OAKVILLE, Ont. – Hockey Canada, in partnership with the Canadian Junior Hockey League, announced Monday the 22 players who will represent Canada East at the 2011 World Junior A Challenge, Nov. 7-13, 2011 in Langley, B.C.

The roster was selected by Canada East head coach Curtis Hodgins (Courtice, Ont./Whitby, OJHL), along with assistant coaches Jason Nobili (Bolton, Ont./Toronto, OJHL) and Greg Walters (Toronto, Ont./Georgetown, OJHL), following a three-day selection camp at the Sixteen Mile Sports Complex in Oakville.

“All 34 players at camp battled hard, fought for their spots and left us with some tough decisions,” said Hodgins. “As a coaching staff, we are confident we have selected the 22 players who give us the best chance at improving on last year’s silver medal finish.”

Players named to the Canada East selection camp roster were selected from the CJHL’s five eastern Junior A leagues: the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League (NOJHL), Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL), Central Canada Junior Hockey League (CCHL), Ligue de hockey junior AAA du Québec (LHJAAAQ) and Maritime Hockey League (MHL).

Canada East’s roster for the 2011 World Junior A Challenge includes:
two goaltenders, seven defencemen and 13 forwards;
17 players from the OJHL and five players from the CCHL;
three players returning from the 2010 World Junior A Challenge (Hampton, Tylor Spink, Tyson Spink).

The 2011 World Junior A Challenge will be held Nov. 7-13 at the Langley Events Centre in Langley, B.C. Canada East will play in Group B, joined by the Czech Republic and Russia, while Canada West, Sweden and the United States will comprise Group A. Preliminary round play will run until Wednesday, Nov. 9, with both semifinals taking place Friday, Nov. 11. The gold medal game, which will be shown nationally on TSN/RDS, the official broadcasters of Hockey Canada, is set for Sunday, Nov. 13 (check your local listings). All preliminary round games, quarter-finals, semifinals and the bronze medal game can be seen live via webcast through FASTHockey at hockeycanada.fasthockey.com.

Full-tournament 15-game ticket packages are on sale, including tickets to all 13 games at the 2011 World Junior A Challenge, both CJHL Prospects Games and a free souvenir tournament program, for only $150, as well as single-game tickets and a flex package. To purchase tickets, CLICK HERE.

Canada East has appeared in three of the five gold medal games at the World Junior A Challenges, taking silver in 2006 in Yorkton, Sask., and 2007 in Trail, B.C., as well as last year in Penticton, B.C. It won bronze in 2008 in Camrose, Alta., and finished fourth in 2009 in Summerside, P.E.I.

For more information on the 2011 World Junior A Challenge, please visit www.facebook.com/wjrac or www.twitter.com/hc_wjac.