CALGARY, Alberta – Hockey Canada has established a new National Teams Advisory Group to provide mentorship, leadership and hockey acumen to the organization’s men’s, women’s and para hockey teams, and hockey operations department.

Joining Bruce Cassidy (Ottawa, ON), who was previously named a special advisor to general manager Danièle Sauvageau (Montréal, QC/Montréal, PWHL) and Canada's National Women’s Team, are four individuals with National Hockey League (NHL) experience in management and executive positions: Steve Yzerman (Nepean, ON/Detroit, NHL), Doug Armstrong (Sarnia, ON/St. Louis, NHL), Brad Treliving (Penticton, BC) and Shane Doan (Halkirk, AB). The group will bring extensive NHL and international hockey experience to Hockey Canada, and will provide mentorship opportunities to staff and feedback to leadership.

“We are excited and grateful that Steve, Doug, Brad, Shane and Bruce will serve on the National Teams Advisory Group and will bring their experience at the NHL and international levels to all aspects of Hockey Canada’s hockey operations,” said Scott Salmond (Creston, BC), senior vice-president of high performance and hockey operations. “All five have extensive knowledge of the game, incredible hockey résumés and leadership abilities, and their winning pedigrees will greatly benefit our national teams as we continue to find ways to improve and strive for excellence on the international stage.”

“Establishing the National Teams Advisory Group reinforces our commitment to investing in our hockey operations departments and all national teams, and we are thrilled that Steve, Doug, Brad, Shane and Bruce will play an important role in our success on the ice,” said Katherine Henderson (Thunder Bay, ON), president and chief executive officer. “These five bring many years of experience and success in the game. They will greatly benefit our entire organization and provide important leadership towards the success of our men’s, women’s and para hockey teams as they look to win gold medals.”

Yzerman and Armstrong will advise Canada’s National Men’s Team on the selection of management groups for the IIHF World Championship, World Cup of Hockey 2028 and 2030 Olympic Winter Games. 

Yzerman has served over 20 years in various executive roles with the Detroit Red Wings (2006-10, 2019-26) and Tampa Bay Lightning (2010-19), winning the Stanley Cup with Detroit in 2008 and earning the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award with Tampa Bay in 2015. He led Canada’s Men’s Olympic Team to two Olympic gold medals (2010, 2014) as executive director, won gold (2007) and silver (2008) as GM at the IIHF World Championship and won gold as assistant GM at Men’s Worlds in 2023. As a player, Yzerman played in 1,514 NHL games with the Red Wings, serving 19 seasons as captain and winning the Stanley Cup three times (1997, 1998, 2002). He also won the Ted Lindsay Award in 1989 and the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2002. Internationally, Yzerman won gold at the 2002 Olympics, silver at the IIHF World Championship twice (1985, 1989) and bronze at the 1983 World Juniors, as well as a Canada Cup championship in 1984. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009 and the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2014.

Armstrong has held management roles for more than 30 years with the Minnesota North Stars (1992-93), Dallas Stars (1993-2008) and St. Louis Blues (2008-26), winning the Stanley Cup as an assistant GM with Dallas in 1999 and as general manager with St. Louis in 2019. He was also named NHL General Manager of the Year in 2012. Internationally, he won two Olympic gold medals as assistant GM (2010, 2014), and most recently led Canada to a silver medal as GM at the 2026 Olympics. Armstrong has also won gold medals at Men’s Worlds as a senior advisor (2007, 2016) and GM (2023), as well as silver medals as assistant GM (2008) and general manager (2009). He also served as the general manager for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, winning the championship, and built the management group and staff that led Canada to a title at the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off.

Treliving will work with Canada’s National Junior Team on player evaluation, evaluation process and personnel, and will scout NCAA games and attend scouting meetings ahead of the World Juniors while mentoring Hockey Canada staff in Calgary.

Treliving most recently served as general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs for three seasons (2023-26) after nine seasons as GM of the Calgary Flames (2014-23). He also spent seven seasons with the Phoenix Coyotes, serving as assistant general manager (2007-14) and vice-president of hockey operations (2010-12), as well as general manager of the San Antonio Rampage/Portland Pirates of the American Hockey League (AHL). Treliving won a gold medal at the 2016 IIHF World Championship as co-GM, was an assistant GM at the 2014 tournament and served on the management group in 2026.

