U-18 Selection Camp Named

15 WHL PLAYERS INVITED TO CANADA’S SUMMER U18 SELECTION CAMP


CALGARY, AB – Hockey Canada, in partnership with the Canadian Hockey League and Western Hockey League, announced Friday the 42 players who have been invited to attend Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team selection camp, which runs from July 30 to August 2 at Father David Bauer Olympic Arena in Calgary, home of Canada’s national teams.



The roster includes four goaltenders, 14 defencemen and 24 forwards. 15 WHL players are among the 42 named to the selection camp, including 6 defenceman and 9 forwards.

Of the 15, players of note to Saskatchewan are defencemen Derrick Pouliot (Weyburn-Portland Winter Hawks), Morgan Rielly (West Vancouver-Moose Jaw Warriors), Ryan Olsen (Tsawassen BC, Saskatoon Blades), Tyrel Seaman (Choiceland-Brandon Wheat Kings), Chandler Stephenson (Saskatoon-Regina Pats)

The players, born in 1994, were selected by Hockey Canada head scout Kevin Prendergast, in consultation with head coach Steve Spott (Waterloo, Ont./Kitchener, OHL) and assistant coaches Mario Duhamel (St-Bruno, Que./Drummondville, QMJHL) and Don Nachbaur (Kitimat, B.C./Spokane, WHL). Prendergast evaluated the players over the course of the 2010-11 season, following them along with numerous other candidates for the program during league play, as well as during the 2011 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge held from December 29 to January 4 in Winnipeg and Portage la Prairie, Man.



“This selection camp will be competitive and exciting,” Prendergast said. “These players represent the future of Canadian hockey and are a testament to the strength of the Canadian Hockey League and the skill development taking place in minor hockey associations across the country.”



The camp roster includes 19 players from the Ontario Hockey League, 15 from the Western Hockey League, six from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, , one from the Central Canada Hockey League (Junior A) and one from the Ligue de hockey midget AAA du Québec. In total, 37 players (two goaltenders, 14 defencemen and 21 forwards) competed at the 2011 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.



Of the 42 players who have been identified for the selection camp, 22 will be selected for Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team, which will play in the 2011 Memorial of Ivan Hlinka tournament, scheduled for August 8-13 in Slovakia and the Czech Republic.