The Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) has announced more details for the Western All-Star Challenge.
The SJHL along with the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) are working together on this venture. It will be held in Warman (Nov.4-6) and will be used as a selection camp for Team Canada West’s entry in the World Junior A Challenge in Camrose, Alberta.
During the challenge, the players will participate in four practices and will compete in a pair of games. Both games will be available to view on FloHockey.
Following the event, the top 20 prospects will be invited to participate in the Team Canada West training camp held in Calgary in late November. 40 players from the SJHL and MJHL will be competing for the spots on the training camp roster.
In a release, SJHL commissioner Kyle McIntyre says the showcase is the latest example of the partnership with the MJHL in promotion and development for players in both leagues.
“Over the last couple of years, by getting to know many scouts, we wanted to talk about the best opportunity to promote our players. We found they wanted to see the younger guys, so (Manitoba Junior Hockey League Commissioner) Kevin Saurette and I collaborated and discussed having a physical training camp for Team Canada West this year. We wanted to have the best players from Saskatchewan and Manitoba compete for positions at Camp, and that was our goal. I am hopeful we’ll have SJHL staff on the tournament as well, and I know we’ll be able to showcase the top and brightest players from our prairie leagues.”
The World Junior A Challenge is held each year by Hockey Canada, featuring some of the top national teams and players from around the world who maintain eligibility for NCAA scholarships.