Doan will serve as a player relations and leadership advisor, establishing the Shane Doan Captains’ Club to provide leadership training and support to national team captains while also supporting management and staff with Canada’s National Para Hockey Team.

Doan was special assistant to the general manager with the Toronto Maple Leafs for three seasons (2023-26) following parts of three seasons (2021-23) as chief hockey development officer with the Arizona Coyotes. Internationally, he won a silver medal as general manager at the 2022 IIHF World Championship and gold as assistant GM at the 2021 Men’s Worlds, as well as silver as a consultant in 2019. Doan also served as general manager of Canada’s Men’s Olympic Team at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games. He served as general manager at the 2022 Spengler Cup and was part of the championship-winning management staff at the 2019 tournament. As a player, he played in 1,540 NHL games and represented Canada at six IIHF World Championships, winning two gold medals (2003, 2007) and three silver (2005, 2008, 2009). Doan also won the 2004 World Cup of Hockey and wore the Maple Leaf at the 2006 Olympic Winter Games. 

Cassidy will continue to work with Canada’s National Women’s Team’s management group and coaching staff through the 2026 IIHF Women’s World Championship, including on-ice support at practices. 

Cassidy last served as head coach of the Vegas Golden Knights for parts of four season (2022-26), winning the Stanley Cup in 2023. He joined Vegas after more than five seasons (2017-22) as head coach of the Boston Bruins, leading the Bruins to the Stanley Cup Final in 2019 and winning the Jack Adams Award as NHL coach of the year in 2020. Cassidy served as an assistant coach at the 2026 Olympics, winning a silver medal, and won the championship as an assistant at the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off. As a player, Cassidy represented Canada at the 1984 IIHF World Junior Championship and suited up for Canada’s National Men’s Team during the 1986-87 season. 

For more information on Hockey Canada, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along through social media on Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTo

CALGARY, Alberta – Hockey Canada has announced that long-time National Hockey League goaltending coach Dustin Schwartz (Stettler, AB) has joined the organization full-time as the head of goaltending and national team goaltending coach, effective immediately.

Reporting to Scott Salmond (Creston, BC), senior vice-president of high performance and hockey operations, Schwartz brings over 10 years of NHL experience as the longest-serving goaltending coach in Edmonton Oilers history, and will be responsible for overseeing high-performance goaltending in Canada. The new role includes evaluation, selection, mentorship and development of national team goalies, as well as leading Hockey Canada’s grassroots goaltending development, which will include working within the existing Gold Medal Pathway and Performance HUBs.

Schwartz will also oversee new organizational goaltending initiatives such as goaltending camps and symposiums, and will serve as goaltending coach with various Canadian national teams beginning in 2027.

“Dustin’s success and experience with goaltenders in the NHL, internationally and in Major Junior hockey speak for themselves, and we are thrilled to welcome him to Hockey Canada to oversee our goaltending department,” Salmond said. “This is a critical position for our organization and our Members, and we will continue to seek innovative opportunities to advance our work to develop more goaltenders across Canada from the grassroots to our national team programs.”

Schwartz most recently served as the goaltending coach with the Oilers (2015-25), which included two Stanley Cup Final appearances (2024, 2025). Prior to joining the Oilers, he helped the Edmonton Oil Kings of the Western Hockey League (WHL) capture the Ed Chynoweth Cup as WHL champions twice (2012, 2014) and win the Memorial Cup in 2014.

Internationally, Schwartz won a gold medal as the goaltending coach with Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team at the 2013 Memorial of Ivan Hlinka tournament. During his playing career, he spent four seasons in the WHL, including two with the Medicine Hat Tigers (1996-98) and two with the Red Deer Rebels (1998-2000). He finished his junior hockey career in the Alberta Junior Hockey League, capped off with a National Junior A Championship with the Fort McMurray Oil Barons in 2000. He then embarked on a five-year U SPORTS career with the University of Alberta, where he won five Canada West titles and the 2005 University Cup national championship with the Golden Bears.

“It is an honour to be hired by Hockey Canada, and the expansive job description provides the opportunity to work in a multitude of different areas with the goal of enhancing and evolving the goaltending position under the Hockey Canada umbrella,” Schwartz said. “My passion for the game combined with the opportunity to focus on the development and growth of the goaltenders and coaches across the country is very special. This new goaltending program is designed to have a positive impact on goaltenders of the future and elite Canadian professionals at the highest level. Representing Canada has always been a privilege, and working with many of the top goaltenders, coaches and hockey minds in our country is an undertaking I am truly looking forward to.”

