Hockey Alberta announced on Friday the top 34 U16 male hockey players that have been short listed for further evaluation in preparation to represent Team Alberta at the 2011 Western Canada U16 Challenge Cup in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE TEAM ALBERTA U16 TOP 34 ROSTER
80 players were evaluated at the Team Alberta U16 Provincial Development Camp in July in Camrose. The 34 short listed players will now be scouted with their club teams until the final 20 player Team Alberta roster is named.
“Our goal is to assemble the most competitive team possible for the Western Canada Challenge Cup,” said Team Alberta Director of Operations, Don Keith. “It was tough to narrow this group down to 34, but we’re excited to watch these young men progress with their clubs teams once the season starts.”
The Challenge Cup pits Alberta against the other three Western provinces. 2011 will be the second year for this event; Alberta captured gold in 2009 with a 6-4 win over Manitoba.
Mathew Dumba and Hunter Shinkurak, who are currently playing for Team Canada at the 2011 Ivan Hlinka Tournament were part of the 2009 Team Alberta U16 Team.
Hockey Alberta also announced on Friday the top 32 U17 male hockey players that have been short listed for further evaluation in preparation to represent Team Pacific at the 2012 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, December 29 - January 4, in Windsor, Ontario.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE TEAM ALBERTA U17 TOP 32 SHORT LIST
The 32 players shortlisted were selected from a group of 46 athletes that competed at Team Alberta’s U17 Provincial Camp in July. The shortlisted players will now be scouted with their club teams until Team Alberta names their 11 athletes to the Team Pacific final roster in November. Team Pacific combines the top 11 players from Alberta (identified, selected and developed through the Team Alberta Program) and the top 11 players from British Columbia.
“Short listing these players is no easy feat,” said Team Alberta Male Coordinator, Justin Fesyk. “The group of players that came to Provincial Camp was very talented, and trying to put together a team that can come together in a short tournament and play a team game is difficult.”
The World Under-17 Hockey Challenge is the pinnacle event for an athlete in the Team Alberta Program and it is the first stage of Hockey Canada’s Program of Excellence, which in turn, leads to the National Team Canada U18 and U20 Programs. Team Pacific will have the opportunity to compete against four other Canadian Teams (West, Ontario, Quebec, Atlantic) and five other national teams from the USA, Finland, Russia, Sweden, and the Czech Republic.
The Team Alberta Program prepares athletes for this prestigious international event by preparing and exposing them to short term competition throughout the Team Alberta process.
At the 2011 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, Team Pacific came home with the bronze medal after beating Team Quebec 5-4 in overtime.
Past Albertan Team Pacific players include Jarome Iginla, Dion Phaneuf, Mike Green, and Devin Setoguchi.
