BEMIDJI — Isa Parekh grew up watching World Juniors. When his brother, Zayne, played for Canada in the 2026 tournament in the Twin Cities, he said the regular experience became surreal.
Isa was in and out of attendance for games at 3M Arena at Mariucci in Minneapolis and Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul. He celebrated a 7-5 win over Czechia on the opening day of pool play. He also watched the Canadians fall 6-4 against the Czechs in the semifinals. The oldest brother, Aydin, flew in for the final game against Finland.
“When I was younger, you always saw the high-end talent from Canada go and play World Juniors, so it was really cool to see my little brother go and not only play, but dominate in that aspect,” Isa said. “It’s easy to be proud of what he did.
“It’s crazy watching your little brother play in front of all those people, and you can’t even guess how many people were watching on TV. Then you go on social media and your little brother is trending in Canada. It’s insane seeing him get all of the recognition. I remember watching him when I was 12 years old. . . Now, he’s on the big stage and on TSN. It’s just crazy.”
Zayne set a new Canadian record for most points by a defenseman in a single tournament. He scored six goals and seven assists in seven games, passing Alex Pietrangelo in the all-time single-tournament rankings.
“That first game against Czech, you could see that he wasn’t himself until the second period came around,” Isa said of Zayne. “He scored that huge goal, and then that power play came up. I went to my dad and said, ‘There’s a high probability he’s going to score here.’ Of course, he got one. He’s just unbelievable with his stick. I love watching him.”
Still, a record-breaking performance came with a sour spin.
For the third year in a row, Canada was eliminated from gold-medal contention by Czechia. The Canadians settled for a third-place finish after beating Finland for the bronze medal.
“Not too much, honestly,” Zayne said about what it means to break the record shortly after the bronze-medal game on Jan. 5. “Obviously, the ultimate goal is to win, and we came up short. (The record is) kind of cool to have, but at the end of the day, I wanted to leave here with a gold medal.”
Czechia forward Maxmilian Curren (12) skates against Canada defenseman Zayne Parekh (19) on Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, during a World Junior Championship semifinal at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul.
Clint Austin / Duluth Media Group
For Isa, a sophomore defenseman on the Bemidji State men’s hockey team, watching his younger brother — an NHL defenseman for the Calgary Flames — make his way through his rookie season and World Juniors has come with some unexpected turns.
Zayne was selected by Calgary with the ninth overall pick in the 2024 draft. He made his NHL debut on April 17 in the Flames’ final regular-season game, scoring his first goal in front of his family.
However, in his first full NHL season, Zayne has struggled to find regular minutes in the lineup, playing in just 11 games and recording one assist. With Calgary being one of many volatile hockey markets in North America, it comes with an extra layer of public criticism.
“When I’m on Twitter and I refresh, the first thing I see is something about Zayne Parekh,” Isa said. “I tell him not to be on it, and he’s not. My parents are bad about it too, like me, because they’re on Twitter all the time. . . I try not to look at it. It sucks seeing people say things about your little brother. At the end of the day, it’s outside noise.”
Isa has had to learn how handle the criticisms he has of himself.
Coming off a rookie season in which he had three goals and 15 assists in 35 games, Isa has one assist through 14 games in his second campaign at BSU, pushing through two different lower-body injuries in the first semester.
“You can see this year, I’m not having the greatest year statistically,” Isa said. “Statistics-wise, I’m not doing well at all. At the end of the day, (Zayne is) not doing well in the NHL either. We have the same statline. Even though he’s playing in the NHL and I’m in college, we have the same stats, so we can lean on each other when stuff gets hard. It’s been a hard year for me and a hard year for him, so having somebody in that situation you’re close with does really help.
Bemidji State’s Isa Parekh skates with the puck against Augustana on Friday, Dec. 5, 2025, at Midco Arena in Sioux Falls.
Trent Singer / Sioux Falls Live
“Last year, people had zero idea who I was. Maybe this year they defend me a little harder. I’ve been hurt a couple of times this year, too, which is a factor. It’s frustrating. . . At the end of the day, I’m just trying to play hockey. We’re just trying to win.”
Slumps come around for every player eventually, which is something Isa reminds himself. But despite his absences from the scoresheet, Isa has developed into a more reliable defender as a sophomore.
“I think my defending is getting better and I am stronger,” Isa said. “You can tell in games I’m not getting pushed around as much as I did last year. I came into college very small, and I got pushed around a lot. I had a good year last year, but I’m trying to grow as a player when I’m not having as many points.”
Zayne said he catches as many Bemidji State games as he can on stream. He does the same for Aydin at Utica University, a Division III school.
He watches his brothers intently.
“His skating’s probably the best out of the three of us,” Zayne said of Isa. “Maybe his shot’s not as good as mine, but he’s a great player. He thinks the game really well. He’s not afraid to battle either.”
When speaking on Aydin, Zayne said, “The way he skates and the way he moves the puck, he’s really good. He probably has to work on his shot some more, but he’s such a smart hockey player. He’s doing really well.
“I got to watch them growing up, so I was at all of their games in minor hockey. I skated with them, and I still skate with them. They’ve helped me so much. I credit so much of my success — honestly, most of my success — to those two.”
Canada defenseman Zayne Parekh (19) celebrates a second-period goal against Czechia on Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, during a World Junior Championship semifinal at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul.
Clint Austin / Duluth Media Group
When Isa gets chances to watch Zayne play, he sees what other people don’t.
“He’s got a really good shot. People criticize his defense, which I don’t think is correct,” Isa said. “He’s got a good stick and he uses his stick very well. I think his body positioning isn’t as good — he could use his body to play more physical. I mean, I know people rip on his defensive play, but his stick work and his positioning are really good. He’s playing against bigger guys, so it has to be good.”
Bemidji State has 12 games left in CCHA play before a MacNaughton Cup champion is crowned. Isa experienced a second-half slide as a freshman and is confident the Beavers will avoid it again.
“We just need to have belief,” Isa said. “We can’t fall into that same thing we did last year. We can’t have that sitting in the back of our minds. We have to play with confidence. We need to go into this weekend pretending like we’ve won the last six games.”
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