Three Axemen named to World Universiade Games team

BY JOHN DECOSTE

The Advertiser

NovaNewsNow.com



Three members of the Acadia Axemen are among 22 AUHC players chosen to represent Canada in the men’s hockey competition at the World University Games Jan. 17-27 in Turin, Italy.

Fourth-year goalie John Ceci is one of three goaltenders on the Team Canada roster. Axemen captain Brandon Benedict was chosen as a forward and Brandon Roach, the only freshman on the team, as a defenseman.

Canada is represented at the Games, which are held every four years, by a team of university men’s hockey players from one of the three Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) hockey conferences, selected on a rotating basis.

The last time this conference competed at the Games was 2001, when a team of AUS players earned a silver medal for Canada in Zakopane, Poland.

The Team Canada roster was announced jointly by CIS and Atlantic University Sport last Friday morning following a selection process led by Team Canada head coach Trevor Stienburg of the Saint Mary’s Huskies.

Stienburg was assisted in the selection by assistant coaches Darren Burns of Acadia, Gardiner MacDougall of UNB and general manager Chris Larsen of Halifax.



Challenging selection process

Stienburg said the process focused on selecting players who would best respond to the challenge of performing at the international level.

“This was an extremely difficult task as a result of the large number of outstanding players in the AUS,� said Stienburg, a two-time CIS coach of the Year who led Canada to its silver medal in 2001.

“I wish we could be taking two teams in order to accommodate all the worthy players.�

He added, “we are committed to representing Canada, the CIS and AUS in a first-class manner while keeping focused on coming home with the gold medal.�

Canada has won gold at the Games twice: by the Alberta Golden Bears in 1981 and a national team selection in 1991.

Offensively, Team Canada will be led in Turin by the current top-five players in the AUHC scoring race: Dan Rudisuela of SMU; Benedict; Marc Rancourt of SMU; Rob Hennigar from UNB; and Moncton’s Karl Fournier.

“We feel the offensive side of our game (is) well-represented in our roster selections,�

Stienburg said. “As always, we do recognize the need to play excellent team defense and we also feel our 22 players give us strength in that most critical area.�

Conference co-leaders St. Thomas and Moncton and third-place UNB all placed four players on the team, Acadia and SMU three each, St.F.X. two and Dalhousie and UPEI one apiece.

Team Canada will depart for Italy Sunday, Jan. 14 and will open the 11-country round robin tournament Jan. 18 against Team USA. Korea, Slovakia and Russia are also in Team Canada’s pool. As part of its preparation for the Games, Team Canada will attend an orientation camp Dec. 17-19 at Acadia Arena in Wolfville.