The greatest challenge facing national teams in hockey, right up to the NHLers in the Winter Olympics, is coming together as a unit in a highly condensed time frame.
Defenceman Joe Hicketts of the Victoria Royals said he already feels cohesion among the 22 players named Monday for the Canadian Under-18 team for the Memorial of Ivan Hlinka Tournament Aug. 5-10 in Breclav, Czech Republic, and Piestany, Slovakia.
Hicketts was among seven Western Hockey League players selected to the Canadian side following the 42-player camp held at the MasterCard Centre in Toronto.
鈥淲e鈥檝e already started to bond,鈥� said the native of Kamloops by phone from Toronto after the roster announcement.
鈥渟a国际传媒 has a strong tradition of winning this tournament [the last five years straight and 15 of the last 17 years] and that鈥檚 our goal and motivation.鈥�
Victoria鈥檚 Dysin Mayo, a Juan de Fuca minor hockey product who plays defence for the Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL, was invited to the camp but did not make the final cut.
Hicketts is undersized but highly mobile 鈥� he had 24 points in 67 games in his 16-year-old WHL rookie season for the Royals in 2012-13 鈥� and the larger international ice surface is to his advantage.
鈥淪peed becomes a bigger asset on the bigger ice surface,鈥� he noted.
鈥淗aving that time and space really helps me because of my style of game.鈥�
Hicketts said the national U-18 camp was all-out, as you would expect from Canadian hockey.
鈥淚t was definitely a tough camp with a lot of contact,鈥� said the active blue-liner, who was cited by Central Scouting in its annual futures list of players to watch in the 2014 NHL draft.
鈥淚t was conducted at a high level. It was a great experience.鈥�
But he realizes the greatest experience is yet to come next week in Eastern Europe. Making the Hlinka tournament is a bit of redemption for Hicketts.
The budding Royals star didn鈥檛 make the Canadian team in the spring for the IIHF world U-18 championships but was one of only four Canadian under-agers to play in exhibition games before the U-18 tournament in Sochi, Russia, site of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Hicketts is among seven blue-liners named by the Canadian team for the Hlinka tournament, along with 13 forwards and two goaltenders. The squad will be coached by Dale Hunter of the OHL鈥檚 London Knights.
The WHLer rearguards selected are Hicketts, Haydn Fleury of the Red Deer Rebels and Ryan Pilon of the Lethbridge Hurricanes. The WHL forwards are Rourke Chartier of the Kelowna Rockets, Brayden Point of the Moose Jaw Warriors, Jake Virtanen of the Calgary Hitmen and Jayce Hawryluk of the Brandon Wheat Kings.
Team sa国际传媒 opens group play Aug. 5 against the Czech Republic. Also in Group A are Sweden and Switzerland. Finland, Russia, Slovaki and the U.S. make up Group B.
