One prospect from each Canadian NHL team to watch at the 2026 World Juniors

Dec 11, 2025, 14:53 EST

One prospect from each Canadian NHL team to watch at the 2026 World Juniors

Credit: Brett Holmes-Imagn Images

We’re just over two weeks away from the start of the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship in Minnesota, and most hockey fans north of the 49th parallel are already feeling the excitement.

After all, with the NHL’s seven Canadian teams largely outside the playoff picture, fans in each of those cities are already more focused than usual on hope for the future. And between previously affiliated prospects and 2026 Draft eligibles, the World Juniors act as a one-stop showcase for the biggest and brightest talents funneling down NHL pipelines.

Everyone’s talking about Team Canada, which is coming off consecutive years in fifth place, and there are plenty of prospects on that team whose NHL futures will also lie north of the border. But there’s also plenty of international flavor among the seven Canadian NHL prospect pools. This year’s World Junior Championship kicks off on Boxing Day, and it’s going to be a great tournament.

Here’s a quick look at one standout prospect from each Canadian NHL club heading to the World Juniors later this month.

Calgary Flames: Zayne Parekh, RHD (Canada)

There isn’t much debate over which Canadian team is sending the best prospect to the World Juniors. Make no mistake, Parekh hasn’t exactly had a seamless transition into the NHL with the Flames this season, having missed more than a month with an upper-body injury sustained against the Chicago Blackhawks in early November, but the 19-year-old defenseman is as skilled as they come. With the Flames’ blessing, Parekh should play a leading role for Team Canada this year.

A two-time 33-goal man with the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit, Parekh became the first defender in more than a decade to surpass 100 points in a season in that league last year. He won the Memorial Cup as a member of the Spirit in 2024, mere weeks before the Flames selected him with the No. 9 overall pick in that year’s NHL Draft. Despite all that, Hockey Canada opted against including Parekh on their roster for the 2025 World Juniors — a controversial decision that backfired in a big way when they bowed out in the quarterfinals. How embarrassing!

Parekh is a gifted skater and puckhandler who should be a fixture on one of Canada’s top two defense pairings. It’d be a real shock to see him not quarterbacking their top power-play unit. Beyond that, it’ll be interesting to see if the World Juniors can give Parekh a much-needed spark as he heads into the second half of his rookie season with the Flames.

Edmonton Oilers: David Lewandowski, LW (Germany)

Given their recent track record of trading draft picks for win-now pieces, it’s been a while since the Oilers were particularly well-represented at the World Juniors. This year won’t be much different, with Lewandowski slated to be one of only two Oilers prospects headed to the Twin Cities later this month (American defenseman Asher Barnett is the other).

A fourth-round draft pick (No. 117 overall) of the Oilers in 2025, Lewandowski is a tall but slight winger (6’2″, 177 pounds) who currently leads the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades with 32 points in 28 games. The Dusseldorf product has long been considered a lock for this iteration of Team Germany (he made it as a 17-year-old last year) and should play a premier role on a side that has historically been closer to the middle of the pack than the cream of the crop. He’s one of only three NHL-affiliated prospects on the team, along with defenseman Carlos Handel (MTL) and winger Maxim Schafer (WSH).

Lewandowski has been a high-volume shooter for the Blades this year, having already amassed 79 shots in 28 games. He has yet to sign an entry-level contract with the Oilers, but that isn’t particularly concerning given his modest draft pedigree and age — he won’t turn 19 until February, which means he’ll be eligible to play at the 2027 World Juniors, too.

Montreal Canadiens: Michael Hage, C (Canada)

One of the leading candidates to slot in down the middle on Canada’s top line this year, Hage is in the midst of a terrific sophomore season at the University of Michigan and is one of the older players eligible for this year’s tournament, having been born in April of 2006. Much like Parekh, Hage was controversially omitted from the Canadian roster last year, but after their more “well-rounded” group managed just 13 goals in five games en route to their fifth-place finish 12 months ago, the powers that be at Hockey Canada have changed their tune.

It never made much sense that Hage fell all the way to No. 21 overall in the 2024 NHL Draft, given his size (6’1″, 199 pounds), handedness (right), and position (center), but the Canadiens were the beneficiaries of that development and are understandably thrilled with how things have played out in the years since. Hage racked up 34 points in 33 games as an 18-year-old freshman at Michigan in 2024-25 and already has 10 goals and 28 points in 20 games with the Wolverines this year.

Assuming Hage does eventually join the Canadiens, he’ll be the next in a long, long line of Chicago Steel alumni to make the NHL. In the meantime, don’t be surprised if Hage gets a plum assignment on a line with potential 2026 No. 1 pick Gavin McKenna at this year’s World Juniors.

