WINNIPEG, MB – Team Canada’s 2005 World Junior Head Coach Brent Sutter, Head Scout Blair Mackasey and the coaching staff announced on Thursday that nine players have been released from Canada’s National Junior selection camp, and that a roster of 23 players remain for the 2005 IIHF World Junior Championship in Grand Forks, ND, December 25, 2004 to January 4, 2005.

Players released today by Team Canada (9): goaltenders (2): Devan Dubnyk (Calgary, AB/Kamloops – WHL) and Kevin Nastiuk (Edmonton, AB/Medicine Hat – WHL); defensemen (2): Mike Green (Calgary, AB/Saskatoon – WHL) and Alexandre Picard (Gatineau, QC/Halifax – QMJHL); forwards (5): David Bolland (Mimico, ON/London – OHL), Dustin Boyd (Winnipeg, MB/Moose Jaw – WHL), Eric Fehr (Winkler, MB/Brandon – WHL), Stefan Meyer (Fox Valley, SK/Medicine Hat – WHL), Ryan Stone (Calgary, AB/Brandon – WHL).

Canada’s 2005 World Junior roster now stands at 23 players: 2 goaltenders, 8 defensemen and 13 forwards.  The roster announced on Thursday includes all 12 returning players that attended the selection camp from Canada’s silver medal winning team last year in Finland.

Due to the day-to-day status of returning defenseman Brent Seabrook, who was injured during an inter-squad game on Monday, Canada’s coaching staff has not yet finalized Canada’s 22 player roster that will participate in North Dakota.  The coaching staff will continue to evaluate the status of Seabrook’s injury as well as the other seven defensemen over the next seven days, prior to finalizing its final roster of 22 players that will represent Canada in North Dakota. Only 22 players can be named to Canada’s final roster that will participate at the 2005 World Juniors, therefore one additional player release will need to be made by Canada’s coaching staff.

Canada’s 2005 World Junior Championship Team presently stands as the oldest National Junior Team since the inception of the Program of Excellence, at 19 years, 5 months and 28 days.  The average height on this year’s Team Canada is 6’1, average weight is 205.

16 of the 23 players announced today have previous international experience with Canada’s National Under-18 Program (Summer/World Championship) and 17 players have also played as members of one of Canada’s five regional Under-17 teams, a part of Hockey Canada’s Program of Excellence.

Canada’s roster of 23 players includes a wealth of experience with 19 players that are either a captain (11 players) or alternate captain (8 players) of their respective Canadian Hockey League teams.

Canada will travel to Gimli, MB on Thursday afternoon for two days of training, returning to Winnipeg on Saturday evening.

Canada will participate in a warm-up event prior to the World Junior Hockey Championship called the ‘Team Canada Junior Series’, a three-game event at the MTS Centre in Winnipeg held Dec. 20, 21 and 22 between Canada, Finland and Switzerland.