Maple Leafs prospect Ben Danford reportedly invited to Team Canada’s World Juniors camp
Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Ben Danford has reportedly been invited to Team Canada’s training camp for the 2026 World Junior Championships, per The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler.
Hockey Canada will officially announce their full roster of invites on Monday morning for camp, which will run from December 12-22 in Niagara Falls. They will then confirm a final roster ahead of the tournament’s start on Boxing Day.
Danford was selected by the Leafs 31st overall in the first round of the 2024 NHL entry draft, while playing with the OHL’s Oshawa Generals. He spent three seasons in Oshawa and started the year there before he was traded to the Brantford Bulldogs in October.
While captaining the Generals last season, he saw a slight dip in his offensive game, with five goals and 20 assists in 61 games. So far in Brantford, he’s seen better results. In 14 appearances with the Bulldogs, he now has 11 assists, a sign that the new environment is helping develop his offensive skills once again. Above all, the 19-year-old is known for his defensive game and the size he brings on the blue line at 6-foot-2, 200 lbs, with Daily Faceoff
prospect expert Steven Ellis writing this fall:
Danford is a guy his teammates like to rely on because he’s rarely caught making a mistake distributing the puck. I saw Danford play both sides on the blueline last year, but I think he’s got something going on the left side – it fits his shot better. Danford said he hopes to be like Chris Tanev, which I think is a solid comparison. He probably tops out as a No. 4 defenseman in Toronto, but I think he’ll be quite reliable.
Danford has never appeared with Team Canada at the World Juniors, but played with the U18 team at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in 2023. While he’s sure to face some tough competition in fighting for a final spot with the Canadians this year, he’s
projected to land on the roster, per Ellis.The 2026 World Juniors run from December 26-January 5 in Minneapolis-Saint Paul, Minnesota. After back-t0-back quarter-final exits, Canada will be coming in hungry to return to the podium once again.
PRESENTED BY OFF THE ROSTER
Introducing Off The Roster—Toronto Sports, Unfiltered! Toronto sports fans, your new favourite conversation has arrived. Hosted by Cabbie Richards, Lindsay Dunn, and Dan Riccio, Off The Roster dives into the city’s legendary plays, brutal trades, OG jerseys, celebrity tweets, and everything in between. Raw, fun, and totally unfiltered, this is Toronto sports like you’ve never heard it before. Tune in live every weekday morning on the
Nation Network YouTube channel, or catch episodes wherever you stream podcasts. Proudly brought to you by our founding partner, PROLINE. Off The Roster—the new sound in the 6ix.
