The North Bay Battalion will not have any of its players on Team Canada but there is one other young Battalion rising star who is wearing his country's colours at a different World Junior hockey event.
First-year OHL forward Ihnat Pazii is having a great first half with the North Bay Battalion, and now he’s suiting up for his native Ukraine at the IIHF U20 World Championship, Division 1B in Bled, Slovenia.
Having just turned 17 earlier this month, Pazii has recorded 15 points (6-9–15) through his first 27 OHL games, turning heads at various points along the way with a pair of multi-point outings.
The 5-foot-8, 155Ib. left-winger from Kharkiv, Ukraine has been out of the lineup with an illness for the first two games of the tournament and was expected to make his debut on Thursday against Italy.
“Ihnat is a very proud Ukrainian and this opportunity to be with his friends and represent his country in front of his family is a major moment in his career and we are all pulling for him," stated Adam Dennis, Battalion GM who selected Pazii in the first round of the 2023 CHL Import Draft.
"Hockey is an international game and for someone like Ihnat to come into our city in North Bay and make the impact he has shows that.”
Last season Pazii played hockey in North America with Windy City Storm 16U program based out of Chicago.
He produced 14 points (10-4–14) in as many games during HPHL play last season, adding six points (4-2–6) in four playoff games. Previous to that, Pazii had played for the Anaheim Jr. IceDogs 15U AAA during the 2021-22 campaign. He had a strong showing for Ukraine at the 2022 IIHF U18 World Championship, Division 1B, recording nine points (2-7–9) in five games.
Follow along with the tournament at IIHF.com.
