Vancouver, Victoria to host 2019 World Junior Championship

Vancouver and Victoria, British Columbia will jointly host the 2019 World Junior Championship, Hockey Canada announced Thursday.

The tournament returns to B.C. for the first time since 2006, when Kamloops, Kelowna, and Vancouver hosted the best teenage hockey players on the planet. Canada won gold that year, the country's second of five in a row.

Hockey Canada's chief operating officer Scott Smith said the following in a statement:

While hosted in Vancouver and Victoria, the bid put forward by BC Hockey and the province is truly provincial in nature, with positive impacts extending province-wide to communities beyond the two host-cities. The province of British Columbia and the cities of Vancouver and Victoria have a history of hosting successful, world-class events, including the 2006 IIHF World Junior Championship. We are confident in this committee’s ability to successfully execute on their vision for the 2019 IIHF World Junior Championship, and we look forward to working with them to ensure we leave a lasting legacy in B.C. and across the country that helps us continue to grow and foster the game from the grassroots to elite levels.

This year's tournament is in Toronto and Montreal. Buffalo will host in 2018, the Czech Republic in 2020, and Canada again in 2021.