Long wondering what happened

By DOYLE POTENTEAU
Kelowna Daily Courier
KELOWNA — Colin Long will be home for Christmas. Jamie Benn and Tyler Myers might not be.
Hockey Canada announced the roster for its national junior team selection camp Wednesday — the 2009 tournament opens Dec. 26 in Ottawa — and two Kelowna Rockets were named.
Not surprisingly, Benn, the WHL’s leading goal scorer, and Myers, one of the WHL’s top defencemen, will be part of the selection camp, which features 38 players, including 18 from the WHL, and runs Dec. 11-15.
“This feels great; this is such a huge honour to be invited to the camp,” said Myers, who is the tallest of the 14 defencemen at 6-foot-7 and is one of six first-round NHL draft picks (2008, 12th overall, Buffalo). “I’ve always watched the tournament, and getting a chance to play in it, I’m very excited. But I’m only halfway there because I still have to make the team.
“I don’t think there’s any pressure on me (to make the cut). If I just focus on playing my game and play strong defensively, I’ll have a good showing. But I definitely want to go into camp wanting to make the team.”
Said Benn: “It’s an honour being named to the roster. I’m thrilled and I’m going to work my hardest to make the team.”
Also Wednesday, USA Hockey released its roster for the tournament, and Long, surprisingly, wasn’t named to the 22-player team. Long is fifth in WHL scoring 40 points in 25 games, three points behind Brett Sonne of the Calgary Hitmen, who has 43 in 29 games and was issued a selection camp pass by Hockey Canada.
Long, who hails from Santa Ana, Calif., had a strong summer camp with Team USA, and appeared to be a lock to make the squad.
“I heard a couple days ago what might happen, so, yeah, it’s disappointing,” said Long, 19, who is second in Rockets’ scoring, one behind Benn’s 41 points. “I would have liked to have played (in the tournament), but I really can’t dwell on it. I’m happy I’m going to be here to help (Kelowna) out this month.
“They must have had their minds made up pretty early. I guess they only have so much room for offensive guys. But there’s nothing I can do. I can only keep working hard and worry about my own game.”
Added Myers, who was born in Texas and has the option of playing for USA Hockey: “I’m very surprised. He’s a top scorer in the league with Jamie, so, yeah, I’m surprised not to see his name there. But him not being invited isn’t going to hold him back. He’ll do just fine playing games here and I think he’ll move on just fine.”
Long wasn’t the only player noticeably absent from either Hockey Canada’s or USA Hockey’s selection lists. Other players not named included defenceman Luke Schenn of the Toronto Maple Leafs, who played in the 2008 World Junior Championship and is eligible for a second tournament, and Everett Silvertips forward Kyle Beach of Kelowna, who was selected 13th overall in the NHL’s 2008 entry draft by the Chicago Blackhawks.
Of the two, it’s not surprising that Schenn wasn’t named, for it’s unlikely that the Leafs would release the recently turned 19-year-old. But in Beach’s case, it’s eyebrow raising, given his talent.
“One of the strengths of our program is that when we come to each event, that it’s a stand-alone event. And we pick the players that are best prepared at this time,” said Hockey Canada chief scout Al Murray during a conference call Wednesday morning. “I know that we have several players that were at summer camp that aren’t here, and we have several players that were not at summer camp that have earned their spots.
“There are more players than there are spots. We had 65 real viable candidates for this year’s team on our shortlist, and we had to narrow it down. It was very tough, with some very difficult decisions.”
Murray also said: “As we went through the ADT series, it became pretty clear that there were a lot of players that the coaches liked, so we could have gone up easily into the 40s if we wanted to. But what we settled on, usually the ideal number is 34 — you wind up with three lines and six defencemen and two goalkeepers on each team.
“The coaches felt the strength of talent was there, and they’d like to have an extra forward and extra defenceman on each team in case of injuries, so guys weren’t having to go every second shift over the camp.”
“It ended up with 38 guys; well more than I thought we’d have at camp,” said Team Canada head coach Pat Quinn. “That’s a testament to the depth of the Canadian Hockey League and others at this particular time. I think we’ve got a real solid skill level, and a deep skill level, so we can play a skating game and puck-moving game and be a possession-style of team.
“But, on the smaller ice, when we don’t have the puck, we have an edge and have that good physical balance of play to get the puck back and make sure people know we’re out there.”
Benn is one of six players who’ve never been exposed to Hockey Canada’s national-team program, with the others being goaltenders Chet Pickard (Tri-City Americans) and Dustin Tokarski (Spokane Chiefs); defencemen Jared Spurgeon (Spokane Chiefs) and Patrick Wiercioch (NCAA, Denver); plus forward Chris DiDomenico (QMJHL, Saint John).
“Getting the chance to wear (Team Canada colours), this would be a first for me,” said Benn, drafted by the Dallas Stars in 2007 (fifth round, 129th overall). “It’d be a privilege to put on that jersey, and I’m looking forward to going to camp and showing what I can do.”
Regardless if Myers and Benn make the national-team grade, the Rockets will be represented in Ottawa, as athletic therapist Jeff Thorburn will be the team’s trainer.