Originally published in the 2008 IIHF World Championship official program
By Lucas Aykroyd
Some people visit Halifax for attractions like the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, Pier 21, or the Halifax Citadel. But for hardcore sports fans, this port city of 370,000 is renowned for staging outstanding international hockey events.
Halifax’s Metro Centre will host 26 round-robin games […]

The Good: Canada Golden Again at World Juniors
Congratulations to Team Canada for winning its fourth consecutive gold medal at the IIHF World Junior Championship in the Czech Republic. A couple of days ago, I questioned whether Canada’s mental focus was where it needed to be heading into a potential final with the Russians. Of course, […]

Brad Marchand should have listened to Zach Boychuk.
When Canada lost 4-3 to Sweden in round-robin action at the 2008 IIHF World Junior Championship, it ended a 20-game winning streak at the tournament. Boychuk, whose 91 points for Lethbridge last year earned him third place in the WHL scoring derby, told reporters: “In the last couple […]

If you’re looking for someone who knows as much about, say, Frolunda defenseman Ronnie Sundin as Toronto Maple Leafs superstar Mats Sundin, Peter Westermark would be a great bet. The 32-year-old native of Skelleftea, Sweden blogs for HockeySverige.se, and is a longtime contributor to outlets such as McKeen’s Hockey, Hockey’s Future, and IHWC.NET, the official […]

Hockey Canada announces its selection camp roster for the 2008 IIHF World Junior Championship in the Czech Republic today, and Jordan Staal of the Pittsburgh Penguins does not appear on that list.
The Penguins told Hockey Canada officials a couple of days ago that the 19-year-old forward wouldn’t be made available. Presumably, Staal himself would rather […]

Some players might gripe after ending a six-game road trip with a 2-0 loss in Vancouver on November 25 and being held off the scoresheet for the fourth straight time. But not Patrick Kane.
“I think we had a good trip, and you’ve got to be happy with the way we played,” the 19-year-old Chicago rookie […]

Future Greats and Heartbreaks: A Year Undercover in the Secret World of NHL Scouts
By Gare Joyce
Published by Doubleday Canada
Hardcover, 336 pages
Release Date: November 20, 2007
Gare Joyce is gradually becoming Canada’s answer to George Plimpton. No, the prolific Toronto-based hockey scribe hasn’t strapped on equipment and competed against pro athletes to garner first-hand material for his […]

When the Russians flopped with a tenth-place finish at the 2004 IIHF World Championship in the Czech Republic, head coach Viktor Tikhonov blamed it on “the mistakes of the players” and “the lack of time” to prepare for the tournament.
Tikhonov, predictably, refused to acknowledge that his 1984-style methods just hadn’t worked, and that his troops […]

Originally written in 2005
By Lucas Aykroyd
The first time Canada played the USA at a World Junior tournament, the Montreal Canadiens were the reigning Stanley Cup champions, Dark Side of the Moon was the hot new album from Pink Floyd, Pierre Trudeau was the Prime Minister of Canada, and Richard Nixon was the President of […]

Originally published on HockeyCanada.ca in 2005
By Lucas Aykroyd
At this stage of Alexander Edler’s career, some observers might project the 19-year-old to be a poor man’s version of Nicklas Lidstrom. That wouldn’t be a bad thing. But don’t forget something else: both those Swedish defencemen were drafted in the third round of the NHL Entry Draft […]