For more information on Hockey Canada, please visit HockeyCanada.ca , or follow through social media on Facebook , X, Instagram and TikTok.

ZÜRICH, Switzerland – Canada's National Men's Team finished fourth at the 2026 IIHF World Championship after falling 3-2 to Norway in overtime in the bronze medal game at Swiss Life Arena on Sunday.

Norway opened the scoring 6:44 into the game and increased its lead to 2-0 in the second period before Robert Thomas (Aurora, ON/St. Louis, NHL) got Canada on the board with 76 seconds to play in the third and tied the game with eight seconds left to force overtime, but the Norwegians found the back of the net 3:32 into the extra frame.

“It took too long to get to our game today. We got to it in stretches towards the end of the second and in the third period, but it was not a complete 60-minute effort for our group. I give [Norway] a lot of credit because they played with a lot of pride and commitment,” said head coach Misha Donksov (London, ON). “Our team had a lot of great people, outstanding leadership and world-class hockey players. I was very fortunate to work with three incredible NHL head coaches at this tournament, and our entire group made a lot of great memories, but unfortunately it was not the way we wanted it to end.”

Jet Greaves (Cambridge, ON/Columbus, NHL) made 21 saves, including multiple stops in the third period to keep the game at 2-0, and finished the tournament with a .919 save percentage and 1.88 goals-against average.

A full game summary can be found at HockeyCanada.ca.

Captain Macklin Celebrini (North Vancouver, BC/San Jose, NHL), who assisted on Thomas’ game-tying goal, finished as Canada’s leading scorer with 14 points (6-8—14), and ranked second in tournament scoring before the gold medal game.

“[Norway] played a great game, and they came out hard just like we thought they were going to. When you look back on the tournament, I feel like we had a little more to give, and it is unfortunate the way that it ended,” Celebrini said. “We were never going to give up, and we were going to try to find a way to get a goal as the game went on. I have to give credit to our group for the way we battled late in the game, but it is tough that we could not get the result we wanted.” 

Canada finished the preliminary round in first place in Group B after earning wins over Sweden, Italy, Denmark, Norway, Slovenia, Slovakia and Czechia. It booked a spot in the semifinals with a 4-0 win over the United States before falling to Finland 4-2 on Saturday.

Since 1931, Canada has collected 28 gold medals at the IIHF World Championship, to go along with 16 silver and seven bronze.

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

Canada’s National Men’s Team will battle Norway for the second time this tournament with the bronze medal on the line at the 2026 IIHF World Championship in Zurich.

Last Game

Canada suffered its first loss in Switzerland on Saturday, falling 4-2 to Finland in the semifinals. Robert Thomas scored his first goal of the tournament and Dylan Holloway was named player of the game with a goal and an assist. Jet Greaves made 17 saves.

Earlier on Saturday, Norway fell 6-0 to host Switzerland. Two of the goals against Norway came on the power play, and Henrik Haukeland made 24 saves.

Last Meeting

It was a back-and-forth battle in this year’s preliminary round, but Canada edged Norway 6-5 in overtime on May 21. Mark Scheifele scored twice to make it 2-2 after the first period before Gabriel Vilardi’s power-play goal tied the game again with 40 minutes complete. Dylan Cozens scored short-handed to open the third period and Ryan O’Reilly’s goal sent the game to overtime. Scheifele completed his hat trick 29 seconds into the extra frame to earn Canada’s fourth victory.

What to Watch

Canada’s second line was buzzing against Finland. Holloway, Thomas and Scheifele generated 24 per cent of Canada’s shots on net against Finland (seven of 29), with both Holloway and Thomas finding the back of the net. Scheifele’s best game of the tournament came against Norway with his hat trick and the overtime winner. With Evan Bouchard’s injury in the quarterfinals, Sam Dickinson made his first appearance at the IIHF World Championship against Finland. The San Jose Sharks defenceman logged 12:19 of ice time and generated three shots.

Only 12 teams have won a medal at the IIHF World Championship—and Norway is not a part of that exclusive group. In fact, their best finish at Men’s Worlds is fourth place way back in 1951. A big part of why Norway has made it to this point of the tournament is their goaltender, Henrik Haukeland. In seven games, he has a 1.71 goals-against average, a 0.933 save percentage, three shutouts and even an assist. He’s also the netminder that took Canada to overtime earlier in the tournament with 36 saves. One of two 18-year-olds on Norway’s squad, Tinus Luc Koblar leads his team with six goals and nine points.

