The Canadians and Finns will face off in the 2026 semi-finals after last clashing in WM play during the 2025 group stage, as pictured here with Nathan MacKinnon (#9) and Juuso Parssinen (#61).
photo: © INTERNATIONAL ICE HOCKEY FEDERATION / ANDRE RINGUETTE
For decades, showdowns between Canada and Finland in IIHF competition typically ended in heartbreak for the Finns. Yet nowadays, especially at the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship, things are much more even. Saturday’s Canada-Finland semi-final is a tough one to predict.
Coach Misha Donskov’s Canadians topped Group B with 20 points and coach Antti Pennanen’s Finns were second in Group A with 18 points In the quarter-finals, Canada ended the U.S.’s one-year reign as champs with a 4-0 win and Finland beat Czechia 4-1. Canada’s goal difference is 37-13 and Finland’s is 35-12. These performances aren’t mirror images, but they’re close.
There is no room for complacency.
“Our first period was definitely better than in the last game [a 4-2 loss to host Switzerland], so I think that was good,” said Finnish blueliner Henri Jokiharju after eliminating Czechia. “But we’ve still got to learn and be better for the next game.”
In the context of the last 10 years, consider how Canada and Finland have fared head-to-head when the big one’s on the line. The Canadians defeated the Finns in the WM gold medal game in 2016 (2-0) and 2021 (3-2 in overtime). But Finland triumphed over Canada in the final in 2019 (3-1) and 2022 (4-3 in overtime).
This year, Finland entered the Milan Olympics as reigning champs after winning their first Winter Games gold in Beijing 2022 with non-NHL talent. Memorably, the Finns nearly knocked off Canada in the Milan semi-finals, taking a 2-0 lead, but the Canadians rallied to win 3-2 on Nathan MacKinnon’s goal with 35 seconds remaining.
Star power as well as team play often becomes critical at this stage of the Worlds.
As far as 2026 Olympic returnees, Canada boasts a budding superstar in 19-year-old Macklin Celebrini (6+6=12), who has built on his Olympic all-star performance alongside certified legend Sidney Crosby (1+9=10). Both have a shot at the tournament scoring title. The Finns have more Milan alumni, including the likes of Anton Lundell (4+2=6) and recent addition Mikael Granlund (1+3=4). But the key figure is superstar captain Aleksander Barkov (2+7=9), who was injured all season and unavailable to play the Olympics.
One of the world’s best two-way centres, the towering Barkov – who captained the Florida Panthers to the last two Stanley Cups – provides a counterpoint to Crosby’s Triple Gold Club pedigree.
Both teams also have enjoyed good secondary scoring without sacrificing defensive awareness. That encompasses everyone from Canadian veterans like Ryan O’Reilly (4+3=7) and Mark Scheifele (3+4=7) to Finnish journeymen like Jesse Puljujarvi (4+5=9) and Lenni Hameenaho (3+5=8).
The Finns have done well to activate their defence, with standout contributions from Jokiharju (2+6=8) and Ville Heinola (3+3=6). Canada’s presumed edge in this department diminishes with the tournament-ending injury to Evan Bouchard, who took a bad hit from the U.S.’s Ryan Lindgren. With the Edmonton Oilers, Bouchard is the second highest-scoring NHL D-man in playoff history on a points-per-game basis (1.08) after Bobby Orr (1.24).
Each nation has gotten strong goaltending from a mid-20’s emerging NHL stalwart. Canada’s Jet Greaves (1.33 GAA, 94.3 save percentage) boasts slightly better numbers than Justus Annunen (1.67 GAA, 92.3 save percentage).
Longtime Team Canada and Toronto Maple Leafs star John Tavares has praised Greaves for “the calmness and the poise and his ability to read the play.”
Both Canada and Finland have excelled on special teams overall. While the Finns have scored eight power play goals to Canada’s three, it’s worth noting that Pennanen’s crew did not convert with the man advantage in their last two games against Switzerland and Czechia.
Faceoff plays will be intriguing to watch. Canada traditionally dominates on draws, but it is Finland that has the advantage at these Worlds. All four Finnish centres are at 60 percent or better on faceoffs here in Zurich, from Barkov (second overall, 68.5) to Hannes Bjorninen (ninth overall, 60.0).
This semi-final may well boil down to Finland’s ability to stifle the Celebrini-Crosby duo. Not only do these celebrated Canadians bring elite talent and consistency, but they are also highly motivated after losing 2-1 to Denmark in last year’s quarter-finals and 2-1 in overtime to the Americans at the 2026 Olympics (even though an injured Crosby did not suit up in the latter game).
If Crosby and Celebrini get on the board early, watch out. Switzerland scored twice in the first four minutes in their group-stage win over Finland.
That said, an early lead would also benefit the Finns. They can then settle into their favoured counterattacking style and deny Canada time and space in the neutral zone. But the Finns also must not go into a complete defensive shell – that was their downfall in the Milan quarter-final. This will be a tough, physical affair regardless, as there are definite commonalities between these teams’ styles.
