Moose Jaw 2023: World Championships competition schedule announced

World Para Ice Hockey has announced the competition schedule for the World Para Ice Hockey Championships A-Pool, which will take place in Canada when the top eight-ranked teams compete for a world title from 28 May – 4 June in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. 

It will mark the first time Hockey Canada has hosted a World Para Ice Hockey sanctioned event and the first major event in the sport to be played in Canada outside of the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. The tournament will be played at the Moose Jaw Events Centre.

“World Para Ice Hockey is excited to bring the World Championships for the first time to Canada, a nation that has had tremendous success in the sport, winning medals and helping grow the game,” said World Para Ice Hockey Manager Michelle Laflamme. “This will be an opportunity for those in Canada and around the world to tune-in and see the best our sport has to offer with fierce competition and compelling storylines as we begin the next Paralympic cycle.”

The USA will enter the tournament as the defending Paralympic and world champions, having won its record-breaking fifth world title in 2021 and Paralympic gold in Beijing in 2022. The USA has won five of the last seven World Championships. Host nation Canada is the reigning world and Paralympic silver medallists and have four world titles to its name, last claiming gold on the world stage in 2017.

The event will also feature three-time World Championships medallists South Korea, Paralympic bronze medallists China, five-time World Championship medallists Norway, the next Paralympic Winter Games hosts Italy, as well as Czechia and Germany. Both China and Germany are newcomers to the A-Pool after finishing in the top two at the 2021 World Championships B-Pool.

Teams will be split into two groups of four, with the top two teams earning a bye to the semi-finals and the bottom two seeds playing in the quarterfinals. The puck will drop when Czechia faces Korea on 28 May in a rematch of the 2019 bronze-medal game, with Italy challenging China and Norway facing Germany in the opening day’s other games.

The second day of preliminary play will be highlighted by a Canada-Korea contest – a rematch of the Beijing 2022 Paralympic semi-final – and the third day will pit 2026 Paralympic hosts Italy against A-Pool newcomers Germany. The preliminary round will close when Canada faces arch-rival USA in a rematch of the gold-medal game from the last Paralympics and World Championships on 31 May. The gold and bronze-medal games will be played on 4 June to close out the tournament.

“Hockey Canada is thrilled to partner with the City of Moose Jaw to host the World Para Ice Hockey Championships this spring,” said Ryan Robins, director of events and properties with Hockey Canada. “Our organisation is committed to continuing to grow the Para game, and hosting this prestigious event in Canada for the first time is a significant milestone. We are looking forward to a fantastic week of hockey and are excited to welcome the competing teams to Saskatchewan in May.”

Founded in 1882, Moose Jaw is the fourth largest city in the province of Saskatchewan. Moose Jaw is a significant industrial center and important railway junction for the province’s agricultural produce and is home to the Canadian Arms Forces Snowbirds, Canada’s military aerobatic air demonstration team. 

The Moose Jaw Events Centre, Southern Saskatchewan’s premier events centre, has previously hosted two Curling Canada’s Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the Canada Cup of Curling, Hockey Canada’s Telus Cup, the Canadian Wheelchair Curling National Championships, and the Canadian Hockey League’s Canada-Russia series, in addition to international recording artists Dolly Parton, Motley Crue, Backstreet Boys, and Alan Jackson. The Moose Jaw Events Centre is also home to the Western Hockey League’s Moose Jaw Warriors.

“The City of Moose Jaw is very excited to welcome the world to our beautiful city and world-class facility this May, as we host the 2023 World Para Ice Hockey Championships,” said Mayor Clive Tolley. “This is a first for Canada, Saskatchewan, and Moose Jaw and the positive social, economic and community impacts will be incredible. Hosting an International Championship of this calibre is something very special and we are very proud to be selected as the first in Canada to be the site of these championships.”

Tournament Schedule

Sunday, 28 May
11:00 – Korea vs. Czechia 
15:00 – China vs. Italy
19:00 – Norway vs. Germany

Monday, 29 May
11:00 – Czechia vs. USA
15:00 – Norway vs. China
19:00 – Canada vs. Korea

Tuesday, 30 May
11:00 – Germany vs. Italy 
15:00 – USA vs. Korea
19:00 – Canada vs. Czechia 

Wednesday, 31 May
11:00 – China vs. Germany 
15:00 – Italy vs. Norway
19:00 – USA vs. Canada 

Friday, 2 June
15:00 – Quarterfinal 1
19:00 – Quarterfinal 2 

Saturday, 3 June
11:00 – Playoffs 7-8
15:00 – Semi-final 1
19:00 – Semi-final 2 

Sunday, 4 June
11:00 – Playoffs 5-6
15:00 – Bronze-medal game
19:00 – Gold-medal game