A Look Back

The Canadians and Norwegians have been frequent opponents in the 2000s, clashing 17 times since the turn of the millennium after meeting just 10 times in the 50 years before that.

This is the first time Canada and Norway will meet in a medal-round matchup. When Norway earned its best result at Men’s Worlds back in 1951, it faced Canada in the round-robin. The Canadians, represented by the Lethbridge Maple Leafs, shut out Norway 8-0 on its way to a gold medal.

All-time record: Canada leads 25-2-0 (1-1 in OT)
Canada goals: 167
Norway goals: 35

It’s Semifinal Saturday as Canada’s National Men’s Team faces Finland for a spot in the gold medal game at the 2026 IIHF World Championship at Swiss Life Arena.

Last Game

Canada shut out the United States 4-0 on Thursday to advance to the semifinals. Jet Greaves was fantastic in net, making 34 saves in the crease. Macklin Celebrini and Dylan Holloway scored, with Connor Brown and Sidney Crosby adding empty-net goals late in regulation. Mark Scheifele had two assists in the quarterfinal win.

Finland earned its spot in the semifinals with a 4-1 win over Czechia on Thursday. Sakari Manninen and Anton Lundell gave Finland the lead in the first period before Konsta Helenius scored 1:35 into the second period to make it a 3-0 game. Lenni Hameenaho rounded out the scoring in the final frame and Justus Annunen made 25 saves.

Last Meeting

Last year, Canada suffered its first loss of the tournament to Finland: a 2-1 shootout decision in the preliminary round. Ryan O’Reilly opened the scoring with a shorthanded goal in the second period, but Patrick Puistola tied the game in the third to force extra time. Kent Johnson scored in the shootout, but Finland scored twice on Marc-André Fleury, who made 20 saves in regulation and overtime.

What to Watch

We certainly need to shoutout Greaves, who recorded his first international shutout on Thursday. The Columbus Blue Jackets netminder has had a strong showing in his first tournament wearing the Maple Leaf. In six appearances, the 25-year-old has a 1.33 goals-against average and a 0.948 save percentage to place him fourth in the tournament’s goaltending leaders. And we’d be remised if we didn’t mention Celebrini and Crosby—the duo has combined for almost 23 per cent of Canada’s points at Men’s Worlds (22 of 97), with Celebrini remaining second in tournament scoring with six goals and 12 points and Crosby recording his first goal of the tournament on Thursday to go with his nine assists.

Finland’s only loss in this tournament was in its final preliminary-round game, falling 4-2 to host Switzerland. The Finns enter the semifinals with strong special teams, going 8-for-25 on the power play and only allowing three goals on 20 penalty kills. There are a lot of familiar names on the Finnish team—13 players are active in the NHL, including captain Aleksander Barkov. The Florida Panthers centre missed the entire 2025-26 NHL season with a torn ACL and MCL, but received medical clearance in April and opted to play at Men’s Worlds. He has two goals and seven assists heading into the semifinals, which is second to Jesse Puljujarvi on Finland, who leads the team with four goals and five assists.

A Look Back

The Canadians and Finns have certainly been familiar foes at Men’s Worlds. In fact, only Sweden (71 GP) has been a more frequent opponent for Canada than Finland, with the teams set to meet for a 57th time in Zurich.

Canada has a 2-1-1 record when playing Finland in Switzerland in this tournament: an 11-1 win in 1961, a 6-5 win in 1990, a 3-3 tie in 1998, and most recently a 4-3 loss in 2009. These two teams have also met six times in the gold medal game (1994, 2007, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2022), with the Canadians holding a 4-2 record in those medal matchups.

All-time record: Canada leads 39-15-2 (3-4 in OT/SO)
Canada goals: 286
Finland goals: 127

The rivalry is renewed on Thursday as Canada’s National Men’s Team takes on the United States in the quarterfinals of the 2026 IIHF World Championship at BCF Arena.

Last Game

Canada had a come-from-behind win on Tuesday, edging Czechia 3-2 to earn a perfect preliminary-round record. After falling behind 2-0 midway through the second period, Sidney Crosby set up Macklin Celebrini twice to tie the game. John Tavares notched the game-winning goal midway through the final frame and Jet Greaves made 17 saves for his fifth win of the tournament.

