2026 World Juniors: Top standouts from Canada vs. Denmark pre-tournament game

Canada finished the pre-tournament portion of the 2026 World Junior Championship with the most dominant performance of any team, blasting Denmark 13-2 on Tuesday night.

The two teams will meet again in the round-robin, with the Danes hoping to avoid relegation after earning promotion last year.

Canada scored on the opening chance of the game, with Tij Iginla scoring his first of two goals. William Bundgaard would score four minutes later on the power play, but they struggled the rest of the way. The team only had nine shots, but Mads Kongsbak Klyvo gave the team one last reason to celebrate with a late goal.

The goals came fast and furious for the Canadians the rest of the way, with Jett Luchanko, Cole Beaudoin, Brady Martin, Carson Carels, Zayne Parekh and Keaton Verhoeff all scoring one each. Porter Martone, Iginla and Gavin McKenna had a pair of goals each, with McKenna finishing with five points while Martone and Parekh had four each.

Here’s a look at Canada’s top performers from Tuesday night in Minnesota:

Canada

#5 Carson Carels, D (2026 NHL Draft): Carels was Canada’s best defenseman throughout most of the pre-tournament. He rarely got beaten defensively and made some high-quality chances offensively in all three games. I liked how he joined the play to set up McKenna’s 5-1 goal, pinching in just enough to make the right pass. Canada will have a hard time keeping Carels off the ice – he could be the team’s most valuable left-handed blueliner. That shot on the 8-1 goal? Beautiful.

#19 Zayne Parekh, D (Calgary Flames): Parekh would be the first to tell you he struggled in the two games against Sweden as he tried to get adjusted to game action again. Tonight? He was on it, registering a goal and three assists while also quarterbacking the power play. Games like this will be huge for confidence, which, given his lack of playing time in the NHL this year, is definitely a good thing.

#20 Keaton Verhoeff, D (2026 NHL Draft): Verhoeff sat out Canada’s second game, but he looked rejuvenated today. The big, mobile defender played a strong, steady game while continuously getting the puck into dangerous scoring zones. I’m not sure he got beaten in his own zone at any point throughout the night, and he scored the 11th goal of the night for good measure. There’s a good chance Verhoeff starts the tournament as the eighth defender, but there isn’t a single eighth defender in his stratosphere at this tournament.

#7 Michael Misa, C (San Jose Sharks): After a bit of a wonky first game against Sweden – highlighted by two penalties in the first period – Misa seemed in much more control today. He made an excellent pass on the 1-0 goal, beating two Danish opponents to get the disk into the slot for Iginla. He then set up Iginla’s second goal, with both of his helpers being primary assists. This felt like more of the game we were expecting from Misa.

#9 Gavin McKenna, LW (2026 NHL Draft): McKenna had a… wonky second game, to say the least. It seemed like the birthday jitters got to him. Tonight, though, he was on a different planet, scoring twice and adding another three assists for a five-point night. McKenna has so much natural talent, but sometimes, he can get caught trying to do too much. Today, though, he was making something happen every time he hit the ice, which included a great pass on Martin’s third-period goal.

#11 Tij Iginla, LW (Utah Mammoth): Iginla looked good in the second game against Sweden, but he upped the ante with a two-goal performance today. He scored on the opening goal of the game, and then had a great shot on his second chance in the second period. Iginla never seemed to need to work too hard on any of the goals, but he was always in the right spot at the right time. He’s a perfect fit for that top line alongside Misa and Martone.

#22 Porter Martone, RW (Philadelphia Flyers): Martone was Canada’s most noticeable player in the first period, registering a pair of assists – including a nifty one on the 2-1 goal. He then added a third assist with a great feed to Iginla and added a late goal to make it four points. Martone is equally dangerous as a shooter and a passer, and that’s what makes him an easy player to work alongside. He also physically dominated a few of Denmark’s bigger forwards, for good measure.

#26 Cole Beaudoin, C (Utah Mammoth): Beaudoin had a goal, two assists, a couple of big hits and some great defensive plays. He might not be the most stylish player on the ice by any means, but he rarely loses an individual battle along the boards. He was huge on that 10-1 goal, doing all the work to get the puck to Martone, and then he added another late in the third period.

#28 Brady Martin, RW (Nashville Predators): The game was well out of reach once Martin started dominating, but he may have been Canada’s best player in the third period. He had a goal and two assists, registering points on three straight shifts. There’s no way Canada’s taking him outside of the top-six.

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