Team Canada will open up the 2026 IHF World Junior Championship on Friday night when they take on Czechia at 8:30 p.m. ET.

The World Juniors are the most prominent amateur hockey tournament in the world and are a nice prelude to the 2026 Olympics in Italy, which take place in February.

Canada is led by Gavin McKenna (Penn State), who is projected to be the No. 1 pick in the NHL Draft.

The Canadians, who are one of the favorites in the tournament, will be bringing a piece of the 2025 Toronto Blue Jays with them, as was announced on Friday afternoon.

They'll play the Blue Jays' home run horn after their goals in the tournament.

This really proves something...

On the surface, this is just a fun story. But underneath? This shows how influential the Jays were in 2025. They captivated the entire country in their run to the American League East crown and in their run to the World Series. Toronto will enter 2026 as one of the favorites again in Major League Baseball, and they'll be expected to compete for the World Series title. They haven't won the title since 1993.

Team Canada made its impact on the Jays as well, with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. wearing a Marie Phillipe-Poulin jersey before Game 7 of the World Series. Toronto eventually lost that game to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Team Canada's schedule at the World Juniors

Dec. 26 - Canada vs. Czechia, 8:30 p.m. ET

Dec. 27 - Latvia vs. Canada, 4:30 p.m. ET

Dec. 29 - Canada vs. Denmark, 8:30 p.m. ET

Dec. 31- Canada vs. Finland, 8:30 p.m. ET

The elimination round will begin on Jan. 2 with the finals coming on Jan. 5. All games will be played in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

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About the rest of the Blue Jays offseason

With the Christmas holiday now behind us, it's time for the Blue Jays to pick up the urgency on filling out the roster. Toronto still needs to figure out what they are doing with regards to Bo Bichette, Alex Bregman and Kyle Tucker, and once they figure it out, they need to see how it impacts the rest of the roster.

There are seven weeks left until spring training begins in Dunedin, Fla. Opening night is March 26.

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