Trio of Dogs Get Team Canada Call for World Juniors
OHL Brantford Bulldogs

Trio of Dogs Get Team Canada Call for World Juniors

Published on December 8, 2025 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Brantford Bulldogs News Release


On Monday morning, Hockey Canada announced its Camp Roster for the 2026 World Junior Hockey Championship, taking place in Minneapolis-St.Paul, Minnesota from December 26th to January 5th, with three Bulldogs prominently featured as Jake O'Brien, Jett Luchanko & Ben Danford will all take part at camp in Niagara Falls.

O'Brien, the Bulldogs captain and OHL leading scorer, put himself firmly on the Team Canada radar with a blistering pace to start the season. After setting the Bulldogs rookie scoring record in the 2023-24 season and a 98-point campaign in 2024-25 that led to his 8th overall selection by the Seattle Kraken in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft, O'Brien has stormed out of the gates recording 11 goals & 34 assists for 45 points in 26 games. The fastest player to 200-points to begin a career in franchise history, O'Brien will put his rewriting of the Bulldogs record book on hold to represent Canada for the third time on the international stage. The Toronto product has dawned the Maple Leaf at both the World U17 Hockey Challenge as well as the Hlinka-Gretzky Cup, winning gold at the 2024 edition. With his tremendous vision and hockey intelligence and ability to play in all situations, O'Brien brings a dynamic skill set to Team Canada in search of a gold medal.

Luchanko, the newest Bulldog is also the most experienced on the biggest of stages. A returnee from the 2025 version of Team Canada, the 13th overall selection by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft has opened each of the last two seasons in the National Hockey League skating 8 games with the Flyers. Luchanko finished the 2024-25 season with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and starred in the playoffs at the AHL level, finishing 2nd in team scoring with 6 assists in 7 games. Luchanko's big stage experience was a big reason for the Bulldogs pursuit of the fleet-footed centerman and for his selection to Team Canada. The London native is off to another strong start to open his OHL season, posting 17 points in 11 games with Guelph before being acquired with the Bulldogs where he has settled in quickly posting 2 goals & 3 assists for 5 points in his 5 games in Black & Gold. On the international state, 2026's World Juniors will be Luchanko's 4th time representing Canada, having won a silver medal in the 2022 World U17 Hockey Challenge, with now teammate Ben Danford, and a gold medal at the 2024 U18 World Championships with now teammates Marek Vanacker & Ryerson Leenders.

Danford, the stalwart defensive presence, earned his way to his first World Junior Hockey Championship based on his combination of elite leadership and skill. The Madoc product has made his name as one of the very elite shutdown defensemen in all of junior hockey. Leading the Oshawa Generals to back-to-back OHL Finals, Danford is off to another great start to the season. The 1st round selection, 31st overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, Danford began the season with 4 points in 8 games in Oshawa before coming to Brantford where he's posted 11 assists in 14 games while being named an assistant captain. The brilliant blueliner will play in his 3rd major tournament for Team Canada, having won a silver medal at the 2022 World U17 Hockey Challenge, with now teammate Jett Luchanko, and a gold medal, with now teammate Ryerson Leenders, at the 2024 Hlinka-Gretzky Cup.

The Brantford Bulldogs are so incredibly proud of all of Jake O'Brien, Jett Luchanko & Ben Danford and will cheer them on as they join Bulldogs equipment manager Chris Cook in their quest to bring World Junior Gold back to Canada in 2026!

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Ontario Hockey League Stories from December 8, 2025


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