Hockey Canada’s upcoming summer camps have 34 W-H-L players invited to attend, including a current member of the Saskatoon Blades, a current Prince Albert Raider and four Saskatoon Minor Hockey Association alumni.

A total of 88 players were invited to two different upcoming team camps, 44 to each of the Under-20 and Under-18 teams. Headed to Calgary for the Canadian Junior summer camp, starting July 23, are Raiders defenceman Nolan Allan and Saskatoon product Kevin Korchinski, a blueliner with the Seattle Thunderbirds. The summer camp is the first stage towards possibly playing for Canada at the 2023 World Junior Championship this coming Christmas holiday season in Halifax and Moncton, New Brunswick. In addition, Saskatoon Blades’ defenceman Tanner Molendyk (pictured) plus fellow blueliner Caden Price of Saskatoon and the Kelowna Rockets along with forwards Riley Heidt of Saskatoon and the Prince George Cougars and Dundurn native Brayden Yager of the Moose Jaw Warriors will attend the Canadian Under-18 selection camp, beginning July 20th in Calgary. The survivors will wear the Maple Leaf in Red Deer at the end of July in the return of the Hlinka-Gretzky Cup. Following are the news releases from the W-H-L and Hockey Canada…..

HOCKEY CANADA INVITES 34 WHL PLAYERS TO NATIONAL JUNIOR TEAM SELECTION CAMPS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE / THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2022

Calgary, Alta. – Calgary, Alta. –  34 Western Hockey League players have been invited to participate at a pair of Hockey Canada National Summer Camps in July.

Seventeen WHL players will take part in Canada’s National Men’s Under-18 Team Selection Camp, scheduled for July 20-27 ahead of the 2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, while a further 17 WHL players will participate in Canada’s National Junior Team Summer Camp July 23-27 in advance of the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship.

Both camps will be held in Calgary, Alta.

Hockey Canada announced the camp rosters Thursday morning.

WHL Players – National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team Selection Camp

“We are excited to bring together a group of 44 athletes with a solid foundation of junior and international experience for selection camp,” said Alan Millar, Hockey Canada’s director of player personnel and former general manager of the Moose Jaw Warriors. “As our players are preparing to compete in short-term competition, we know all 44 players will come to camp ready to compete for a spot on the team and the opportunity to wear the Maple Leaf in international competition.”

The player selection process also included Lethbridge Hurricanes general manager Peter Anholt and the Canadian Hockey League general managers committee, which includes Kirt Hill of the Edmonton Oil Kings, John Paddock of the Regina Pats and Barclay Parneta of the Vancouver Giants.

WHL Players – National Men’s Junior Team Summer Camp

“This is an exciting first step as we begin preparations for the upcoming season and the opportunity to compete at the 2023 World Juniors on home ice in Halifax and Moncton this December,” Millar noted. “We are excited about this group of players, and we look forward to returning to the ice for a highly-competitive camp to kick off a new season.”

Canada’s National Junior Team Summer Camp staff will feature six experienced coaches from across the CHL, three of whom ply their trade in the WHL. Shaun Clouston (Kamloops Blazers), Brent Kisio (Lethbridge Hurricanes) and Brad Lauer (Edmonton Oil Kings) will all take part in the five-day camp.

Eighteen of the 22 WHL Clubs will send at least one player to the Hockey Canada Summer Camps. The Seattle Thunderbirds will be represented by five players, while the Moose Jaw Warriors boast four invitees. The Kelowna Rockets, Prince George Cougars and Winnipeg ICE each have three players invited to the Summer Camps. The Brandon Wheat Kings, Red Deer Rebels and Vancouver Giants will be represented by two players, while the Calgary Hitmen, Kamloops Blazers, Lethbridge Hurricanes, Prince Albert Raiders, Regina Pats, Saskatoon Blades, Spokane Chiefs, Swift Current Broncos, Tri-City Americans and Victoria Royals each have one invitee to the Hockey Canada Summer Camps.

The 2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup is scheduled for July 31-August 6 at the Peavey Mart Centrium in Red Deer, Alta.

The 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship will be held in Halifax, N.S. and Moncton, N.B. from December 26, 2022 through January 5, 2023.
June 16, 2022

NR.034.22

ROSTERS NAMED FOR CANADA’S NATIONAL MEN’S SUMMER UNDER-18 TEAM SELECTION CAMP AND CANADA’S NATIONAL JUNIOR TEAM SUMMER CAMP
Calgary-based camps set stage for 2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup and 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship

CALGARY, Alta. – Hockey Canada has invited 88 players to participate in Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team selection camp and Canada’s National Junior Team summer camp, set to take place this July at the Markin MacPhail Centre at WinSport’s Canada Olympic Park in Calgary.

As part of Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team selection camp, 44 players – four goaltenders, 14 defencemen and 26 forwards – will compete for an opportunity to wear the Maple Leaf at the 2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup in Red Deer, Alta. The selection camp, which takes place July 20-23, will include a variety of on- and off-ice sessions. Following the selection of the final roster on July 24, Team Canada will play a pair of games against Red and White teams from Canada’s National Junior Team summer camp.

