Three members of the Langley Rivermen are off to Calgary later this week as they look to crack the Canada West roster for the upcoming World Junior A Challenge.
Goaltender Bo Didur, centre Marcus Vela and defenceman Jake Kearley are among the invitees for the three-day camp which runs Dec. 7 to 9 in Calgary.
Sixty players are at the camp and the final roster will travel to Kinderley, Sask. for the tournament, which runs Dec. 14 to 20.
“I’m really excited for them,” said Bobby Henderson, the Langley head coach and general manager.
“It’s a nice honour for them to be recognized. I’m sure they’re not going to be satisfied with just going to camp.
“All three will go with the intention of making the team.”
Didur has been one of the best goalies in the BCHL this year, sporting an impressive 2.58 goals against average, which is fifth in the league. In 20 games, the second year goalie has 11 wins including one shutout and a .924 save percentage.
“Bo’s been great for us all year,” stated Henderson. “He’s given us a chance to win every game he’s been in. He’s very athletic and competitive.”
Vela, also in his second BCHL season, is among the leaders in scoring for Langley this year. His 22 points are good for third on the team and his 18 assists is the highest among Rivermen players. He was recently on the NHL Central Scouting players to watch list for the month of November.
“He’s one of the top centre men in the league,” said Henderson.
“He can play the game any style as well as play in all situations from power plays and penalty kill, which should help his cause.”
The final Rivermen attending selection camp is defenseman Jake Kearley.
Kearley leads all Rivermen defensemen in scoring with 14 points. The Newmarket, Ontario product brings his physical presence to camp as well as his scoring ability.
“Physically he’s proven himself in the league,” said Henderson. “Now it’s just a matter of highlighting the rest of his game and hopefully he can show that off to the guys in camp.”
Rivermen trainer Brayden Tonogai will also be working with the Canada West squad throughout the camp and the tournament.