Team Staff Named for 2022 Alberta Cup, Alberta Challenge and Prospects Cup

RED DEER - The 118 volunteers who will lead teams at the 2022 Alberta Cup, Alberta Challenge and Prospects Cup have been selected by Hockey Alberta.

A director of operations, coach mentor, head coach and two assistant coaches were selected for each team. Teams at the Alberta Cup and Alberta Challenge will be accompanied by a trainer. Alberta Challenge staff will also feature a coach apprentice shadowing each team’s coaching staff.

Volunteers for each team are listed below. Each of the events will be held on consecutive weeks at the Gary W. Harris Canada Games Centre in Red Deer, starting with the Alberta Cup on April 27.

Registration and details regarding regional camps for each event will be released in the new year. Eligible participants for any of these Hockey Alberta programs must be registered with a Hockey Canada/Hockey Alberta program.

2022 Alberta Cup Team Staff

2022 Alberta Challenge Team Staff

2022 Prospects Cup Team Staff

RED DEER – After a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19, the Hockey Alberta Provincial Championships, presented by ATB Financial, are returning in 2022.

A total of 32 provincial champions will be crowned during March and April. Host locations for the 29 weekend championship tournaments were announced December 17. The final three provincial champions will be determined through league playoffs.

Championship tournaments will be hosted in locations across the province – from Slave Lake in the north, west to Grande Prairie, east to Cold Lake and south to Picture Butte.

For the first time, zone playdowns will not be used to determine the qualifying teams. Rather, participating teams for provincial championship tournaments will be determined through league playoffs.

Most Minor Tiered and Minor Female events will feature eight teams - the host, a wild card and the champions from each division’s respective leagues: Hockey Calgary, Edmonton Federation Hockey League, Central Alberta Hockey League, Northern Alberta Interlock, All Peace Hockey League, North Eastern Alberta Hockey League, Rocky Mountain Female Hockey League, and East Central Female Hockey League.

Two divisions in the Alberta Female Hockey League will kick off the March to a Title with the U15 Female AA and the U18 Female AAA champions being crowned on March 20.

Week two (March 24-27) will feature nine tournaments: AFHL U18 Female AA, Alberta Elite Hockey League U15 AAA, U15 AA, U15 Tier 1, U15 Tier 2, U15 Tier 3, U15 Tier 4, U15 Female A, and U15 Female B.

Another 15 tournaments are set for March 31 – April 3, including: Junior B, U18 AA, U18 Tier 1, U18 Tier 2, U18 Tier 3, U18 Tier 4, U18 Female A, U18 Female B, U13 AA, U13 Tier 1, U13 Tier 2, U13 Tier 3, U13 Tier 4, U13 Female A, and U13 Female B.

The final weekend of 2022 provincial play wraps up April 7-10, as the tournaments showcase the Senior AA and AEHL U16 AAA.

Junior A, Junior Female and the AEHL’s U18 AAA provincial champions are decided through league playoffs.

ATB Financial is returning as the presenting sponsor of the 2022 Provincial Sponsorships.

“We know playing for the championship is every young hockey player’s goal at the start of each season," said Kris Noble, Senior Manager, Sponsorship and Community Investment. "We are excited to be back as the Presenting Sponsor of the Hockey Alberta Provincial Championships and look forward to making these events a special experience for everyone involved; the players, parents, officials and volunteers."

RED DEER - Seven Albertans will suit up for Team Canada on home soil at the 2022 World Junior Championship in Edmonton and Red Deer.

Following a four-day selection camp, Hockey Canada announced its 25-player roster on Sunday night. Forwards Ridly Greig (Lethbridge), Dylan Guenther (Edmonton), and Jake Neighbours (Airdrie) are among the 14 forwards selected, joined by defencemen Kaiden Guhle (Sherwood Park), Ronan Seeley (Olds) and Olen Zellweger (Fort Saskatchewan), as well as goaltender Sebastian Cossa (Fort McMurray).

Guhle is the lone Albertan with World Juniors experience, and just one of three on the team who won a silver medal with Canada in 2021.

All seven players are Team Alberta alumni, with Greig, Neighbours, Guhle, Seeley and Cossa all playing together at the 2017 WHL Cup, and Guenther and Zellweger skating for Alberta at the 2019 Canada Winter Games.

Albertans on staff include assistant coach Michael Dyck (Lethbridge), and team physician Dr. Barry Weins (Red Deer).

Canada’s National Junior Team will head to Banff, Alta., for a training camp at the Fenlands Banff Recreation Centre, Dec. 14-19. It will then travel to Red Deer for a pair of pre-tournament games on Dec. 19 and 20 against Switzerland and Sweden, respectively, before moving to Edmonton for its final pre-tournament match-up on Dec. 22 against Russia as part of the Lordco Road to the World Juniors.

The 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship begins on Boxing Day with Canada kicking off its tournament against the Czech Republic. In addition to its opening-night match-up, Canada will also play Austria on Dec. 28, Germany on Dec. 29 and Finland on Dec. 31 to wrap up preliminary-round action. All Team Canada games will be played at 5 p.m. MT

TSN and RDS, the official broadcast partners of Hockey Canada, will carry extensive game coverage and analysis throughout the World Juniors. TSN will broadcast all 31 tournament games and five pre-tournament games, while RDS will broadcast all 31 tournament games and three pre-tournament games. TSN Radio will also provide comprehensive coverage.

For more information from the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship, please visit the official tournament website at 2022.worldjuniors.hockey.

RED DEER - Seventy-Three Albertans registered in Hockey Alberta/Hockey Canada sanctioned programs heard their names called at the 2021 WHL Draft on Thursday, including four in the first round.

Defenceman Charlie Elick (Calgary) was the first Albertan off the board, as the Brandon Wheat Kings selected him third overall. Two more defenders went back-to-back later on in the first round, as Marek Howell (Calgary) and Tristen Doyle (Edmonton) went 16th and 17th overall to the Moose Jaw Warriors and Lethbridge Hurricanes, respectively. With the final selection of the round, the Wheat Kings went back to Alberta to take forward Caleb Hadland (Sylvan Lake) with the 22nd pick.

Spencer Michnik (Sylvan Lake) was the first Albertan goalie taken, as the Seattle Thunderbirds selected him in the fifth round, 96th overall.

In total, 42 forward were selected, 21 defencemen, and 10 goaltenders.

A full list of Albertans registered in Hockey Alberta/Hockey Canada sanctioned programs drafted can be found below:

EDMONTON – The Indigenous Sport Council of Alberta and Hockey Alberta have made the difficult decision not to send teams to the 2022 National Aboriginal Hockey Championships (NAHC).

The decision was made to allow both organizations to take the time to build a sustainable program model that will benefit Indigenous youth across Alberta in the years to come. Both organizations thank the NAHC and Aboriginal Sport Circle, and send appreciation to the Membertou NAHC 2022 Host Society for their commitment in organizing the national championships. We look forward to Team Alberta returning to the national championships in 2023.

Team Alberta selection camps for 2023 will take place in late May or early June 2022. More details on date(s) and location(s) will be shared once they are confirmed.

Background

ISCA and Hockey Alberta entered a partnership in 2019 to facilitate the growth and development of Indigenous hockey across Alberta. This partnership included Hockey Alberta operating the Team Alberta Male and Female squads competing at the NAHC. The 2020 and 2021 national championships were cancelled due to COVID-19.

For further information:

ISCA Hockey Alberta

Jake Hendy, Executive Director Brad Lyon, Senior Manager, Communications

[email protected] [email protected]