Steinbach Pistons’ GM/Head Coach Paul Dyck will lead Team West at the CJHL Prospects Games next month in Oakville. James Richmond of the Aurora Tigers (Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL)) will lead Team East.
“I am honoured and grateful to have been given this opportunity. I am truly excited to be a part the CJHL Prospects Game and to be working with some of the elite Junior A players in our country,” said Dyck, who has been head coach of the Pistons for the last four seasons.
During the 2012-13 season, he guided the Pistons to a 5th place regular season finish and won the MJHL championship, all while finishing as runner up for MJHL Coach of the Year. In 2013-14, he finished 2nd in the regular season and lost in the MJHL semi-finals. Currently, his club is ranked 18thin the country in the Pointstreak CJHL Weekly Top 20 Rankings.
Dyck, a native of Steinbach, has an extensive hockey playing career playing in the MJHL, CHL, IHL and the DEL in Germany. He was drafted by the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins. He won the IHL’s Turner Cup in 1998-99, as well as the DEL Championship in 2002-03. Dyck attended several NHL training camps in including the Pittsburgh Penguins, San Jose Sharks, Los Angeles Kings and New York Rangers.
The CJHL Prospects Game was created to showcase 40 of the top NHL prospects in the CJHL. The CJHL Prospects Game features players from the CJHL’s five western leagues competing against players from the CJHL’s five eastern leagues. The winner of the game will hoist the President’s Cup, which is awarded annually to the winning team.
Rosters for the CJHL Prospects teams will be announced in early January 2015. The player selection for the annual CJHL Prospects Game is a joint initiative between the CJHL and NHL Central Scouting.
The CJHL Prospects Game will be played on Tuesday, January 20th at the Sixteen Mile Sports Complex in Oakville, ON at 7:45PM. Tickets to the CJHL Prospects Game in Oakville, Ont., are on sale at Puckz Pub in the Sixteen Mile Sports Complex, at all Oakville Blades home games as well as online atwww.oakvilleblades.com