80 CHL players to compete in 2013 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge
CALGARY, Alta. – Hockey Canada, in partnership with the Canadian Hockey League, announced Friday the rosters of the five Canadian teams for the 2013 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, Dec. 29, 2012 to Jan. 4, 2013 in Victoriaville and Drummondville, Que.
Canada’s five regional teams are Atlantic (New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island), Ontario, Pacific (Alberta, British Columbia, Northwest Territories, Yukon), Quebec and West (Manitoba, Nunavut, Saskatchewan).
CHL Players in 2013 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge
Atlantic (9):
Goaltender:
Mason McDonald (Acadie-Bathurst Titan)
Defencemen:
Cody Donaghey (Rouyn-Noranda Huskies)
Duncan MacIntyre (Quebec Remparts)
Forwards:
Kameron Kielly (Gatineau Olympiques)
Matthew Highmore (Saint John Sea Dogs)
Nathan Yetman (PEI Rocket)
Lucas Batt (Victoriaville Tigres)
Clark Bishop (Cape Breton Screaming Eagles)
Zach Moody (Cape Breton Screaming Eagles)
Ontario (21):
Goaltender:
Brent Moran (Niagara IceDogs)
Defencemen:
Roland McKeown (Kingston Frontenacs)
Brandon Prophet (Saginaw Spirit)
Conor Cummins (Sudbury Wolves)
Aaron Ekblad (Barrie Colts)
Jacob Middleton (Owen Sound Attack)
Daniel De Sousa (Belleville Bulls)
Dylan DiPerna (Kingston Frontenacs)
Forwards:
Connor McDavid (Erie Otters)
Eric Cornel (Peterborough Petes)
Sam Bennett (Kingston Frontenacs)
Jared McCann (Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds)
Niki Petti (Belleville Bulls)
Spencer Watson (Kingston Frontenacs)
Josh Ho-Sang (Windsor Spitfires)
Michael Dal Colle (Oshawa Generals)
Brett Hargrave (Sarnia Sting)
Robby Fabbri (Guelph Storm)
Dante Salituro (Ottawa 67’s)
Damian Bourne (Mississauga Steelheads)
Jaden Lindo (Owen Sound Attack)
Pacific (18):
Goaltender:
Payton Lee (Vancouver Giants)
Defencemen:
Ryan Gagnon (Victoria Royals)
Joseph Hicketts (Victoria Royals)
Riley Stadel (Kelowna Rockets)
Brycen Martin (Swift Current Broncos)
Josh Thrower (Calgary Hitmen)
Dysin Mayo (Edmonton Oil Kings)
Forwards:
Carson Bolduc (Prince George Cougars)
Conner Bleackley (Red Deer Rebels)
Thomas Foster (Vancouver Giants)
Reid Duke (Lethbridge Hurricanes)
Ty Mappin (Everett Silvertips)
Matt Revel (Saskatoon Blades)
Brayden Point (Moose Jaw Warriors)
Jake Virtanen (Calgary Hitmen)
Tyler Sandhu (Everett Silvertips)
John Quenneville (Brandon Wheat Kings)
Ryan Graham (Saskatoon Blades)
Quebec (18):
Goaltender:
Alex Bureau (Cape Breton Screaming Eagles)
Defencemen:
Carl Neill (Sherbrooke Phoenix)
Olivier LeBlanc (Saint John Sea Dogs)
Tristan Pomerleau (Victoriaville Tigres)
Jonathan Deschamps (Sherbrooke Phoenix)
Julien Bahl (Blainville-Boisbriand Armada)
Loik Léveillé (Baie-Comeau Drakkar)
Alexandre Carrier (Gatineau Olympiques)
Forwards:
Nick Marois (Chicoutimi Sagueneens)
Timothé Simard (Val-d’Or Foreurs)
Mathieu Ayotte (Victoriaville Tigres)
Nicolas Aubé-Kubel (Val-d’Or Foreurs)
Francis Perron (Rouyn-Noranda Huskies)
Alexis Pépin (PEI Rocket)
Félix-Antoine Savage (Victoriaville Tigres)
Nicolas Hébert (Rimouski Oceanic)
Vincent Deslauriers (Sherbrooke Phoenix)
Daniel Audette (Sherbrooke Phonex)
West (14):
Defencemen:
Haydn Fleury (Red Deer Rebels)
Reid Zalitach (Vancouver Giants)
Ryan Pilon (Lethbridge Hurricanes)
Jordan Thomson (Kamloops Blazers)
Forwards:
Jayce Hawryluk (Brandon Wheat Kings)
Adam Brooks (Regina Pats)
Colin Shirley (Kootenay Ice)
Rourke Chartier (Kelowna Rockets)
Tim Vanstone (Prince Albert Raiders)
Josh Uhrich (Moose Jaw Warriors)