It was win-or-go-home for the United States in its final preliminary game, and the Americans sealed its spot in the quarterfinals with a 4-1 win over Austria. Connor Clifton and Ryan Ufko gave the U.S. an early 2-0 lead in the first period. Paul Cotter and Matthew Tkachuk doubled the lead in the middle frame, with Devin Cooley making 24 saves for the Americans.

Last Meeting

Although these two teams last met in the gold medal game at the Olympics back in February, the last time Canada and the United States faced off at Men’s Worlds was in 2021, with the Canadians earning a 4-2 win in the semifinals. Brandon Pirri opened the scoring just over two minutes into the game, and Andrew Mangiapane scored twice to give Canada a 3-1 lead. Justin Danforth scored an empty-net goal to seal the victory for Canada and Darcy Kuemper made 36 saves.

What to Watch

Who else but our favourite duo of Celebrini and Crosby? The on-ice chemistry between these two players began back at Men’s Worlds last year, continued to grow at the Olympics and is in full-force here in Switzerland. Celebrini is second in tournament scoring with five goals, 11 points and a plus-12 over seven games. Crosby tops the tournament with Switzerland’s Sven Andrighetto as assist leaders with nine in the preliminary round. After Tuesday’s game, Celebrini said it’s “awesome the way we are moving the puck in the offensive zone and making plays,” adding that it is “a lot of fun to play with [Crosby].”

The United States finished fourth in Group A with a 3-1-0-3 record. Special teams are key for this American team: they have the top power play of the tournament, scoring seven goals on 20 man-advantage opportunities in the preliminary round. Tommy Novak leads the Americans in scoring with a goal and eight points. Matthew Tkachuk has only played in four games so far in Switzerland, but he has already racked up four goals and seven points. Devin Cooley has emerged as the starting goaltender for the U.S., earning a 1.70 goals-against average and a 0.93 save percentage in five games played.

A Look Back

For as back-and-forth as this rivalry has been between the neighbours at the Olympic Winter Games and IIHF World Junior Championship in recent years, the all-time record at the IIHF World Championship is tilted significantly in favour of the Canadians.

Canada has won 42 of the 48 meetings dating back to 1931, and has lost only two games in regulation time. This marks just the third time the rivals have met in the quarterfinals; Canada downed the U.S. 4-1 in the quarterfinals back in 1995 while the U.S. scored a 4-3 overtime win in 2001.

All-time record: Canada leads 42-7 (U.S. leads 4-1 in OT/SO)
Canada goals: 239
United States goals: 98

Canada’s National Men’s Team looks to close out the preliminary round with an undefeated record when it faces Czechia on Tuesday at the 2026 IIHF World Championship.

Last Game

A big third period led Canada to its sixth-straight victory on Sunday with a 5-1 win over Slovakia. Dylan Cozens opened the scoring in the first period. Gabriel Vilardi, John Tavares, Ryan O’Reilly and Macklin Celebrini scored in a span of 7:07 minutes in the final frame. Jet Greaves was named Player of the Game after a fantastic performance in net with 31 saves against the Slovaks.

The Czechs experienced its first regulation loss of the tournament on Monday, falling 4-1 to Norway. Jaroslav Chmelar scored the lone goal for Czechia unassisted in the first period and Dominik Pavlat made 23 saves.

Last Meeting

Let’s throw it back to 2024 when Canada locked up the top spot in Group A with a 4-3 overtime win over Czechia. Cozens opened the scoring 61 seconds into the third period before Dawson Mercer and Brandon Hagel made it a 3-1 lead for Canada. The Czechs scored twice with the extra attacker to send the game to overtime, and Cozens sealed the victory for Canada with a short-handed goal. Jordan Binnington made 19 saves between the pipes.

What to Watch

Cozens has lit the lamp for Canada in three consecutive games, tallying five points (4-1—5) throughout the tournament. This is the third Men’s Worlds for the Whitehorse product, who previously took home silver in 2022 and placed fourth in 2024. The 25-year-old has 20 goals and 29 points through 26 games in his IIHF World Championship career. On the blue line, good things happen when Evan Bouchard is on the ice. He leads Canada with a plus-11 and has a goal and four assists so far in Switzerland.

