Hockey Canada cancels several World Junior pre-tournament games

Hockey Canada announced on Saturday that several of their pre-tournament games for the 2022 World Juniors have been cancelled.

The pre-tournament was supposed to begin tomorrow, December 19th, but with the spread of the Omicron variant, Hockey Canada has decided to play it safe, and pre-tournament games won't begin until Thursday, December 23rd. An amended pre-tournament schedule is expected to be released in the coming days.

"In the interest of the health and safety of all participants, and following in-depth discussions between Hockey Canada, the International Ice Hockey Federation, local organizing committee and the event medical advisory committee, along with Alberta Health and Alberta Health Services, we have decided to restructure the pre-tournament schedule ahead of the 2022 World Juniors," said Scott Smith, president and chief operating officer of Hockey Canada. "Although this was a difficult decision that was made with careful consideration, we understand this is challenging for players, coaching and support staffs, and fans. However, it is our goal to host a safe and successful event, and we will continue to take every precaution necessary to achieve that goal and distribute medals on Jan. 5."

The 2022 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship is set to get underway on Boxing Day, as usual. The first game of the tournament will see Finland face-off against Germany at 2pm ET/12pm MT (local). Canada will play their first game on Boxing Day at 7pm ET/5pm MT against the Czech Republic.

In an effort to maintain the health and safety of all participants and the community at large, the @LordcoParts Road to the #WorldJuniors schedule has been amended, and pre-tournament games will now begin Dec. 23.

A finalized schedule will be announced in the coming days.— Hockey Canada (@HockeyCanada) December 18, 2021

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