nivek_wahs
07-15-2006, 08:38 PM
From reginapats.com
Hunt anxious to start summer job
July 15, 2006
Greg Harder, Leader-Post
Curtis Hunt is looking forward to a summer camping excursion.
The head coach of the Regina Pats is preparing for his first official duties as an assistant with the national under-20 team, which holds its 44-player summer development camp from July 23 to 28 in Calgary.
The camp is the first step in the selection process for the Canadian entry in this year's world junior championship in Sweden. The team's final tryouts are conducted in mid-December.
Hunt and fellow assistant Clement Jodoin (Lewiston, QMJHL) will serve on the staff of head coach Craig Hartsburg (Sault Ste. Marie, OHL). Jodoin and Hartsburg were assistants under Brent Sutter with last year's gold-medal winning squad in Vancouver.
"The gravity of it still hasn't really struck me yet," said Hunt, who's entering his third season as the Pats' bench boss. "I'm excited to get back on the ice and learn from those two guys as well as start the journey. Like anything and any business you have a job to do and you prepare yourself accordingly. It's a week away, but I'm already gathering my notes in terms of what I'm responsible for. I just want to review them all to make sure I'm sharp when we hit the ice."
Hunt plans to draw upon his international experience from last year, when he won a gold and a silver medal as an assistant with Canada's under-18 program.
"The neat thing about this is, I know about 75 per cent of those kids through the two tournaments I've done," he added. "I understand who brings what in a game situation. We do have the cream of the crop. With a lot of returning guys, we want to make sure those returning players understand and recognize there is no guarantee you've got a spot on this team."
Meanwhile, Brett Leffler and Nick Ross of the Pats are slated to be among 44 players who open Canada's under-18 camp on July 28 in Calgary. The under-18 Junior World Cup is set for Aug. 8-12 in Slovakia and the Czech Republic.
- - -
ICE CHIPS: Former Pats D Paul Albers has signed a three-year free-agent contract with the NHL's Minnesota Wild. The Melville product completed his junior eligibility last season when he helped lead the Vancouver Giants to a WHL title ... Hockey Canada has hired Jim Hammett as the new head scout for its national men's program. Hammett, the former chief scout of the NHL's Colorado Avalanche, replaces Blair Mackasey, who took a scouting job last season with the Wild. Hammett will be working closely with Hunt & Co. in preparation for the world juniors ... The Swift Current Broncos have reported a loss of $173,690 from last season. That announcement came on the heels of news that a planned expansion to the aging Centennial Civic Centre has stalled while the city attempts to bring construction costs in line with the allotted $11-million in its budget ... The shareholders of the Kamloops Blazers, by a vote of 49-38, have decided they will not sell the community-owned franchise to private ownership. The Blazers had received a $6-million offer from River City Hockey Inc., a group led by businessmen Tom Gaglardi, along with ex-Blazers Shane Doan, Mark Recchi and Darryl Sydor ... According to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, the Seattle Thunderbirds will seriously explore a move to nearby Kent, Wash., for the 2007-08 season. The move hinges on the proposed construction of a new $35-million, 6,500 seat arena in Kent.
- - -
NHL INK: C Blair Jones of Craik is not expected back with the Moose Jaw Warriors next season after the 20-year-old signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday. Jones, who had 35 goals and 85 points in 72 WHL games last season, was a fourth-round draft pick in 2005 ... The Washington Capitals have re-signed C Brooks Laich, a 23-year-old native of Wawota who also played for the WHL's Warriors ... The Montreal Canadiens re-signed former Swift Current Broncos star Duncan Milroy, 23. He played for the AHL's Hamilton Bulldogs last season ... The Philadelphia Flyers have signed former Pats LW Boyd Kane, 28. Kane was the property of the Flyers for two seasons before joining Washington a year ago. He played five games with the big club in 2005-06 ... Former Warriors D Nathan Paetsch, a native of LeRoy, has accepted a one-year qualifying offer from the Buffalo Sabres.