Czechia is led by 40-year-old captain, Roman Cervenka, who is the only active player to have played in more than 100 games at the IIHF World Championship (it will be his 110 ^th Men’s Worlds game when he plays Canada). He has two goals and four points over six games in Fribourg. Eight players from Czechia’s Olympic roster are playing at Men’s Worlds, including Vancouver Canucks defenceman Filip Hronek. The 28-year-old led the Czechs in Milan with five assists, and he currently has two assists in the preliminary round.

A Look Back

Following the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in 1993, the 27 meetings between the Canadians and Czechs have been split almost right down the middle, with Canada holding a narrow 15-12 advantage.

That being said, Canada has won the last nine meetings since 2013, including three semifinal matchups: Mike Smith posted a 23-save shutout in 2015, Mark Stone had a goal and an assist in 2019, and Cozens scored twice and added a helper in 2022.

All-time record: Canada leads 15-12 (2-1 in OT/SO)
Canada goals: 85
Czechia goals: 77

It’s the penultimate game of the preliminary round for Canada’s National Men’s Team when it faces Slovakia on Sunday at the 2026 IIHF World Championship.

Last Game

Canada improved to 5-0 on Friday with a 3-1 victory over Slovenia. Emmitt Finnie recorded his first international goal and assist with Team Canada, earning player of the game honours. Dylan Cozens and Denton Mateychuk rounded out the scoring, and Jet Greaves made 13 saves for his third win in Fribourg.

Slovakia fell to Czechia in a close 3-2 game on Saturday for its first loss of the tournament. Marek Hrivik and Martin Chromiak scored for the Slovaks in the second period, and Samuel Hlavaj made 15 saves.

Last Meeting

Canada had a strong showing against Slovakia last year in the preliminary round, shutting out the Slovaks 7-0. Sidney Crosby recorded two goals and two assists, connecting with linemate Macklin Celebrini (1-2—3) twice during the game. Nathan MacKinnon scored twice, Brandon Montour and Tyson Foerster rounded out the scoring, and Jordan Binnington made 14 saves in his second start.

What to Watch

His last goal was scored against Italy back on May 16, but captain Celebrini continues to rack up assists and strong offensive scoring chances. The 19-year-old leads Canada with seven points (2-5—7)—making him tied for eighth overall for the tournament’s scoring leaders—and has 20 shot attempts alongside Mark Scheifele through five games. Crosby is close behind Celebrini with six assists so far, and continues to seek his first goal of the tournament.

Calgary Flames fans are well aquainted with Martin Pospisil. The 26-year-old is playing with his older brother, Kristian, in Fribourg. Both brothers have been contributing to Slovakia’s offence—Martin has a goal and four points while Kristian has two goals and an assist. Filip Mesar may sound familiar for World Juniors fans—he recorded four goals and 15 points (4-11—15) over three editions of the tournament. The 22-year-old winger recently completed his second season with the AHL’s Laval Rocket, recording nine goals and 27 points. He has a goal and two assists so far at Men’s Worlds.

A Look Back

Canada has won the last seven meetings with Slovakia since 2014, and 15 of the 18 all-time meetings going back to 1996 when Slovakia returned to the Top Division after the dissolution of Czechoslovakia.

Although Canada has an advantage in goal differential, the Slovaks can keep these games close. In 2019, the Canadians edged Slovakia in a thrilling 6-5 win . The game appeared destined for overtime before Mark Stone—celebrating his 27th birthday—recorded the game-winning goal on a power play with 1.8 seconds remaining in regulation.

All-time record: Canada leads 15-2-2 (1-0 in OT/SO)
Canada goals: 78
Slovakia goals: 43

Canada’s National Men’s Team is right back to work after Thursday’s overtime win against Norway, facing off against Slovenia on Friday as the preliminary round continues at the 2026 IIHF World Championship.

Last Game

Canada remains undefeated in Fribourg after edging Norway 6-5 in overtime. It was a back-and-forth battle—Mark Scheifele scored twice to make it 2-2 after the first period before Gabriel Vilardi’s power-play goal tied the game again with 40 minutes complete. Dylan Cozens scored short-handed to open the third period and Ryan O’Reilly’s goal sent the game to overtime. Scheifele completed his hat trick 29 seconds into the extra frame to earn Canada’s fourth victory.

Slovenia last played on Wednesday, falling 6-0 to Sweden for its third consecutive loss. Zan Us made 39 saves against the Swedes, and Slovenia had successful kills on two of its three penalties.

