The Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League are proud to announce that defenseman Adam Pelech (Pell-eck) is one of 28 players who will represent Team Canada at the 2012 Canada-Russia Challenge in August.

A native of Toronto, Pelech rebounded after an early-season injury and was a steady influence on the blue line, collecting 20 points in 44 games. He was the first player in OHL history to receive the Ivan Tennant and Bobby Smith Awards for academic excellence in April.

At the Otters Annual Awards Banquet in April, Pelech took home Player of the Year and Defenseman of the Year honors, joining Chris Campoli as the only defensemen to be named as Otters Player of the Year.

Pelech has had considerable experience at the international level, winning gold medals with Canada and Team Ontario at the 2011 Memorial of Ivan Hlinka and the 2011 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, respectively.

He also helped Canada win a bronze medal at the World Under-18 Championships in the Czech Republic, the country’s first medal at the event since 2008. Pelech served as an assistant captain and was named by opposing coaches as one of Canada’s top three players at the tournament.

The 2012 Canada-Russia Challenge is a collaboration between Hockey Canada, the Canadian Hockey League, Halifax Mooseheads and Halifax Trade Centre Limited, which will see Canada and Russia’s national junior programs face off in four games, two in Russia and two in Canada, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the 1972 Summit Series. The series begins August 9 in Russia and concludes August 14 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Canada’s roster, comprised of three goaltenders, 10 defensemen and 15 forwards, was selected by Kevin Prendergast, head scout of the men’s Program of Excellence for Hockey Canada, along with Hockey Canada senior director of hockey operations and national teams Scott Salmond, and the team’s coaching staff, comprised of head coach Steve Spott, Mario Duhamel, Don Nachbaur and André Tourigny.

- From Erie Otters news release

The Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League are proud to announce that forward Stephen Harper is one of 40 players invited by Hockey Canada to attend Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team selection camp, August 3-6 at the MasterCard Centre in Toronto, Ont.

Harper last played on the international stage at the 2012 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge in Windsor, Ont., where he won a bronze medal with Team Ontario. Harper scored two goals in five games during the tournament.

In his first OHL season with the Otters, Harper collected 24 goals and 11 assists, sharing team Rookie of the Year honors with Connor Brown. Harper’s 24 goals were the most among 1995-born players in the OHL last season.

The roster includes four goaltenders, 12 defensemen and 24 forwards. The players, born in 1995 and 1996, were selected by Hockey Canada head scout Kevin Prendergast, in consultation with head coach Todd Gill and assistant coaches Yanick Jean and Scott Walker.

“These players are the cream of the crop of under-18 talent in Canada, and it’s going to be exciting to see them battle for 22 roster spots,” Prendergast said. “As it is every year, there were some tough decisions to get down to 40, and they’ll be even tougher decisions to make to finalize the roster.”

The camp roster includes 17 players from the Ontario Hockey League, 13 from the Western Hockey League and 10 from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Of the 40 players who have been invited to the selection camp, 22 will be selected for Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team, which will play in the 2012 Memorial of Ivan Hlinka tournament, scheduled for August 13-18 in Piestany, Slovakia and Breclav, Czech Republic.

Otters defenseman Adam Pelech won a gold medal with Team Canada at last year’s Memorial of Ivan Hlinka.

Also participating in the selection camp is Otters equipment manager Mike Hildenbrand, who is set to begin his third season with the Otters after stints with the Windsor Spitfires and ECHL’s Victoria Salmon Kings.

- From Erie Otters news release

The Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League have announced that defenseman Adam Pelech will participate in the 2012 Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game, which will take place Wednesday, February 1 in Kelowna, British Columbia.

The 2012 Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game will mark the 17th annual showcase of the CHL’s top-40 NHL draft eligible players featuring talent from the Western Hockey League, Ontario Hockey League, and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The two-day event also features an exciting skills competition and three-on-three challenge taking place on Tuesday, January 31.

Pelech is the first Otters defenseman to participate in the Top Prospects Game since Brian Lee in 2002 and is the 14th player from Erie selected to play in the game. Andrew Yogan (2010), Ryan O’Reilly (2009), Nick Palmieri (2007) and Zack Torquato (2007) are some of the recent players to have participated in the Top Prospects Game.

In an injury-shortened season, Pelech has excelled with six assists and a plus-two rating in eight games. He appeared in all but three games last season and was selected as the team’s Rookie of the Year at the Annual Summer Awards Banquet in June. Pelech has also won gold medals at the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge with Team Ontario and at the Memorial of Ivan Hlinka with Team Canada.

