 | Easton Cowan | F | OHL | London Knights (TOR) |
| 28 | Conor Geekie | F | WHL | Wenatchee Ice (ARI) |
| 29 | Brayden Yager | F | WHL | Moose Jaw Warriors (PIT) |
Strengths
Make no mistake about it, Canada’s success will be driven by their forwards. When the lone returning player on your team is centring the fourth line, you have a very hefty amount of depth. And that is no knock on Owen Beck, either. Beck will be asked to shoulder heavy minutes defensively and has the offensive ability to chip in up the lineup if needed.
There may not be Connor Bedard, or Adam Fantilli, but this team has tons of depth and that was even before they added Poitras from the NHL. Macklin Celebrini will look to use this tournament as a springboard from “potential number one pick” to “no doubt number one pick”. This tournament has done this for players like Lafrenière and Bedard. Both were widely expected to be the top pick but their performances in their draft year WJC left absolutely no doubt. Celebrini is in the same boat, and is already one of the best NCAA players while being one of the youngest.
Players like Jordan Dumais and Matthew Savoie are almost afterthoughts, but will be leaned on to provide offence. Savoie has a remarkable 24 points in 11 games since being assigned to the WHL by the Buffalo Sabres.
The Toronto Maple Leafs duo of Easton Cowan and Fraser Minten will look to be the players to frustrate opponents when the other team has the puck, and add offence when they have the puck.
Weaknesses
Goaltending sticks out as a potential question mark for Canada. The youngest goaltender, Scott Ratzlaff, is also the only player who has been drafted. Mathis Rousseau and Samuel St-Hilaire are both undrafted. This has been a platform for undrafted players to step up in goal before as both Joel Hofer and Thomas Milic have won gold medals in that same position.
The defence has very solid contributors, but doesn’t have that sure-fire top prospect. Luneau has played NHL games, and will be the guy that Canada will lean on, but he missed the team’s first pre-tournament game with an illness. [Editor’s Note: Since publication, Luneau was removed from the roster and will not participate]
X-Factor
Besides the potential goaltending breakout, Canada’s x-factor may just be the addition of Poitras. Many eyebrows were raised when Canada left an open forward spot on the roster before going to Sweden. There wasn’t expected to be NHL support coming, as many players were held back by their NHL teams. Poitras will instantly become Canada’s most important offensive centre, but can also play defensively.
Celebrini is also someone who can put a team on his back offensively, and while it’s crazy to expect a Connor Bedard-like breakout, he’s someone who can really provide that boost to the Canadian team.
Also worth pointing out is Owen Allard, a rare undrafted 19-year-old to make Team Canada. He only had 14 goals and 10 assists in 66 games in his first OHL season and last year, he only played in 14 games (scoring three goals and adding four assists). This season, he has 14 goals and 16 assists in 29 games and he may start the tournament as one of the extra forwards, but his unconventional path to making the roster makes him someone to keep an eye on.
