World Junior A Challenge comes to Cornwall

Hockey Canada has announced the 15th edition of the World Junior A Challenge will be headed back to Ontario in 2020, with Cornwall set to host the international Junior A showcase from December 13th to 19th. This marks the second time, and first since Cobourg and Whitby co-hosted in 2015, that Ontario will welcome the event.

The 2020 World Junior A Challenge represents a partnership between Hockey Canada, the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL), Hockey Eastern Ontario (HEO) and the Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL), as well as the local host committee and NHL Central Scouting.

Fans from across the country will have a chance to cheer on the best players from two Canadian teams – Team Canada East and Team Canada West – as they compete for a gold medal at 4,800-seat Ed Lumley Arena at the Cornwall Civic Complex, home of the CCHL’s Cornwall Colts.

“It is an exciting time for the city and fans of Cornwall, and we know the local host committee is already hard at work to ensure it delivers a world-class event for all participants and fans,” said Dean McIntosh, vice-president of events and properties with Hockey Canada. “We look forward to returning to Ontario for the World Junior A Challenge and leaving behind a legacy to support the growth and development of minor hockey in the region.”

The World Junior A Challenge has historically had an economic impact of over $3 million to host communities.

“The City of Cornwall is proud to host the World Junior A Challenge. I am confident our world-class facilities and hockey super-fans will make our community an ideal location for this entertaining and competitive tournament,” said Mayor Bernadette Clement.

Since the event’s inception in 2006, more than 300 NHL draft picks have played in the tournament, including 42 first-round selections (Beau Bennett, Jacob Bernard-Docker, Brock Boeser, Alexander Burmistrov, Dennis Cholowski, Joe Colborne, Kyle Connor, Grigori Denisenko, Nikolaj Ehlers, Dante Fabbro, Nikita Filatov, Mikhail Grigorenko, Denis Guryanov, Ryan Johnson, Tyson Jost, Dmitri Kulikov, Evgeny Kuznetsov, Elias Lindholm, Hampus Lindholm, John Moore, Vladislav Namestnikov, Riley Nash, Alex Newhook, Valeri Nichushkin, Dylan Olsen, David Pastrnak, Vasily Podkolzin, German Rubtsov, Ilya Samsonov, Jordan Schmaltz, Nick Schmaltz, Jaden Schwartz, Brendan Smith, Andrei Svechnikov, Evgeny Svechnikov, Vladimir Tarasenko, Kyle Turris, Alexander Wennberg, Andrei Vasilevski, Jakub Vrana, Nail Yakupov and Jakub Zboril).

“The City of Cornwall, along with the Colts hockey club and the CCHL, have been tremendously supportive of CJHL events in recent years, including the National Junior A Championship and CJHL Prospects Game,” said CJHL president Brent Ladds. “We have no doubt that the 2020 World Junior A Challenge will be a success in Cornwall, given the large Junior A fan base that is present in that part of the country.”

Of the 13 gold medal games at the World Junior A Challenge, 10 have featured at least one Canadian team. Team Canada West has captured gold five times (2006, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2017), silver three times (2008, 2009, 2012) and bronze twice (2013, 2018). Team Canada East has five silver medals (2006, 2007, 2010, 2011 2016) and one bronze (2008).

Additional Information

For more information on the World Junior A Challenge, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along via social media on Facebook or Twitter.

Additional Events

Looking for other fun things to do in Cornwall? Make sure to check out our Events page for info on upcoming events in the area!

Visit Cornwall!

Planning a visit to Cornwall? Cornwall Tourism can help. Email us at info@cornwalltourism.com to request a copy of our Visitor Guide or contact us at (613) 938-4748. You can also stop by the Cornwall Tourism office at the Cornwall Civic Complex (100 Water Street). The office is open Monday to Friday from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm – we would be happy to answer your questions and provide you with recommendations and information to make your visit to Cornwall even more memorable!

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Article courtesy Hockey Canada Communications
Photo by Bobby Lefebvre, www.icelevel.com