Surrey’s Justin Sourdif is among 66 players named to Canada’s three squads in the 2018 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, a tournament to be played in New Brunswick from Nov. 3 to 10.
Hockey Canada announced the roster on Tuesday morning.
The five-foot-10 Sourdif, a forward, is currently with the WHL Vancouver Giants.
Hockey Canada’s roster also includes Langley-raised defenseman Aidan de la Gorgendiere, currently playing in Saskatoon, and Cole Shepard, a Vancouver Giants prospect from West Van.
For the upcoming tourney, the 66 Canadian players will be divided into three teams – Team Canada Black, Red and White – and will compete against the Czech Republic, Finland, Russia, Sweden and the U.S. in their quest for a gold medal.
The 2002-born Sourdif spent the bulk of the 2017/18 season with Valley West of the BC Major Midget League before joining the Western Hockey League’s Giants – who had selected him third overall in the 2017 WHL Bantam Draft – for the team’s playoff run last spring.
Sourdif was named BCMML’s Player of the Year this past season, after leading the league in points, with 23 goals and 50 assists in just 35 games. He helped the Hawks to a league-best 31-6-2-1 record (win-loss-tie-overtime loss).
So far with the Giants this season, Sourdif has two goals and three assists in 10 games played.
• RELATED STORY: Giants’ Justin Sourdif invited to Hockey Canada U17 camp, from June 2018.
In July, Sourdif was among 112 players invited to Canada’s national under-17 development camp and introduced to the Hockey Canada Program of Excellence.
“Any time you bring together the best young players in the country there are bound to be difficult decisions when selecting players, and we feel the 66 young men we chose exemplify the core values of the Program of Excellence,” stated Brad McEwen, head scout for Hockey Canada. “We believe that these players possess a willingness to learn and grow as they progress through our program and represent Canada, and give us the best chance to compete for a gold medal this November.”
TSN will air both semifinals on Friday, Nov. 9, as well as the bronze- and gold-medal games on Saturday, Nov. 10.
More than 1,700 NHL draft picks have suited up since the inception in 1986 of the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, previously known as the Quebec Esso Cup. Those players include Ilya Kovalchuk, Rick Nash, Marc-André Fleury, Alexander Ovechkin, Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews.
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