Saskatoon Blades’ right winger Zach Olsen (pictured) will make his Hockey Canada Program of Excellence debut as the Calgary product has been named to the 25-man National Under-18 team roster for Wednesday’s start of the I-I-H-F World Under-18 Championship in Slovakia.
Ranked 39th by N-H-L Central Scouting in the final list before this year’s Draft, Olsen is one of seven W-H-L players on the team, including Saskatoon product and Red Deer forward Beckett Hamilton. Canada opens the tournament Wednesday at 10 a.m., Saskatchewan Time, against host Slovakia. Following are news releases from Hockey Canada and the Blades…..
April 21, 2026
NR.023.26
NATIONAL MEN’S UNDER-18 TEAM NAMED FOR START OF 2026 IIIHF U18 MEN’S WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
25 players to begin journey to defend gold medal in Slovakia
TRENCIN, Slovakia – Twenty-five players will begin the tournament with Canada’s National Men’s Under-18 Team as it looks for its third-consecutive gold medal at the 2026 IIHF U18 Men’s World Championship, April 22-May 2 in Bratislava and Trencin, Slovakia.
Three goaltenders, eight defencemen and 14 forwards – representing eight Members – were selected by general manager Alan Millar (Tottenham, ON) and head scout Byron Bonora (Brooks, AB), with support from Benoit Roy (Sudbury, ON), director of hockey operations, Scott Salmond (Creston, BC), senior vice-president of high performance and hockey operations, and coordinator of hockey operations Jared Power (Calgary, AB).
Head coach Drew Bannister (Sudbury, ON), assistant coaches Matt Anholt (Prince Albert, SK/Lethbridge, WHL) and Mark O’Leary (Owen Sound, ON/Moose Jaw, WHL), and goaltending coach Dan De Palma (Kamloops, BC/ Kamloops, WHL) also provided input.
The roster includes three players who won a gold medal at the 2025 U18 Men’s Worlds (Di Iorio, Lin, Verhoeff) and 12 who won bronze at the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup (Betts, Chartrand, Di Iorio, Esler, Lawrence, Lemieux, Lin, Preston, Rousseau, Valentini, Verhoeff, Zhilkin). It also includes 19 players who have represented Canada at the U17 World Challenge—nine who won gold (Betts, Croskery, Joseph, Lawrence, Lemieux, Lin, Preston, Valentini, Verhoeff) and 10 who took home silver (Ambrosio, Chartrand, Dagenais, Di Iorio, Eshkawkogan, Esler, Hicks, Jacobson, Olson, Wycisk)—and six players making their Program of Excellence debuts (Cali, Déniger, Hamilton, MacBeath, Olsen, Vandenberg).
“Following a competitive camp, we are pleased to announce this group of 25 players who will begin the 2026 IIHF U18 Men’s World Championship for Canada,” said Millar. “We are excited about our group’s competitiveness, talent and character as we prepare to open the tournament tomorrow against the host Slovaks. This team will represent Canada and their respective hometowns with pride and humility.”
Canada opens the 2026 IIHF U18 Men’s World Championship on Wednesday, April 22, facing Slovakia at 12 p.m. ET/9 a.m. PT. Canada will also play Latvia, Norway and Finland in the preliminary round before the tournament concludes with the medal games on May 2.
TSN and RDS, the official broadcast partners of Hockey Canada, will broadcast 16 and 10 tournament games, respectively. TSN will broadcast all Team Canada preliminary-round games, as well as the quarterfinals, semifinals and medal games, while RDS will broadcast all Team Canada preliminary-round games, two quarterfinals, the semifinals and medal games.
Olsen named to Team Canada’s U18 Men’s World Championship roster
Saskatoon, SK – The Saskatoon Blades are proud to announce forward Zach Olsen has been selected to represent Team Canada at the upcoming IIHF U18 Men’s World Hockey Championship. Hockey Canada announced the full 25-man roster on Tuesday.
Olsen’s selection to Team Canada comes after a impressive sophomore Western Hockey League (WHL) campaign with the Blades. The NHL Draft-eligible winger set new career highs in goals (18), assists (16), and points (34) in 57 games. Applauded for his tenacity and rugged play, Olsen shined in his second WHL postseason with two goals and four assists in ten games. Five of Olsen’s points came in Round 1 against the Edmonton Oil Kings, helping the Blades down the third-seeded Oil Kings in Game 7 overtime to advance to Round 2 against the Prince Albert Raiders.
The IIHF U18 Men’s World Championship brings together the world’s top under-18 players and serves as a key showcase for future hockey stars. The tournament kicks off on April 22 in Bratislava and Trenčín, Slovakia, with Canada taking on Slovakia, Latvia, Norway and Finland in the preliminary round. The tournament concludes with the medal games on May 2. TSN and RDS, the official broadcast partners of Hockey Canada, will broadcast 16 tournament games, including all Team Canada preliminary-round games, as well as the quarterfinals, semifinals, and medal games.
