Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Ben Danford and Team Canada were halted in the semi finals of the 2025-26 World Junior Tournament at the hands of Team Czechia, falling 6-4 to miss the gold medal game for a third-straight year. It also marked the third year in a row that Canada has been eliminated by Czechia, losing out in the quarter finals in both 2024 and 2025 and the semi final in 2026.

It’s been a tough stretch for Canada, who haven’t failed to medal three years in a row since the late 1970s. Canada originally defeated Czechia on Boxing Day in a high-scoring 7-5 thriller, but Czechia proved to be a nation to be taken seriously, both in that game and in recent memory. They have stepped up in the years since Russia have been banned from the tournament, picking up two bronzes, a silver, and a top-four finish in each of the four tournaments since then.

It was a back-and-forth affair in the semi-final game. Tij Iginla, son of the legendary Jarome Iginla and Utah Mammoth prospect opened the scoring for Canada before Czechia scored two to take the lead. The two teams would trade goals before Philadelphia Flyers prospect and team captain Porter Marton scored a thriller inside the final three minutes of the game.

All signs pointed towards an overtime thriller before Czechia’s Tomas Poletin scored with just over a minute to play, slashing any momentum Canada had and eventually adding an empty-netter following an ill-timed penalty by Canada in the final minute. It not only marked the third-straight elimination by Czechia, but the third straight game featuring a game-winner by Czechia in the final stages of the game.

Ben Danford has one assist and a plus-3 rating in six games going into the Bronze medal game. His performance at the tournament has been standard for the defensive-minded Leafs prospect, who has been used in primarily a penalty-killing role.

Canada will now face Finland in the bronze medal game on Monday and look to avoid three years in a row without a medal for the first time in nearly 50 years. Czechia, meanwhile, will duke it out with Sweden for the gold medal.

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