Team Canada beat Team Finland 6-3 in the semifinals at the 2026 Hlinka Gretzky Cup in Edmonton, Alberta on Friday. With the win, Canada will play the United States in the final on Saturday. The United States defeated Slovakia 5-2 on Friday afternoon in the other semifinal. The Hlinka Gretzky Cup is a premier U18 hockey tournament played in the summer time.
The semifinal win over Finland will be best remembered by the masterful offensive performances by Newfoundland Regiment centre Benjamin Veitch of St. John’s, Newfoundland and Guelph Storm centre Jaakko Wycisk of Tecumseh, Ontario. Veitch and Wycisk had four points each. Veitch had two goals and two assists for four points and Wycisk had one goal and three assists.
One more Canadian player had a multi-point game. Halifax Mooseheads defenseman Mark L’Italien of Montreal, Quebec had one goal and one assist for two points. The other two Canadian goal scorers were defenseman Landon DuPont of Calgary, Alberta and Edmonton Oil Kings centre Kayden Stroeder of Lanigan, Saskatchewan.
This will be the eighth gold medal game of the U-18 Summer Junior Hockey Tournament featuring Canada and the United States. Canada won the seven previous meetings. The titles came in 1994, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2006, 2010, and 2013. The United States is the defending champion as they beat Sweden 5-3 in the gold medal game last year in Trencin, Slovakia.
