Author: Dominic Tiano

Sweden finalized it’s roster for the 2016 World Junior Championship.

Goaltenders:
Erik Kallgren, Linkopings HC
Felix Sandstrom, Brynas Gavle
Linus Soderstrom, Djurgarden Stockholm

Defencemen:
Gabriel Carlsson, Linkopings HC
Andreas Englund, Djurgården Stockholm
William Lagesson, UMass Amherst (NCAA)
Jacob Larsson, Frolunda Goteborg
Adam Ollas Mattsson, Djurgarden Stockholm
Marcus Pettersson, Skelleftea AIK

Forwards:
Rasmus Asplund, Farjestad Karlstad
Christoffer Ehn, Frolunda Gothenburg
Joel Eriksson Ek, Farjestad Karlstad
Jakob Forsbacka-Karlsson, Boston University (NCAA)
Carl Grundstrom, MODO Ornskoldsvik
Axel Holmstrom, Skelleftea AIK
Anton Karlsson, Frolunda Gothenburg
Adrian Kempe, Ontario Reign (AHL)
Oskar Lindblom, Brynas Gavle
Jens Looke, Brynas Gavle
Alexander Nylander, Mississauga Steelheads (OHL)
William Nylander, Toronto Marlies (AHL)
Dmytro Timashov, Quebec Remparts (QMJHL)

Toronto, ON – The Canadian Hockey League today announced that Winnipeg Jets prospect Brendan Lemieux of the Windsor Spitfires is the CHL Player of the Week for the week ending December 20 after scoring five goals and one assist for six points in two games with a plus-minus rating of plus-3.

Lemieux led the Spitfires to a pair of victories including their OHL West Division best 20th win of the season in a home-and-home series against the Saginaw Spirit.  He scored the game-winning goal and earned first star honours in both contests including Thursday night with two markers in a 7-6 overtime triumph, and Saturday night where he netted his second hat-trick in four games while adding one assist in the 6-3 win.

A 19-year-old from Paradise Valley, Arizona, Lemieux is playing in his fourth OHL season and first with the Spitfires after being acquired from the Barrie Colts earlier this month.  The Jets prospect was originally selected by the Buffalo Sabres in the second round of the 2014 NHL Draft and has 26 points in 16 games this season including nine goals and three assists for 12 points in five games played in Windsor.

Also considered for the award this week was Arizona Coyotes prospect and two-time award winner Conor Garland of the Moncton Wildcats who scored once with six assists for seven points in two games, and Kailer Yamamoto of the Spokane Chiefs who scored four goals and three assists for seven points in three games.

2015-16 CHL Regular Season Players of the Week:

Dec. 14 – Dec. 20: Brendan Lemieux (Windsor Spitfires)
Dec. 7 – Dec. 13: Christian Dvorak (London Knights)
Nov. 30 – Dec. 6: Mitchell Marner (London Knights)
Nov. 23 – Nov. 29: Conor Garland (Moncton Wildcats)
Nov. 16 – Nov. 22: Pierre-Luc Dubois (Cape Breton Screaming Eagles)
Nov. 9 – Nov. 15: Dylan Strome (Erie Otters)
Nov. 2 – Nov. 8: Nikolas Brouillard (Quebec Remparts)
Oct. 26 – Nov. 1: Mathew Barzal (Seattle Thunderbirds)
Oct. 19 – Oct. 25: Kevin Labanc (Barrie Colts)
Oct. 12 – Oct. 18: Zach Bratina (North Bay Battalion)
Oct. 5 – Oct. 11: Dennis Yan (Shawinigan Cataractes)
Sept. 28 – Oct. 4: Conor Garland (Moncton Wildcats)
Sept. 21 – Sept. 27: Alex Forsberg (Victoria Royals)

Toronto, ON – The Canadian Hockey League today announced that Carolina Hurricanes prospect Callum Booth of the Quebec Remparts is the Vaughn CHL Goaltender of the Week for the week ending December 20 after posting a 2-0-0-0 record including a shutout victory with a goals-against-average of 0.50 and save percentage of .983.

Booth stopped 58 of 59 shots faced last week helping the Remparts extend their winning-streak to five games climbing to a first place tie in the QMJHL’s East Division with 45 points.  On Thursday night Booth stopped 22 shots and earned second star honours in a 4-1 victory over the Victoriaville Tigres, then stopped all 36 shots he faced on Friday earning his second shutout of the season as first star of a 3-0 road win against the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada.

An 18-year-old from Montreal, QC, Booth is playing in his third QMJHL season with the Remparts.  Selected by the Hurricanes in the fourth round of the 2015 NHL Draft, Booth carries a 13-4-3-0 record with a goals-against-average of 2.92 and save percentage of .905 so far in 2015-16.