Hunt anxious to start summer job
July 15, 2006
Greg Harder, Leader-Post
Curtis Hunt is looking forward to a summer camping excursion.
The head coach of the Regina Pats is preparing for his first official duties as an assistant with the national under-20 team, which holds its 44-player summer development camp from July 23 to 28 in Calgary.
The camp is the first step in the selection process for the Canadian entry in this year's world junior championship in Sweden. The team's final tryouts are conducted in mid-December.
Hunt and fellow assistant Clement Jodoin (Lewiston, QMJHL) will serve on the staff of head coach Craig Hartsburg (Sault Ste. Marie, OHL). Jodoin and Hartsburg were assistants under Brent Sutter with last year's gold-medal winning squad in Vancouver.
"The gravity of it still hasn't really struck me yet," said Hunt, who's entering his third season as the Pats' bench boss. "I'm excited to get back on the ice and learn from those two guys as well as start the journey. Like anything and any business you have a job to do and you prepare yourself accordingly. It's a week away, but I'm already gathering my notes in terms of what I'm responsible for. I just want to review them all to make sure I'm sharp when we hit the ice."
Hunt plans to draw upon his international experience from last year, when he won a gold and a silver medal as an assistant with Canada's under-18 program.
"The neat thing about this is, I know about 75 per cent of those kids through the two tournaments I've done," he added. "I understand who brings what in a game situation. We do have the cream of the crop. With a lot of returning guys, we want to make sure those returning players understand and recognize there is no guarantee you've got a spot on this team."
Meanwhile, Brett Leffler and Nick Ross of the Pats are slated to be among 44 players who open Canada's under-18 camp on July 28 in Calgary. The under-18 Junior World Cup is set for Aug. 8-12 in Slovakia and the Czech Republic.
- - -
ICE CHIPS: Former Pats D Paul Albers has signed a three-year free-agent contract with the NHL's Minnesota Wild. The Melville product completed his junior eligibility last season when he helped lead the Vancouver Giants to a WHL title ... Hockey Canada has hired Jim Hammett as the new head scout for its national men's program. Hammett, the former chief scout of the NHL's Colorado Avalanche, replaces Blair Mackasey, who took a scouting job last season with the Wild. Hammett will be working closely with Hunt & Co. in preparation for the world juniors ... The Swift Current Broncos have reported a loss of $173,690 from last season. That announcement came on the heels of news that a planned expansion to the aging Centennial Civic Centre has stalled while the city attempts to bring construction costs in line with the allotted $11-million in its budget ... The shareholders of the Kamloops Blazers, by a vote of 49-38, have decided they will not sell the community-owned franchise to private ownership. The Blazers had received a $6-million offer from River City Hockey Inc., a group led by businessmen Tom Gaglardi, along with ex-Blazers Shane Doan, Mark Recchi and Darryl Sydor ... According to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, the Seattle Thunderbirds will seriously explore a move to nearby Kent, Wash., for the 2007-08 season. The move hinges on the proposed construction of a new $35-million, 6,500 seat arena in Kent.
- - -
NHL INK: C Blair Jones of Craik is not expected back with the Moose Jaw Warriors next season after the 20-year-old signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday. Jones, who had 35 goals and 85 points in 72 WHL games last season, was a fourth-round draft pick in 2005 ... The Washington Capitals have re-signed C Brooks Laich, a 23-year-old native of Wawota who also played for the WHL's Warriors ... The Montreal Canadiens re-signed former Swift Current Broncos star Duncan Milroy, 23. He played for the AHL's Hamilton Bulldogs last season ... The Philadelphia Flyers have signed former Pats LW Boyd Kane, 28. Kane was the property of the Flyers for two seasons before joining Washington a year ago. He played five games with the big club in 2005-06 ... Former Warriors D Nathan Paetsch, a native of LeRoy, has accepted a one-year qualifying offer from the Buffalo Sabres.