Several local hockey players to compete for spot on Team Canada

The training camp roster has been released for Canada’s national junior team. CTV’s Colton Wiens takes a look at the local players who were invited.

Several local hockey players are ready to vie for a coveted spot on Canada’s Under 20 World Junior Hockey team.

The training camp roster for the 2026 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) championship training camp has been released.

Kitchener Rangers’ defenceman Cameron Reid is one of the players who will be attending the training camp in Niagara Falls. The 6’0”, 175-pound Aylmer product has not been to the U20 tournament before, but has won several medals for the country. Reid has a gold medal from the 2024-25 Hlinka Gretzky Cup and a gold medal from the 2023-24 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge. Reid is a Nashville Predators draft pick and is serving as the Rangers’ captain this season. He’s recorded 28 points in 27 OHL games so far this season.

The Brantford Bulldogs have three players heading to Canada’s training camp: defenceman Ben Danford from Madoc, and forwards Jake O’Brien from Toronto and Jett Luchanko from London.

Danford won a silver medal at the 2022-23 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge and a gold medal at the 2023-24 Hlinka Gretzky Cup. Danford is a Toronto Maple Leafs draft pick and was traded from Oshawa to Brantford this season. Danford has recorded 15 points in 22 games between the two teams this season.

O’Brien will enter training camp with some international experience as well. The 18-year-old first round Seattle Kraken draft pick won a gold medal at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in 2024-25. O’Brien was also named captain of the Bulldogs this season, and has recorded 45 points in 26 games.

Philadelphia Flyers’ first round draft pick Jett Luchanko is the third Bulldog invited to training camp. He played for Canada in the 2025 IIHF Under 20 World Junior Hockey Championship. Luchanko has a gold medal from the 2023-24 Under-18 World Junior Championship and a silver from the 2022-23 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge. The 19-year-old has also played eight games in the NHL. He was traded from Guelph early in the OHL season this year and has recorded 22 points across 16 games this season.

Brady Martin from Elmira will also compete for a roster spot with Canada. The 18-year-old first round Nashville draft pick won gold medals at the 2024-25 Hlinka Gretzky Cup and 2024-25 Under-18 World Junior Championship. Martin has 16 points in 12 games played with Sault Ste. Marie this season. He’s also recorded one assist in three games played with the Nashville Predators.

A total of 27 players will take part in Canada’s National Junior Team training camp at the Gale Centre in Niagara Falls from Dec. 13 to Dec. 22. The 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship runs Dec. 26 until Jan. 5 in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota.

Several other players, including Kitchener Rangers’ goalie Christian Kirsch and the Brantford Bulldogs’ Vladamir Dravecky, Adam Benak and Adam Jiricek have been invited to training camps for other countries.