Calgary, AB – November 6, 2012
The Merritt Centennials are pleased to announce that 17-year-old defenceman Dane Birks has been selected to take part in the 2012 Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) Prospects Games as part of Team West on November 10th & 11th in Digby and Yarmouth, NS.
"It is a great honour for Dane to be chosen for the CJHL Prospects Games," said Cents GM & Head Coach Luke Pierce. "He is a tremendous young talent and has all the tools to be a star in our league."
"His continued improvement is a credit to his dedication to the game and we wish him all the best in the games on the weekend," Pierce added. "We know that Dane will represent himself and our program with pride."
The CJHL Prospects Game was created to showcase 40 of the top NHL prospects in the CJHL. The CJHL Prospects Games feature players from the CJHL's five western leagues competing against the top prospects from the CJHL's five eastern leagues in a two-game total goal series. Player selection for the annual CJHL Prospects Games is a joint initiative of the CJHL and NHL Central Scouting.
Team West includes eight players from the Alberta Junior Hockey League, seven selections from the British Columbia Hockey League, three players from the Manitoba Junior Hockey League, as well as one player from both the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League and the Superior International Hockey League. Twelve players on the Team West roster were invited to the 2012 World Junior A Selection Camp.
Minnesota Wilderness General Manager / Head Coach, Rod Aldoff, will lead Team West as Head Coach. "This is a great opportunity, and honor for each of the players involved in the prospect game," said Aldoff. "It gives the kids a chance to showcase themselves in front of a variety of scouts and represent our leagues in Western Canada. Being involved in the Prospects Games is a great honor and I'm very excited to be given this opportunity by the CJHL and Hockey Canada."
CLICK HERE FOR TEAM WEST ROSTER
Team East and Team West playoff for the President's Cup, which is awarded to the winning team at each CJHL Prospects Game.
2011 – Game 1: Team West wins 4-3; Game 2: Team West wins 4-3 (OT) in Langley, BC
2010 – Game 1: Team East wins 2-1 (SO); Game 2: Team East wins 7-1 in Dauphin, MB
2009 – Game 1: Team West wins 8 – 1; Game 2: Team East wins 2 – 0 in Winkler, MB
2008 – Team East defeated Team West 6-3 in Summerside, PEI
2007 – Team East defeated Team West 5-3 in Winkler, MB
2006 – Team West defeated Team East 6-2 in Vernon, BC
2005 – Team West defeated Team East 5-4 in Yorkton, SK
The CJHL Prospects Games will be held in conjunction with the 2012 World Junior A Challenge, which runs from November 5th – 11th, 2012 in Yarmouth, NS. CJHL Prospects Game #1 will be played on Saturday, November 10th at the Digby Arena in Digby, NS at 7:00PM. On Sunday, November 11th, Game #2 will take place at the Mariners Centre in Yarmouth, NS at 2:00PM.
Fans can watch all the action for free via webcast by following three steps:
STEP 1: Visit hockeycanada.fasthockey.com and sign up for a free FASTHockey account.
STEP 2: Like the World Junior A Challenge on Facebook at www.facebook.com/wjrac.
STEP 3: Just prior to the game, click the HC on FASTHockey link on the WJAC Facebook page to watch.
