Wayne Gretzky scored 17 points to lead the 1978 World Junior Championship.
Gretzky represented Canada at the second World Junior Championship, held in Canada from December 22, 1977, to January 3, 1978. At 16, he was the youngest player in the tournament, and coach Punch McLean initially had doubts about whether he could handle the competition.
Gretzky answered with eight goals and nine assists for 17 points, finishing first in tournament scoring. He also earned Best Forward and All-Star Team honours. His performance remains especially notable because those 17 points were the most ever scored by a 16-year-old at the World Junior Championship.
Canada did not win gold: the Soviet Union captured its second consecutive title, Sweden took silver, and Canada finished with the bronze medal. The tournament nevertheless established Gretzky as an international star before his NHL career began. The 17-point total is a tournament statistic, not his later senior international totals, which is why figures such as 12 and 14 can appear in other Gretzky records.