Story Courtesy of Hockey Canada
Photo: Jonathan Kozub
CALGARY, Alberta – Team Canada East and Team Canada West have announced their final rosters ahead of the 2023 World Junior A Hockey Challenge, and 44 of the top Junior A players in Canada will wear the Maple Leaf in Truro, Nova Scotia, Dec. 10-17.
The players named to Canada East were selected from the five eastern leagues in the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) – the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League (NOJHL), Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL), Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL), Ligue de hockey junior AAA du Québec (LHJAAAQ) and Maritime Hockey League (MHL). Canada West selected its players from CJHL’s four western leagues – the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL), Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL), Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) and Superior International Junior Hockey League (SIJHL).
Canada East’s 22-player roster was selected by head coach Billy McGuigan (Summerside, PE/Summerside, MHL), alongside director of operations Chris Vanstone (Mississauga, ON/Ontario Junior Hockey League). Assistant coaches Peter Goulet (Kingston, ON/Powassan, NOJHL), Derek Smith (Belleville, ON/Trenton, OJHL) and Josh Hardiman (Montréal, QC/Powassan, NOJHL) also provided input.
“We feel the team we have assembled gives us an excellent opportunity to be competitive every game,” said Canada East head coach Billy McGuigan, “There is a tremendous amount of talent across this country and narrowing it down to two teams of twenty-two players is no easy task. Our staff and this group of players is eager to play for a gold medal on the world stage in Atlantic Canada.”
Canada West’s 22-player roster was selected by head coach Scott Barney (Oshawa, ON/Humboldt, SJHL) and director of operations Nigel Dube (Lampman, SK/Lloydminster, AJHL), alongside assistant coaches Alex Mandolidis (Calgary, AB/Winnipeg, MJHL), Kelvin Cech (Edmonton, AB/Niverville, MJHL), and video coach Bryan Arneson (Sherwood Park, AB/Canmore, AJHL).
“Our staff has done a great job of identifying the top players in Western Canada,” said Canada West head coach Scott Barney, “We are excited to get to Nova Scotia and compete against the world. This is an amazing opportunity for these young men and something we as a staff want to reiterate every day. It is not every day you get to wear the maple leaf so take advantage of it, enjoy it, and play the game that got you here.”
In addition to the 44 players, the support staff that will work with Canada East and Canada West at the World Junior A Hockey Challenge have been announced.
- Athletic therapist Leah Toffelmire (Treton, ON/Trenton, OJHL)
- Athletic therapist / Equipment manager Samantha Delsing (Cochrane, AB/Drumheller, AJHL)
- Physiotherapist Justin Giesbrecht (Niverville, MB/Niverville, MJHL)
- Physiotherapist / Equipment manager Caitlin McCuaig (Frankford, ON/Wellington, OJHL
- Equipment managers Carmelo Pugliese (Ottawa, ON/Ottawa, CCJHL) and Jason Savill (Leduc, AB/Flin Flon, SJHL)
Canada West will kick off the 2023 World Junior A Hockey Challenge against Sweden on Dec. 10 at 3:30 p.m. AT, followed by Canada East facing off against Slovakia at 7:30 p.m. AT. The top four teams will advance to the playoff round, with the medal games taking place at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. AT on Dec. 17.
TSN and RDS, the official broadcast partners of Hockey Canada, will broadcast the gold medal game. All preliminary-round games, both semifinals and the bronze medal game will be livestreamed at HockeyCanada.ca.
The 2023 World Junior A Hockey Challenge represents a partnership between Hockey Canada, the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL), Hockey Nova Scotia, NHL Central Scouting and the local organizing committee. The five-team format includes Team Canada East, Team Canada West, Slovakia, Sweden and the United States.
Full-event ticket packages for the 2023 World Junior A Hockey Challenge are now available for $192 and can be purchased at HockeyCanada.ca/Tickets. The package includes one ticket to all 14 games, including both medal games.
For more information on Hockey Canada and the 2023 World Junior A Hockey Challenge, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along via social media on Facebook, X and Instagram.