Last Meeting

Canada opened last year’s tournament with a 4-0 blanking of Slovenia. Special teams were key—Bo Horvat scored twice on the power play and Noah Dobson added a goal with the man advantage. Nathan MacKinnon recorded a goal and two assists. Dylan Garand made 11 saves for the shutout and Canada put 40 shots on Slovenia’s Lukas Horak.

What to Watch

The line chemistry between Scheifele and Vilardi has certainly carried over from Winnipeg. The Jets duo have a combined five goals and nine points in four games in Fribourg and have been a steady line with Robert Thomas since Canada played Italy on May 16. This is Scheifele’s fourth appearance at Men’s Worlds (2014, 2016, 2017), previously taking home gold (2016) and silver (2017), while Vilardi is suiting up in his second tournament after winning gold in 2021. On the blue line, Evan Bouchard now leads Canada with a plus-eight—he recorded three assists against Norway.

After representing Slovenia at U18 Men’s Worlds and World Juniors, 19-year-old Jan Golicic has his first chance to represent his country at the senior level. The defenceman started the season as the captain of the Gatineau Olympiques before he was dealt at the trade deadline to the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada. He recorded five goals and 44 points in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League’s regular season, plus a goal and eight points in 17 playoff games. A veteran on Slovenia is 36-year-old defenceman Blaz Gregorc, who will play in his seventh Men’s Worlds. He has two assists so far in Fribourg.

A Look Back

This will be the seventh meeting between Canada and Slovenia at Men’s Worlds, and the Canadians are undefeated through the first six.

The closest game was in 2013—the Slovenians held a 3-2 lead heading into the third period before Brenden Dillon tied the game with 13 minutes left and Steven Stamkos won it 3:36 into overtime for Canada.

All-time record: Canada leads 6-0 (1-0 in OT/SO)
Canada goals: 33
Slovenia goals: 8

After two days off, Canada’s National Men’s Team is back on the ice to face Norway in the fourth of seven preliminary-round games at the 2026 IIHF World Championship in Switzerland.

Last Game

In a rematch of the 2025 quarterfinals on Monday, Canada earned its third win of the tournament with a 5-1 win over Denmark. All six goals were scored in the third period, with Sidney Crosby recording four assists. Porter Martone had a goal and an assist, Macklin Celebrini added two helpers and Jet Greaves made 15 saves.

Norway shut out Italy 4-0 on Tuesday for its second win of the tournament. Henrik Haukeland was excellent in net, making 30 saves, while Eskild Bakke Olsen, Noah Steen, Christian Kaasastul and Tinus Luc Koblar scored for the Norwegians.

Last Meeting

It’s been two years since these teams met in the preliminary round—Canada defeated Norway 4-1 at the 2024 Men’s Worlds in Czechia. Brandon Tanev opened the scoring in the first period, Andrew Mangiapane doubled the lead in the middle frame and Dylan Cozens scored shorthanded in the third period. Nico Daws made five saves and assisted on Jared McCann’s empty-net goal.

What to Watch

What else can we say about Sidney Crosby? This is the fourth time the Pittsburgh Penguins captain has represented his country in 16 months (4 Nations Face-Off, 2025 Men’s Worlds, 2026 Olympics, 2026 Men’s Worlds) and he continues to make an impact on the ice. Crosby has five assists so far in Fribourg and he is five points away from recording his 100th point wearing the Maple Leaf (39-56—95). On the blue line, Penguins defenceman Parker Wortherspoon recorded his first goal in Monday’s game against Denmark, and he also leads Canada with a plus-seven over three games.

Norway has a good balance of veteran experience and youth talent on its team. The oldest member of the team is 35-year-old forward Andreas Martinsen, who is suiting up in his 14th Men’s Worlds, while goaltender Haukeland is making his eighth tournament appearance. There are two 18-year-olds on Norway’s roster: Mikkel Eriksen and Koblar, who has two goals and an assists in three games. The Norwegians lead the tournament in save percentage, allowing only two goals so far, and they have yet to give up a goal on the man-advantage.

A Look Back

The Canadians and Norwegians have been frequent opponents in the 2000s, clashing 16 times since the turn of the millennium after meeting just 10 times in the 50 years before that.

Canada’s biggest win came in 1962 when the Galt Terriers handed Norway a 14-1 defeat. More recently, John Tavares had a hat trick and Jordan Eberle added a goal and three assists as Canada eased to a 12-1 victory in Mannheim, Germany.

All-time record: Canada leads 24-2-0
Canada goals: 161
Norway goals: 30