Also considered for the award this week was Nick Schneider of the Medicine Hat Tigers who posted a 2-1-0-0 record with a goals-against-average of 1.18 and save percentage of .958, and Jake Smith of the North Bay Battalion who went 3-0-0-0 with a goals-against-average of 1.28 and save percentage of .944.

2015-16 Vaughn CHL Goaltenders of the Week:

Dec. 14 – Dec. 20: Callum Booth (Quebec Remparts)
Dec. 7 – Dec. 13: Jack Flinn (Mississauga Steelheads)
Nov. 30 – Dec. 6: Ty Edmonds (Prince George Cougars)
Nov. 23 – Nov. 29: Carter Hart (Everett Silvertips)
Nov. 16 – Nov. 22: Keven Bouchard (Baie-Comeau Drakkar)
Nov. 9 – Nov. 15: Devin Williams (Erie Otters)
Nov. 2 – Nov. 8: Etienne Montpetit (Val-d’Or Foreurs)
Oct. 26 – Nov. 1: Tyler Parsons (London Knights)
Oct. 19 – Oct. 25: Adin Hill (Portland Winterhawks)
Oct. 12 – Oct. 18: Julio Billia (Chicoutimi Sagueneens)
Oct. 5 – Oct. 11: Coleman Vollrath (Victoria Royals)
Sept. 28 – Oct. 4: Louis-Philip Guindon (Rimouski Oceanic)
Sept. 21 – Sept. 27: Zack Bowman (Flint Firebirds)

22 past and present CHL players named to final team representing the red-and-white in Helsinki

 HELSINKI, Finland – The roster is set; 23 players have earned their place on Canada’s National Junior Team at the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championship in Helsinki, Finland, Dec. 26-Jan. 5.

Hockey Canada confirmed the final roster shortly after returning to Helsinki from Imatra, Finland, on Sunday evening. The team spent six days in Imatra and played pre-competition games against Belarus on Saturday, and the Czech Republic on Sunday, before narrowing down to the final roster.

 “Our goal is always to assemble the best possible team to represent Canada. We had a really good evaluation period in Toronto and Imatra, and were able to see how the players responded to different situations – from practices to games,” said Scott Salmond, vice-president of hockey operations and national teams for Hockey Canada. “These are never easy decisions, but we feel confident in the team we have and their ability to make the nation proud and give us all something to get behind this holiday season.”

 Four players from the 2015 IIHF World Junior Championship-winning team are included on the roster: Lawson Crouse (Mt. Brydges, Ont./Kingston, OHL), Joe Hicketts (Kamloops, B.C./Victoria, WHL), Brayden Point (Calgary/Moose Jaw, WHL), and Jake Virtanen(Abbotsford, B.C./Calgary, WHL/Vancouver, NHL).

 They are joined by:

• Goaltenders: Mackenzie Blackwood (Thunder Bay, Ont./Barrie, OHL), Mason McDonald (Halifax/Charlottetown, QMJHL),Samuel Montembeault (Bécancour, Que./Blainville-Boisbriand, QMJHL);
• Defencemen: Thomas Chabot (Sainte-Marie-de-Beauce, Que./Saint John, QMJHL), Travis Dermott (Newmarket, Ont./Erie, OHL), Haydn Fleury (Carlyle, Sask./Red Deer, WHL), Brandon Hickey (Leduc, Alta./Boston University, HE), Roland McKeown(Listowel, Ont./Kingston, OHL), Travis Sanheim (Elkhorn, Man./Calgary, WHL);
• Forwards: Mathew Barzal (Coquitlam, B.C./Seattle, WHL), Anthony Beauvillier (Sorel, Que./Shawinigan, QMJHL), Rourke Chartier (Saskatoon, Sask./Kelowna, WHL), Julien Gauthier (Pointe-aux-Trembles, Que./Val-d’Or, QMJHL), Travis Konecny(Clachan, Ont./Ottawa, OHL), Mitchell Marner (Thornhill, Ont./London, OHL), Brendan Perlini (Sault Ste. Marie, Ont./Niagara, OHL), John Quenneville (Edmonton/Brandon, WHL), Mitchell Stephens (Peterborough, Ont./Saginaw, OHL), Dylan Strome(Mississauga, Ont./Erie, OHL).

Canada won gold at the IIHF World Junior Championship on home ice in January. The team has not won in Europe since 2008 – the fourth of five consecutive gold medals for Canada’s National Junior Team from 2005-09.

Canada opens the tournament against the United States on Saturday, Dec. 26 at 2 p.m. ET. Hockey Canada’s official broadcasters, TSN and RDS, are scheduled to broadcast all tournament games, including the last of three pre-tournament games on Dec. 23; check local listings for details.

For more information on Canada’s National Junior Team, please visit hockeycanada.ca, or follow along via social media on Facebookand Twitter.