RIGA, LATVIA – Team Canada General Manager Ken Holland (Vernon, BC/Detroit Red Wings) and Assistant General Manager Mike Barnett (Olds, AB/ Phoenix Coyotes) announced on Friday the addition of four NHL players and two National Team players to Team Canada’s official roster for the 2006 IIHF World Championship in Riga, Latvia from May 5-21, 2006.
The four NHL players are forwards Mike Cammalleri (Richmond Hill, ON/ Los Angeles Kings), Matt Pettinger (Edmonton, AB/ Washington Capitals) and Brendan Shanahan (Mimico, ON/ Detroit Red Wings) as well as defenceman Brent Seabrook (North Delta, BC/Chicago Blackhawks). These four players will not arrive in Latvia in time for Canada’s first game at the World Championship, today, May 5th, vs. Denmark.
Canada also added two National Team players to its official roster, defencemen Micki DuPont (Calgary, AB/Berlin, DEL) and and forward Glen Metropolit (Toronto, ON/Lucano, SUI). Derrick Walser (New Glasgow, NS/ Berlin, DEL) and Stacey Roest (Lethbridge, AB/Rapperswil-Jona, SUI) have also been training with the team since it assembled in Belarus, and will continue to practice with the team and could be added to the roster at any time.
With these six additions, Canada’s World Championship roster now stands at 21 players, including two goaltenders, six defencemen and 13 forwards. A full roster can include up to 25 players at the World Championship.
With the first round of the NHL playoffs now concluded, Holland, along with Assistant General Manager Barnett, Head Coach Marc Habscheid (Swift Current, SK/ Hockey Canada) and assistant coaches Claude Julien (Blind River, ON/ Hockey Canada) and Trent Yawney (Hudson Bay, SK/ Chicago Blackhawks) will look to name two additional NHL players to complete Canada’s 25 player roster for the World Championship.
Canada’s World Championship Team will open the 2006 IIHF Men’s World Championship in Riga, Latvia on May 5th versus Denmark. All of Canada’s games will be broadcast live from Latvia on TSN/RDS, the official broadcaster of Hockey Canada. Canada will play in the preliminary round in a group that includes Denmark, Norway and the USA.