Defencemen Griffin Mendel (99) and Jonny Tychonick (00) are throwing on the Team Canada jersey once again. The two Vees’ blue-liners are among [BLANK] BCHL players named by Hockey Canada to Team Canada West’s roster, for the 2016 World Junior ‘A’ Challenge (WJAC).
The tournament runs December 11th-17th, in Bonnyville, Alberta.
With today’s announcement, the Vees have now been represented 30 times at the WJAC since the inception of the tournament in 2006, most of any team in the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL).
Mendel, 17, has played in all 26 Vees’ games before leaving for camp picking up four assists along the way, and is considered one of the top shutdown defencemen in the BCHL this season. Mendel won gold last year with Team Canada White at the 2016 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge in Dawson Creek, BC.
Tychonick is the Vees youngest rear-guard, but is the highest scoring defenceman on their roster with 13 points in 24 games. Tychonick has already suited up for Canada this season, as he was on Team Canada White for the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge in Ontario, in November.
Last year Tyson Jost and Dante Fabbro helped lead Team Canada West to a gold medal in Cobourg, Ontario. Canada West has won gold four times at the tournament (2015, 2012, 2007 and 2006).
All preliminary-round games, quarter-finals, semifinals, and the bronze-medal game can be seen live and free through HockeyTV webcasts at www.hockeycanada.ca/wjac. TSN will carry the gold-medal on December 17th.
