Canada’s para hockey players join women, NHLers at 2026 orientation camps

CALGARY — Hockey Canada has invited 20 para hockey players to a national team orientation camp in Calgary as first step toward the 2026 Paralympic Games.

The roster includes 16 players who helped Canada win gold at the 2024 world championship, as well as nine who claimed a silver medal at the 2022 Paralympic Games in Beijing.

Defenders Rob Armstrong, Zach Lavin and Tyrone Henry, forwards Adam Dixon, Liam Hickey, James Dunn, Tyler McGregor and Anton Jacobs-Webb and goaltender Adam Kingsmill played on both squads.

The three goalies, six defenceman and 11 forwards will participate in an orientation camp Aug. 26-28 alongside 30 women and 42 NHL players also summoned to Calgary for the women’s and men’s Olympic team camps.

The Paralympic Games run March 5-15 after the Olympic Games Feb. 6-22 in Milan and Cortina, Italy.

Hockey Canada senior vice-president of hockey operations Scott Salmond called the camps the first step toward the goal of winning three gold medals across Olympic and Paralympic hockey.

“While the next several months will bring intense evaluation and difficult roster decisions, we look forward to kicking off the season in Calgary and giving our athletes and staff a chance to come together and start to become one team as we set our sights on February,” he said Friday in a statement.

Each 15-player Paralympic roster will include two goalies.

Goaltenders Corbin Watson and Jean-François Huneault, defenders Shawn Burnett, Gavin Baggs and Auren Halbert and forwards Vincent Boily, Jonathan Daigle, Dominic Cozzalino, Matteo Pellizari, Micah Kovacevich and Mathieu Lelièvre round out Canada’s camp roster.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 1, 2025.