- From Erie Otters news release

Erie Otters rookies Chris Marchese and Adam Pelech will represent Team Ontario at the 2011 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, set for Dec. 29-Jan. 4, 2011, in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Marchese, 16, the 11th overall pick in the 2010 OHL Priority Selection, has three goals and seven points in 20 games. Pelech, 16, the club’s second-round pick, has a goal, five points and a minus-2 rating in 22 games. They are the 12th and 13th Otters to play in the tournament, including current players David Broll, Brett Cook, Chris Festarini and Greg McKegg.

This international event features five regional teams competing from across Canada and five international teams from Finland, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Germany and the United States. Team Ontario will play in a conference against Team Atlantic, Team Pacific, Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Team Ontario will begin their quest for gold on Dec. 28 with an exhibition game against Finland and will play their first game of the round-robin series against the Czech Republic on Dec. 29. The bronze and gold medal games will be played on Jan.4.

Here are the 21 OHL players on the team:

Goaltenders:

Jake Patterson, Saginaw Spirit

Defensemen:

Slater Koekkoek, Peterborough Petes

Jesse Graham, Niagara IceDogs

Gianluca Curcuruto, Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds

Adam Pelech, Erie Otters

Alex Gudbranson, Kingston Frontenacs

Marcus McIvor, Brampton Battalion

Matthew Finn, Guelph Storm

Forwards:

Matia Marcantuoni, Kitchener Rangers

Brendan Gaunce, Belleville Bulls

Scott Laughton, Oshawa Generals

Brody Silk, Sudbury Wolves

Justin Kea, Saginaw Spirit

Matthew Campagna, Sudbury Wolves

Garrett Hooey, Sarnia Sting

Sean Monahan, Ottawa 67’s

Kerby Rychel, Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors

Jarrod Maidens, Owen Sound Attack

Chris Marchese, Erie Otters

Andreas Athanasiou, London Knights

Thomas Wilson, Plymouth Whalers

Alternates: G Matthew Murray (Plymouth Whalers) and D Luke Mercer (Niagara IceDogs).

Team Ontario Staff:

Robert Kitamura, Director of Operations

Jake Grimes, Head Coach (Belleville Bulls)

Troy Smith, Assistant Coach (Kitchener Rangers)

Jeff Reid, Assistant Coach

Dan Buckland, Head Trainer (Sudbury Wolves)

Matt Sands, Equipment Manager (Belleville Bulls)

Victor Carneiro, Assistant Director (Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds)

- Victor Fernandes, OHL news release

The Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League are proud to announce that forward David Broll has been selected to Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team at the Memorial of Ivan Hlinka tournament, set to take place in the Czech Republic and Slovakia August 9-14.

Broll was one of 13 Ontario Hockey League players to make the 22-man squad after participating in a selection camp with 40 other players last weekend in Calgary. “It feels too good to be true,” Broll said of his selection. “It hasn’t really sunk in yet but I am very excited and I can’t wait to represent Canada.”

In his rookie year, Broll collected nine goals and nine assists in 64 games with the Otters. The first round pick of the Otters in the 2009 OHL Priority Selection represented Team Ontario at the 2010 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.

The native of Mississauga will hope to match what former Otter Ryan O’Reilly did for Canada in the same tournament in 2008, when O’Reilly led his country to a gold medal.

- From Erie Otters news release

The Team Ontario Under-17 Program is holding a final camp July 6-10 in Oshawa, Ontario, featuring 77 players that were selected in the 2010 OHL Priority Selection, including five prospects from the Erie Otters.
Forwards Chris Marchese, Connor Crisp, Luke Cairns and Drake Caggiula and defenseman Adam Pelech will represent the Otters at the selection camp. The Otters have been well represented at the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, with David Broll (2009), Ryan O’Reilly (2008) and Brett Cook (2008) all skating for Team Ontario.
The camp is hosted by the Ontaro Hockey Federation with representation from the Ottawa District Minor Hockey Association and Hockey Northwestern Ontario.
The camp will serve as a key evaluation for the selection of Team Ontario that will compete at the 2011 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, which takes place December 29th to January 4th in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Team Ontario captured gold in the 2008 event in London, Ontario, and the 2009 event in Port Alberni, British Columbia, before falling to the United States in the finals last season in Timmins, Ontario, with a roster that included 20 OHL players.

- From Erie Otters news release