Halifax and Moncton to host 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship

As was reported by TSN’s Darren Dreger hours in advance, The IIHF announced Thursday that the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship will be held in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Moncton, New Brunswick from Dec. 26th – to Jan. 5, 2023. This will be the first time since 2003 that the Maritimes have hosted the tournament.

Originally, the World Juniors were to be held in the Russian cities of Novosibirsk, and Omsk. However, due to the invasion of Ukraine, the IIHF condemned and banned Russia and Belarus from play, forcing the hosting rights to be taken away from the Russian Ice Hockey Federation.

While the groups have not been set, the following countries will be participating: Canada, the United States, Finland, Sweden, Germany, Czechia, Slovakia, Switzerland, Austria, and Latvia. With the 2023 NHL Draft expected to be jam-packed full of talent, this will surely make for a memorable tournament featuring the likes of Canadian standouts Connor Bedard and Adam Fantilli.