Minneapolis, Minn.- Kelowna Rockets alternate captain Tij Iginla scored a critical goal and added an assist as Canada outgunned Finland 7-4 to wrap up round-robin action at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship.
With a 3-1-0-0 record, Canada has clinched a first-place finish in Group B and will face Slovakia in the quarterfinal round at 6:30 p.m. MST on Friday, January 2, 2026.
Players developed in the WHL combined for six points in the win.
Utah Mammoth prospect Iginla (Kelowna Rockets / Lake Country, B.C.) hit the scoresheet for a fourth straight game as he dished a secondary assist on Calgary Flames rearguard Zayne Parekh’s game-opening goal.
Silvertips star duo Julius Miettinen (Seattle Kraken / Helsinki, Fin.) and Matias Vanahnen (Nokia, Fin.) gave fans a taste of their work in Everett as Miettinen outpaced his Canadian check to receive a chip pass from Vanhanen and fire the puck blocker side on Carter George to tie the match.
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Canada retook the lead with 2025 WHL Champion and Player of the Year Gavin McKenna bagging a secondary helper as Brady Martin (Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds / OHL) hammered a one-timer from the slot.
But Finland kept clawing its way back level as the see-saw flipped each way through a high-scoring first period.
Oliver Suvanto levelled the match again before Martin, a Nashville Predators prospect, put Canada ahead again.
Finally, Vanhanen hit paydirt again, putting a long shot on net that was tipped in by Lasse Boelius for a 3-3 game.
Canada challenged the Finn’s third goal for goaltender interference, but the officials ruled it a good goal and sent Canada to an ultimately successful penalty kill and a tie game leading into the second period.
That’s where Iginla nailed another showstopping goal on a breakaway as a Canadian powerplay was expiring.
The 2024 NHL sixth-overall pick, who will lead Kelowna at the 2026 Memorial Cup, now has two goals and three assists for five points in four games under his belt.
Barrie Colts captain Cole Beaudoin gave the Canadians some additional insurance by batting a Finnish rebound into a wide-open net for a 5-3 lead- which came in handy as Roope Vesterinen trimmed the lead again for the upstart Finns shortly after.
With Canada nursing a 5-4 lead entering the final period, the OHL contingent iced the game courtesy of another goal from Beaudoin and an empty-netter from Memorial Cup champion Sam O’Reilly (London Knights).
With a 7-4 loss, Finland will move on to face the host United States on January 2 at 4:00 p.m. MST.
NOTES
Kelowna Rockets star Tomas Poletin (New York Islanders) scored Czechia’s first goal in a 4-2 victory over Latvia… Edmonton Oil Kings forward Max Curran (Colorado Avalanche) picked up two assists in the win… 2025 Utah Mammoth pick Max Psenicka (Portland Winterhawks) linked up with Curran and Prince Albert Raiders rookie Matyas Man for an all-WHL goal… Another Rocket, Vojtech Cihar (Los Angeles Kings) added another assist on Czechia’s final goal…Red Deer Rebels forward Samuel Drancak made his World Juniors debut for Czechia… The Czechs will take on Switzerland in the quarterfinals.
