Molendyk named to Hockey Canada’s World Junior roster
Saskatoon, SK – Saskatoon Blades defenceman Tanner Molendyk is one of 25 players named to Hockey Canada’s 2025 World Junior Hockey Championship roster. This marks the second consecutive year the Nashville Predators prospect has an opportunity to showcase his talents on an international stage.
Molendyk cracked Canada’s roster for last year’s annual tournament in Sweden, but sustained an upper-body injury in preliminary play that kept him out of competition. The 19-year-old blueliner finished the 2023-24 season in Saskatoon with ten goals, 46 assists, and 56 points in 50 games. Molendyk finished the regular season top ten in +/- amongst WHL defencemen at +40 and tacked on 18 penalty minutes. The McBride, BC product was a workhorse in the Blades’ run to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final with three goals, seven assists, and ten points in 16 playoff games, all while tasked shutting down opposing club’s top stars.
The fourth-year Blade missed the team’s first six games of this season away at Predators training camp and preseason. After being the final cut from the NHL roster at 19 years old, Molendyk’s recorded four goals and 17 assists in 21 games with the Blue and Gold. The Blades’ fifth overall pick in the 2020 WHL Prospects Draft has helped position the club at first place in the Eastern Conference with a 17-8-2-2 record.
The 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship begins in Ottawa on Boxing Day with four games, including Canada taking on Finland at the Canadian Tire Centre at 6:30 p.m. CST. The annual tournament runs from December 26 – January 5.
