Canadian National Junior Team selection camp to be held in Oakville

Canada’s top junior hockey players are coming to Oakville.

Hockey Canada announced Canada’s National Junior Team will be holding its four-day selection camp at the Sixteen Mile Sports Complex in Oakville from Dec. 10 to 13.

The camp will help the national program select its final roster ahead of the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship being held Dec. 26, 2023 to Jan. 5, 2024 in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Hockey Canada also named its coaching staff for the world junior team. Sarnia Sting head coach Alan Letang, who helped Canada win gold at last year’s world championships as an assistant coach, takes the reins as the head coach.

Letang will be joined on the national team bench by assistant coaches Gilles Bouchard (head coach of QMJHL’s Sherbrooke Phoenix, Shaun Clouston (head coach of the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers) and Scott Walker (president of hockey operations of OHL’s Guelph Storm).

Rounding out the coaching staff are goaltending consultant Justin Pogge (Penticton, BC) and video coach James Emery (Calgary, AB).

In addition, three-time Stanley Cup champion and Olympic gold medallist Brent Seabrook (Tsawwassen, BC) will serve as a member of the management group alongside Peter Anholt (Naicam, SK/Lethbridge, WHL), the U20 lead for the Program of Excellence management group. Anholt helped select the staff alongside Benoit Roy (Sudbury, ON), senior manager of hockey operations.

 “We are thrilled to welcome back Alan after a successful year where he helped Canada capture gold medals at the World Juniors and Hlinka Gretzky Cup, and to have Peter and Brent’s extensive management and playing experience leading our National Junior Team,” said Scott Salmond, senior vice-president of hockey operations. “We are also excited to have Gilles, Shaun, Scott, Justin, and James round out our coaching staff, as they all bring a winning pedigree at the international and Canadian Hockey League levels.

“We believe this is an exceptional staff that will provide our players with an opportunity to be successful as we look to win our third-straight World Juniors gold medal.”

The Oakville facility will also host a pair of national team tune up games against a team of U SPORTS all-stars on Dec. 12-13.