Canada looks to three-peat at the 2024 World Juniors
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Canada is set to begin preparations for the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship that begins on Boxing Day from Gothenburg, Sweden.
The Canadians will try to win three straight gold medals for the first time since they won five in a row from 2005-09.
Team Canada won its record 20th gold medal in dramatic fashion last year when Arizona Coyotes prospect Dylan Guenther scored the overtime game-winning goal over Czechia after losing a two-goal lead in the third period.
Chicago Blackhawks phenom Connor Bedard led Canada with nine goals and 23 points in seven games and was named the tournament's best forward and MVP.
Bedard set multiple records during last year's World Juniors including most points by a Canadian in a single tournament (23), most points by a Canadian all-time (36), and most goals by a Canadian all-time (17).
With Bedard in the midst of his rookie season with the Blackhawks, a new group will have to carry on the legacy in order to repeat.
Sarnia Sting head coach Alan Letang will return as head coach this year and will be joined by Gilles Bouchard of the Sherbrooke Phoenix, Shaun Clouston of the Kamloops Blazers, and Scott Walker of the Guelph Storm as assistants.
Team Canada's selection camp is set to take place from the Sixteen Mile Sports Complex in Oakville, Ont., for a four-day camp from Dec. 10-13 and will include two games against the U Sports all-stars in the latter stages.
Hockey Canada began the process of preparing for the tournament in July when they invited 45 under-20 players to take part in Canada's National Junior Team Summer Meetings in Calgary.
Columbus Blue Jackets forward Adam Fantilli, Blackhawks defenceman Kevin Korchinski, and Montreal Canadiens prospect Owen Beck were the only returning players that participated in those camps.
Fantilli and Korchinski are playing significant roles with their NHL teams and are unlikely to be made available to Team Canada, while Beck is playing a starring role with the Ontario Hockey League's Peterborough Petes.
Also included in the Summer Meetings were seven first-round selections from the 2023 NHL Draft including Buffalo Sabres forward Zach Benson, Winnipeg Jets prospect Colby Barlow, Detroit Red Wings prospect Nate Danielson, Colorado Avalanche prospect Calum Ritchie, Nashville Predators prospect Matthew Wood, and Pittsburgh Penguins prospect Brayden Yager to go along with Fantilli.