The IIHF World Junior Championship is a very important tournament for young hockey players. It can help NHL draft hopefuls raise their stock, and also give already drafted players a springboard into the next season (Canes fans saw this with Sebastian Aho at the 2016 tournament).
This year’s tournament will take place in Vancouver at Rogers Arena and Vancouver Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre, Victoria from Dec. 26 to Jan. 5. The tournament will have two groups of five teams, with a round robin stage followed by a three-team playoff. The best four teams from each group will advance to the quarterfinals.