Their last Worlds playoffs meeting saw Canada win 4-1 in the quarter-finals in Tampere in 2023. After breaking the hosts’ hearts, Canada went on to win its record-setting 28th world title. Saturday’s semi-final, though, will likely be tighter. It’s a true coin flip.
Coach Misha Donskov’s Canadians topped Group B with 20 points and coach Antti Pennanen’s Finns were second in Group A with 18 points In the quarter-finals, Canada ended the U.S.’s one-year reign as champs with a 4-0 win and Finland beat Czechia 4-1. Canada’s goal difference is 37-13 and Finland’s is 35-12. These performances aren’t mirror images, but they’re close.
There is no room for complacency.
“Our first period was definitely better than in the last game [a 4-2 loss to host Switzerland], so I think that was good,” said Finnish blueliner Henri Jokiharju after eliminating Czechia. “But we’ve still got to learn and be better for the next game.”
In the context of the last 10 years, consider how Canada and Finland have fared head-to-head when the big one’s on the line. The Canadians defeated the Finns in the WM gold medal game in 2016 (2-0) and 2021 (3-2 in overtime). But Finland triumphed over Canada in the final in 2019 (3-1) and 2022 (4-3 in overtime).
This year, Finland entered the Milan Olympics as reigning champs after winning their first Winter Games gold in Beijing 2022 with non-NHL talent. Memorably, the Finns nearly knocked off Canada in the Milan semi-finals, taking a 2-0 lead, but the Canadians rallied to win 3-2 on Nathan MacKinnon’s goal with 35 seconds remaining.
Star power as well as team play often becomes critical at this stage of the Worlds.
As far as 2026 Olympic returnees, Canada boasts a budding superstar in 19-year-old Macklin Celebrini (6+6=12), who has built on his Olympic all-star performance alongside certified legend Sidney Crosby (1+9=10). Both have a shot at the tournament scoring title. The Finns have more Milan alumni, including the likes of Anton Lundell (4+2=6) and recent addition Mikael Granlund (1+3=4). But the key figure is superstar captain Aleksander Barkov (2+7=9), who was injured all season and unavailable to play the Olympics.
One of the world’s best two-way centres, the towering Barkov – who captained the Florida Panthers to the last two Stanley Cups – provides a counterpoint to Crosby’s Triple Gold Club pedigree.
Both teams also have enjoyed good secondary scoring without sacrificing defensive awareness. That encompasses everyone from Canadian veterans like Ryan O’Reilly (4+3=7) and Mark Scheifele (3+4=7) to Finnish journeymen like Jesse Puljujarvi (4+5=9) and Lenni Hameenaho (3+5=8).
The Finns have done well to activate their defence, with standout contributions from Jokiharju (2+6=8) and Ville Heinola (3+3=6). Canada’s presumed edge in this department diminishes with the tournament-ending injury to Evan Bouchard, who took a bad hit from the U.S.’s Ryan Lindgren. With the Edmonton Oilers, Bouchard is the second highest-scoring NHL D-man in playoff history on a points-per-game basis (1.08) after Bobby Orr (1.24).
Each nation has gotten strong goaltending from a mid-20’s emerging NHL stalwart. Canada’s Jet Greaves (1.33 GAA, 94.3 save percentage) boasts slightly better numbers than Justus Annunen (1.67 GAA, 92.3 save percentage).
Longtime Team Canada and Toronto Maple Leafs star John Tavares has praised Greaves for “the calmness and the poise and his ability to read the play.”
Both Canada and Finland have excelled on special teams overall. While the Finns have scored eight power play goals to Canada’s three, it’s worth noting that Pennanen’s crew did not convert with the man advantage in their last two games against Switzerland and Czechia.
Faceoff plays will be intriguing to watch. Canada traditionally dominates on draws, but it is Finland that has the advantage at these Worlds. All four Finnish centres are at 60 percent or better on faceoffs here in Zurich, from Barkov (second overall, 68.5) to Hannes Bjorninen (ninth overall, 60.0).
This semi-final may well boil down to Finland’s ability to stifle the Celebrini-Crosby duo. Not only do these celebrated Canadians bring elite talent and consistency, but they are also highly motivated after losing 2-1 to Denmark in last year’s quarter-finals and 2-1 in overtime to the Americans at the 2026 Olympics (even though an injured Crosby did not suit up in the latter game).
If Crosby and Celebrini get on the board early, watch out. Switzerland scored twice in the first four minutes in their group-stage win over Finland.
That said, an early lead would also benefit the Finns. They can then settle into their favoured counterattacking style and deny Canada time and space in the neutral zone. But the Finns also must not go into a complete defensive shell – that was their downfall in the Milan quarter-final. This will be a tough, physical affair regardless, as there are definite commonalities between these teams’ styles.
Their last Worlds playoffs meeting saw Canada win 4-1 in the quarter-finals in Tampere in 2023. After breaking the hosts’ hearts, Canada went on to win its record-setting 28th world title. Saturday’s semi-final, though, will likely be tighter. It’s a true coin flip.