Treliving, Spezza to lead Canada’s management team at hockey world championship

Advertisement

Advertise with us

CALGARY - Former Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving and Pittsburgh Penguins assistant GM Jason Spezza will lead Canada's management team at the 2026 world hockey championship, Hockey Canada announced Monday.

Read this article for free:

or

Already have an account? Log in here »

We need your support!
Local journalism needs your support!

As we navigate through unprecedented times, our journalists are working harder than ever to bring you the latest local updates to keep you safe and informed.

Now, more than ever, we need your support.

Starting at $15.99 plus taxes every four weeks you can access your Brandon Sun online and full access to all content as it appears on our website.

Subscribe Now

or call circulation directly at (204) 727-0527.

Your pledge helps to ensure we provide the news that matters most to your community!

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Brandon Sun access to your Free Press subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on brandonsun.com
  • Read the Brandon Sun E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
Start now

No thanks

*Your next subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $20.00 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.00 plus GST every four weeks.

CALGARY – Former Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving and Pittsburgh Penguins assistant GM Jason Spezza will lead Canada’s management team at the 2026 world hockey championship, Hockey Canada announced Monday.

Penguins GM Kyle Dubas will join the management team in a support role while focusing on Pittsburgh’s opening-round NHL playoff series. Hockey Canada senior vice-president of high performance and hockey operations Scott Salmond will also support the team.

Treliving will be in his first management role since being fired on March 30, near the end of his third season with the Maple Leafs. He previously spent nine seasons as the GM of the Calgary Flames.

Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving watches his players during the opening week of the team's NHL training camp in Toronto, on Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sammy Kogan
Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving watches his players during the opening week of the team's NHL training camp in Toronto, on Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sammy Kogan

He was co-GM of Canada’s gold-winning team at the 2016 world championship.

Spezza, in his third season as Pittsburgh’s assistant GM, is making his international management debut.

He played for Canada at four world championships, winning one gold (2015) and two silver (2008, 2009). He won one silver (2002) and two bronze (2000, 2001) representing Canada at the world junior championship.

“Brad brings invaluable experience from previous international events and the NHL, and Jason is a rising NHL executive (who) brings a wealth of experience as a player both professionally and internationally, and we are excited that these two will lead our team at the IIHF World Championship,” Salmond said in a statement.

Canada opens the tournament, hosted in the Swiss cities of Zurich and Fribourg, against Sweden on May 15.

Canada has won a tournament-best 23 gold and 53 overall medals at the world championship. Its last gold medal came in 2023 in Tampere, Finland and Riga, Latvia.

The Canadians finished fifth at last year’s tournament after a shock 2-1 defeat to co-host Denmark in the quarterfinals.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 13, 2026.

Report Error Submit a Tip

Sports Breaking News

LOAD MORE