The 31 Ontario University Athletics (OUA) men's hockey players vying for a spot on Canada's World University Winter Games roster hit the ice for the first time Friday evening at the University of Western Ontario's Thompson Arena.
Carleton's captain Brad Good, rookie defenceman Brad Albert, and leading scorer Brandon MacLean are all participating in the five-day training camp, as they look to crack the Canadian roster for the 24th Winter Universiade in Erzurum, Turkey next month.
I just had a quick chat with Good, and he said that the team had a "good, hard skate" today at Western, and will be getting into more systems tomorrow morning before taking part in an intrasquad game later in the day.
The team will also practice on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, before concluding camp with an exhibition game against Canada's national world junior team at the Master Card Centre in Toronto.
"It will be a good camp," Good said. "The first practice had a great, high speed and high pace and the competition level will be high for the game tomorrow night, all leading up to the exhibition game against the Canadian world junior team Dec. 14."
The official roster will be announced immediately following camp. The Canadian team will travel to Turkey Jan. 22 for games starting Jan. 27.
Farhan Devji is a third-year journalism student from Vancouver, B.C. He has previously written for the Vancouver Whitecaps, the Vancouver Canucks, and is a former accredited Canadian Hockey League writer. Devji is the Charlatan's sports editor.