Austin Glover (Kelowna Rockets)
Reid Gardiner (Prince Albert Raiders)
Dawson Leedahl (Everett Silvertips)
Miles Warkentine (Moose Jaw Warriors)
“This is an important tournament for Canada’s young, up-and-coming players, as it is their first opportunity to impress scouts in best-on-best competition,” said Kevin Prendergast, Hockey Canada’s head scout for the men’s Program of Excellence. “Hockey fans in Quebec can expect the cream of the crop from this age group to be on the ice in Victoriaville and Drummondville.”
The 2013 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge features 10 teams, with the five from Canada joined by teams from Finland, Russia, Slovakia, Sweden and the United States. The teams are split into two groups, with each team playing four preliminary games before the playoff round.
CLICK HERE FOR THE 2013 WORLD UNDER-17 HOCKEY CHALLENGE SCHEDULE
International rosters will be announced closer to the start of the tournament.
The 27-game tournament will be centred out of the Colisée, home of the QMJHL’s Victoriaville Tigres, and Centre Marcel-Dionne, home of the QMJHL’s Drummondville Voltigeurs. In addition, three communities – Nicolet, Plessisville and Saint-Pierre-les-Becquets – will host pre-competition games along with Victoriaville and Drummondville on Dec. 28.
The gold medal game will be held Jan. 4 at 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT and will be shown on TSN/RDS, Hockey Canada’s official broadcasters. All other games at the tournament, including 20 preliminary round games, three placement games, both semifinals and the bronze medal game, will be available through FASTHockey at hockeycanada.fasthockey.com. Fans can watch all the action for free by following three steps:
STEP 1: Visit hockeycanada.fasthockey.com and sign up for a free FASTHockey account.
STEP 2: Like the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge on Facebook at www.facebook.com/worldu17.
STEP 3: Just prior to the game, click the HC on FASTHockey link on the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge Facebook page to watch.
Five-game ticket packages are available for purchase, including tickets to any five games for just $50. In addition, 13-game packages are available in both Victoriaville and Drummondville for just $125, along with a flex package that includes 25 tickets to any games in either city, excluding medal games, for $250. For more information on tickets, including how to purchase, CLICK HERE.
The 2013 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge will bring together the top players in the world born in 1996 or later. The regional under-17 program is the first step in Hockey Canada’s Program of Excellence. Many players who compete at the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge go on to represent Canada with the National Men’s Under-18 Team, National Junior Team and National Men’s Team.
Since the first World Under-17 Hockey Challenge (then known as the Quebec Esso Cup) in 1986, more than 1,200 NHL draft picks have played in the tournament, including nine of the last 12 first-overall selections (Ilya Kovalchuk, 2001; Rick Nash, 2002; Marc-André Fleury, 2003; Alexander Ovechkin, 2004; Erik Johnson, 2006; Patrick Kane, 2007; John Tavares, 2009; Taylor Hall, 2010; Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, 2011).
For more information on the 2013 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, please visit www.hockeycanada.ca/wu17, or follow along via social media at www.facebook.com/worldu17 or www.twitter.com/hc_wu17.