Canada brings ‘an extra level of motivation’ to world juniors

NIAGARA FALLS, ON. — Team Canada had a long practice ahead of its first pre-tournament game at the 2026 World Junior Championships in mid-December. As preparations for the upcoming World Cup gained momentum, the club worked on all aspects of the game, including penalties.

There were no roster cuts at this point, and each player was given the opportunity to hit goalies Carter George, Jack Ivankovic and Joshua Ravensbergen. The rules were simple: if the shooter missed, he was done for. If he scores, he goes to the boards and waits for another shot in the second round. For goalies, you stay in the crease if you make a save. If not, you trade with one of the other guys until they are defeated.

All three goalkeepers were fooled once when George slid into the box for a second time. About a third of the skaters had not yet made their first attempt, and one after another – some slowly, some quickly – advanced on George and could not get past the goalie. Finally, the only skaters left were the three guys who managed to score on their first try: Michael Hage, Gavin McKenna and Marek Vanaker.

Hage went down first and found no way through. McKenna was next and he was stuck in the mud trying to outsmart George. Finally, Vanaker swooped in to the dramatic drumbeat of nearly 40 sticks slapping the ice simultaneously. The deft sniper made a brilliant left and right that deceived George. However, just as Vanaker was about to shoot the puck into the net, George whipped out his blocking hand, slammed his stick into the ice and took away all of Vanaker's bragging rights. Not that the goalkeeper was gloating.

“He made a good move,” George said with a laugh after practice. “I was just lucky.”

It's fair to say that luck hasn't been on Canada's side at the World Cup lately, as the Red and Whites have – almost unthinkably – been eliminated at the quarter-final stage in each of the last two tournaments.

Of course, the team's fate was dictated by more than just poor rebounds, and Canada will have to change something in its approach to regaining the number one spot in the world of U-20 hockey. A roster filled with first-round picks and a decent amount of NHL experience are leading to optimism for the 2026 tournament, which kicks off Friday in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota.

However, the skills and experience that Canada possesses can be as important a factor as any other when it comes to writing a happy ending. Of the six returning from last year's disappointing team, two – good buddies George and Ivankovic – are goalkeepers. As a guy who played four games for Team Canada last year and posted a .936 save percentage, George is coming into this championship with an inside approach to starting big games. This is a great opportunity for him to help restore Canadian pride in the tournament and maybe even help change the larger national conversation about goaltending, which the 19-year-old finds infuriating.

George may have been able to thwart many of his teammates in the shootout, but that in no way indicates a lack of talent among the Canadian team.

“It’s unbelievable,” George said of the skill level on the ice during training camp at Gale Center Arena. “I think all forwards are first-round picks except for McKenna, who…”

George paused because anyone who pays any attention to hockey at all knows that McKenna is likely to be a top-three pick in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft. And yes, every other Canadian forward is selected in the first round. Overall, Canada has six players ranked in the top 10 and a half-dozen guys with at least one NHL game experience. While Canada has no returning defensemen, Zane Parekh, who was snubbed last year along with teammate Michael Misa, is a top-notch attacking talent and the hulking Keaton Verhoeff could be number one in June.

The four returning starters are McKenna, Jett Lucianko, Cole Beaudoin and Porter Marton. They were there last winter in Ottawa when Matthew Schaefer, then considered the No. 1 overall pick in the NHL and shining in the league that year, broke his collarbone in the second game of the tournament. After that, Canada struggled to score and maintain discipline in the round robin. Facing the Czech Republic for the second year in a row in the quarterfinals, Canada battled to find the equalizing goal with less than five minutes left in the third, only to see the clear underdog strike back and score the game-winning power-play goal on George with 39 marks remaining on the clock.

A tournament like this leaves scars and teaches some lessons. “We all (had) a lot of experience from last year that we can take into this year and make sure that doesn't happen again,” said Martone, a power forward selected sixth overall by the Philadelphia Flyers in 2025. “Adversity, how to deal with adversity; that's something we can handle better this year. You have to show humility. Be humble, being a humble team, always be ready to go up against anyone.”

Even if many of the 2026 players weren't around to experience it, there is no doubt that we will lose the way Canada has fueled the fire under the team's collective onslaught over the last couple of years. And you have to believe that more than one very experienced guy in the club is playing with the chip.

As noted, both Parekh and Misa (the latter was drafted second overall in 2025 by San Jose) are now the team's top horses after being cut a year ago while they were setting the OHL on fire. Then there's McKenna, who was the clear frontrunner in the 2026 draft class for years until Verhoeff and Swede Ivar Stenberg started smoking heavily in recent weeks. If McKenna wants to show that he is still the best draft-eligible prospect in the world, this is the time to do it.

Starting with a super-experienced striker, there's definitely an element of unfinished business in this Canadian team. “I think we all have an extra level of motivation after last year,” George said.

One thing that also irritates George is the fact that – especially in a year where an Olympic tournament featuring the best of the best is soon following the WJC – there is ongoing talk of a crease crisis in Canada. While the guy took 57^th overall for the Los Angeles Kings in 2024 can't change the senior national team conversation just yet, he's more than willing to fight for his fellow Canadian goaltenders.

“It pisses me off when I hear it,” he says of the idea that Canada has stopped producing high-quality corks. “There's a lot of good goalies here in Canada and I think it's kind of… (expletive). Personally, I just hate it when people say that and I think there's a lot of good guys in Canada and I think we do a pretty good job of developing goalies.”

He may not be the finished product yet, but George is proof of that. He played extensively as a U-16 player, officiating for a Triple A team in his hometown of Thunder Bay, Ontario. it was often superior. Owen Sound nabbed him in the 2022 OHL priority selection, and it didn't take Attack general manager Dale DeGray long to realize the club had landed a good pick.

“When we played him that year (2022-23), in the 10 games we were allowed, you could see he had an uncanny ability to really read (the game),” DeGray said. “Some goalies are really good at blocking pucks. But if you look at Carter, his hockey IQ in reading plays and where the pucks are coming from and where they're going, that's one of his biggest assets. He has the ability to read and react because he knows where the pucks are going when the play comes at him. He can really understand what the situation is and that makes him a really strong goalie.”

George has already excelled on the international stage, playing a vital role on Team Canada that won gold at the IIHF Under-18 World Championship in the spring of 2024. And while he had a strong tournament at the 2025 World Cup less than a year later, the way it ended against the Czech Republic obviously left a huge impression.

“I want to be the guy that’s going to be the backbone of this team,” he said. “And I want to make big saves for this team when they need it most and make that save with [40] There are seconds left this year and I want to be that guy who does well in elimination games.”

Whether he's imagining himself in a high-stakes scenario or reacting to those disrupting the Canadian goalie scene, it's clear that a bright flame burns inside George. However, it has a calm appearance and a no-nonsense style that is as infectious as it is effective.

“That’s what he brings, a calmness that permeates the entire team,” DeGray said. “Get the ship in order. It's all right, guys.”

With George backing a vibrant Canadian team, it could happen this year.