Calgary Flames defenseman Zayne Parekh has not had the greatest go with the team early on. Thankfully, he had the opportunity to represent Team Canada at the 2026 WJC. Parekh has simply dominated the competition and is currently the favourite to be the defenseman of the tournament. It has been a long time since the Flames have had a prospect dominate the tournament with such confidence. Parekh and Team Canada defeated Team Slovakia in the quarterfinal to advance to the semifinals. Let’s take a look at what they have accomplished at this year’s tourney.
Parekh has bolstered the offence
Many Canadian hockey fans were extremely upset with last year’s World Junior team. First of all, many players were not selected to the roster who should have been (especially Parekh), and the offence was simply awful. The 2025 Canadian team provided one of the worst offences that Team Canada has put forward at any WJC. Through five games, the Canadians have scored a whopping thirteen goals, which is nowhere near the usual production.
This year’s team was smart enough to invite Parekh to the team. Ever since the beginning of the tournament, Parekh has been a pure offensive defenseman for Team Canada. Through the preliminary round, Parekh posted four goals and eight points through four games. That was tied for the most points through the initial round, with great competition in Tomas Chrenko, Michael Hage, and Gavin McKenna. Through the preliminary round and quarterfinal, Canada has scored twenty five goals compared to last year’s thirteen.
Parekh has been making a serious impact in Canadian history. He is the first Canadian defenseman since Ryan Ellis in 2011 to post eight points through the preliminary round. Is there a chance that Parekh finishes the tournament with the most points? American defenseman Cole Hutson led the 2025 tournament in points with eleven through seven games. This was the first time a defenseman has ever led the tournament in scoring.
Canada has looked legit
Throughout the preliminary round, Canada has looked like its legit self. Canadian hockey fans are used to this team showing up and nearly going perfect in every tournament. The last two years have destroyed a bit of that reputation as Canada lost in back-to-back quarterfinals. Both of these upsets happened against Czechia, as they scored last-minute heartbreaking goals to eliminate the Canadians. Going into this year’s tournament, Canada was desperate for a good showing.
The offence has been rolling for Canada. Parekh has clearly been a serious contributor in that matter, but the whole team has been chipping in. Team Canada scored seven against Czechia, nine against Denmark, and seven against Finland. Going into last night’s quarterfinal game, the Canadians were firing on all cylinders. The only major concern going in was the recent goaltending performances.
Carter George had a very rough go in the preliminary round. The nineteen-year-old posted a tournament low .844 save percentage. This brutal save percentage was accompanied by a 3.33 goals against average. These worrying stats resulted in Dale Hunter turning to Jack Ivankovic in the quarterfinal against Slovakia. Ivankovic made one appearance in the preliminary round, posting a .963 save percentage against Latvia. He shut things down for the most part, solidifying a complete victory over Slovakia.
Parekh’s opportunity in the medal round
After defeating the Slovaks in the quarterfinal, Parekh and Team Canada have an opportunity to bring gold back to Canada. The Canadians will take on Team Czechia in a semifinal. This provides Canada an excellent chance at getting some much-needed revenge against Czechia. The last two tournaments have ended for Canada due to Czechia’s late heroics. For Parekh, he still has the chance to finish the tournament with the most points as he added two more against Slovakia.
The other team that poses as a huge threat to Canada is Team Sweden. The Swedes have had a phenomenal tournament, going undefeated to this point. They are led by star players such as Anton Frondell, Viktor Eklund, and top NHL prospect Ivar Stenberg. This potential gold medal matchup would provide an exceptional end to the tournament with plenty of star power. Sweden has not won gold at the WJC since 2012, when Mika Zibanejad scored the golden goal in overtime to win in Calgary.
Whoever the opponent is for Canada in the gold or bronze medal game, it will pose a good matchup. To this point, Parekh has been a star in the tournament, and the final two games could decide where he finishes in World Junior history. The Flames franchise has rarely had any prospect dominance at this tournament. Cole Reschny has played well, posting two goals and three points through five games. However, Parekh has a chance to go down in Canadian history as one of the top offensive defensemen at the WJC.
Do you think Parekh and Team Canada bring home gold?
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