Alan Millar (Tottenham, Ont.) , Hockey Canada’s director of player personnel, led the player selection process with assistance from Tyler Dietrich (Vancouver, B.C.), senior manager of hockey operations, and Byron Bonora (Brooks, Alta.), manager of hockey operations and U17 head scout.

The player selection process also included Peter Anholt (Prince Albert, Sask./Lethbridge, WHL) and James Boyd (Mississauga, Ont./Ottawa, OHL) of the Program of Excellence management group, and the Canadian Hockey League general managers committee, made up of Pierre Cloutier (Rouyn-Noranda, Que./Blainville-Boisbriand, QMJHL), Kirt Hill (Winnipeg, Man./Edmonton, WHL), Jim Hulton (Wolfe Island, Ont./Charlottetown, QMJHL), John Paddock (Oak River, Man./Regina, WHL), Barclay Parneta (Saskatoon, Sask./Vancouver, WHL), Cam Russell (Halifax, N.S./Halifax, QMJHL) and Steve Staios (Hamilton, Ont./Hamilton, OHL).

“We are excited to bring together a group of 44 athletes with a solid foundation of junior and international experience for selection camp,” said Millar. “As our players are preparing to compete in short-term competition, we know all 44 players will come to camp ready to compete for a spot on the team and the opportunity to wear the Maple Leaf in international competition.”

44 players – 4 goaltenders, 14 defenseman and 26 forwards – will also be on the ice in Calgary for Canada’s National Junior Team summer camp, set for July 23-27.

The camp roster features 26 players that have been selected in the NHL Draft, including eight first-round picks: Nolan Allan (CHI), Brandt Clarke (LAK), Corson Ceulemans (CBJ), Zach Dean (VGK), Wyatt Johnston (DAL), Zachary L’Heureux (NSH), Brennan Othmann (NYR) and Chase Stillman (NJD).

“This is an exciting first step as we begin preparations for the upcoming season and the opportunity to compete at the 2023 World Juniors on home ice in Halifax and Moncton this December,” Millar added. “We are excited about this group of players, and we look forward to returning to the ice for a highly-competitive camp to kick off a new season.”

Canada’s National Junior Team summer camp staff will feature six experienced coaches from across the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), including Shaun Clouston (Viking, Alta./Kamloops, WHL), Steve Hartley (Hawkesbury, Ont./Drummondville, QMJHL) , Jim Hulton (Kingston, Ont./Charlottetown, QMJHL), Brent Kisio (Calgary, Alta./Lethbridge, WHL), Brad Lauer (Humboldt, Sask./Edmonton, WHL) and Ryan Oulahen (Newmarket, Ont./North Bay, OHL).

Clouston recently completed his third season as head coach of the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League, guiding the Blazers to a 48-17-3-0 record, good for top spot in the B.C Division. He was an assistant coach for Canada at back-to-back Memorial of Ivan Hlinka tournaments in 2014 and 2015 and was behind the Canadian bench as head coach at the 2016 IIHF U18 World Championship.

Hartley has served as head coach of the Drummondville Voltigeurs of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) for four seasons (2019-22) after serving two seasons (2017-18) as an assistant. Hartley was a camp coach at Canada’s National Men’s Under-18 Team summer development camp last year. He also served as an assistant coach with Team Canada Black at the 2019 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.

Hulton just completed his sixth season as head coach and general manager of the QMJHL’s Charlottetown Islanders, guiding the franchise to its first-ever championship series appearance following a club-record 48-win season. Hulton was an assistant coach with Canada’s National Junior Team at the 2019 IIHF World Junior Championship and won silver and gold as an assistant coach at the 2004 and 2005 IIHF World Junior Championships, respectively.

Kisio recently finished his seventh season as head coach of the Lethbridge Hurricanes of the Western Hockey League (WHL). He most recently served as assistant coach with Canada’s National Junior Team at the 2019 IIHF World Junior Championship. Kisio previously coached Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team at the 2017 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup, winning a gold medal, and has twice served on the coaching staff at the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, winning a silver medal with Team Pacific in 2014.

Lauer is in his fourth season as head coach of the Edmonton Oil Kings of the Western Hockey League (WHL), guiding the team to a WHL championship following a 50-win season. The recipient of the Dunc McCallum Memorial Trophy as WHL coach of the year in 2019-20, Lauer made his debut with the Program of Excellence last summer, serving as a camp coach at Canada’s National Men’s Under-18 Team summer development camp.

Oulahen just completed his second full season as head coach of the North Bay Battalion of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) after being named interim head coach during the 2019-20 campaign. He spent just over two seasons as head coach of the OHL’s Flint Firebirds (2017-18) following six seasons as an assistant coach with Battalion. Oulahen won a gold medal as an assistant coach with Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team at the 2018 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, was head coach of Team Canada White at the 2017 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge and twice served as an assistant, with Team Canada Red in 2014 and Team Canada Black in 2015.

Hockey Canada announced in May that the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship will be held in Halifax, N.S., and Moncton, N.B., Dec. 26, 2022 to Jan. 5, 2023.