from Mike Zeisberger of NHL.com,

Canada has been here before. This tournament. This game. This moment.

Even this ice surface.

More often than not in recent times, it hasn't worked out well.

The players on this year's team are constantly reminded of it too. After defeating the Czech Republic 7-2 in the second semifinal at the IIHF World Junior Championship on Thursday, they were peppered with questions regarding past failures in the final.

Canada has won the tournament once in the previous eight years as it prepares for the gold medal game against Sweden at Key Bank Center on Friday (8 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN, RDS). For a country that has captured the World Junior title 16 times, it's a dry spell of epic proportions.

continued