Ottawa Senators: Logan Hensler, RHD (USA)

One of a handful of returnees from Team USA’s gold medal-winning team in 2025, Hensler will never win any scoring races but his defensive acumen will always make him an easy pick for the American brass. He was one of the oldest players eligible for the 2025 NHL Draft, but that didn’t dissuade Senators general manager Steve Staios from selecting the 6-foot-3 right-handed defender with the No. 23 overall pick.

Hensler has been ahead of schedule for a long time. He looked mature beyond his years in his time with the U.S. National Team Development Program and made the jump to the University of Wisconsin for his draft year, putting up a respectable 12 points in 32 games with the Badgers as a freshman in 2024-25. He’s been the epitome of reliability in his second year at Wisconsin, racking up eight points in 15 games and posting a plus-8 rating to go along with it.

The Americans are bringing a powerful and capable group to this year’s World Juniors, with Hensler expected to play big minutes at 5-on-5 and on the penalty kill. While Cole Hutson (WSH) and EJ Emery (NYR) could form Team USA’s top pairing to start out, it’s possible we might see Hensler skate alongside Wisconsin teammate Luke Osburn (BUF) for the bulk of the tournament.

Toronto Maple Leafs: Ben Danford, RHD (Canada)

The penultimate pick in the first round of the 2024 NHL Draft, Danford should be a go-to defensive option for Canada this year. The 6-foot-2, 194-pound righty has had a tumultuous start to his second post-draft season, having already been traded by the Oshawa Generals — with whom he served as team captain — to the Brantford Bulldogs just eight games into the 2025-26 OHL schedule.

Barring an unforeseen roster change, Danford will be given the chance to pull on his third different jersey of the year when he pulls on Canada’s World Junior uniform for the first time later this month. He’s earned it with his play since being acquired by Brantford, having collected 11 points (all assists) in 14 games to go along with a plus-7 rating. On paper, Danford seems like a perfect complement to a two-way guy like Cameron Reid (NSH) on one of Canada’s top two pairings, but it remains to be seen just how much ice time there’ll be to go around.

The real question is how much longer Danford will be a Leafs prospect after this year’s World Juniors. Frequently bandied about as possible trade bait by a rabid fanbase desperate for their team to strengthen its NHL roster, Danford could follow in Fraser Minten’s footsteps as a World Junior focal point-turned-trade centerpiece. That might be putting the cart in front of the horse, but then again, isn’t that just part of the deal in Toronto?

Vancouver Canucks: Braeden Cootes, C (Canada)

Another top Canadian prospect affiliated with a Canadian team, Cootes is the second player on this list who has appeared in NHL games this season. Nobody ever expected it to be a long-lasting arrangement when Cootes played his way onto the Canucks’ opening-night roster at age 18, mere months after being selected with the No. 15 pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, but it was impressive nonetheless that Cootes got into three games before being returned to the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds.

It’d be a bit of a surprise to see Cootes in a top-six spot for Canada in these World Juniors, but with his February 2007 birthday, it’s safe to say he’ll play a much more prominent role for the national junior team this time next year. For now, expect to see him playing on the wing more often than not, owing to Canada’s ubiquitous strength down the middle of the ice.

At 5’11” and 183 pounds, Cootes will never be the biggest or strongest player on his team, but he’s extremely versatile and his right-handed shot will always make him heavily sought-after. He’ll likely be fighting with the likes of Cole Reschny (CGY), Jett Luchanko (PHI), and Carter Bear (DET) for minutes in a variety of situations on Team Canada this year.

Winnipeg Jets: Sascha Boumedienne, LHD (Sweden)

Born in Finland but a Swede by both parentage and national team affiliation, Boumedienne has logged huge minutes at Boston University all season and will be one of Sweden’s go-to options on the blue line in Minnesota later this month. It’s worth noting that fellow Jets defense prospect Alfons Freij is also set to wear the Tre Kronor threads at the 2026 World Juniors, although he and Boumedienne are unlikely to spend much time playing together — both are lefties.

A son of former Washington Capitals rearguard Josef Boumedienne, Sascha grew up in North America while his dad was working in the Columbus Blue Jackets‘ scouting department. He developed in the Ohio Blue Jackets AAA program before joining the USHL’s Youngstown Phantoms, with whom he scored 27 points in 49 games as a 16-year-old in 2023-24. Building off that excellent campaign, Boumedienne arrived at Boston University a year ahead of schedule in 2024-25, cementing his position as a first-round prospect with a solid freshman campaign.

Sweden has a decent contingent of defensemen for this year’s World Juniors, including Leo Sahlin Wallenius (SJ), Victor Johansson (TOR), Viggo Gustafsson (NSH), and the two Jets. Don’t be surprised if Boumedienne emerges as the Swedes’ No. 1 option over the course of the tournament, especially in the absence of a true blue-chip prospect at the position. On paper, he’s the best of the bunch.

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