Sports stats



WHL Kelowna Rockets

2009 World Junior Memories

February 2, 2009 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Kelowna Rockets News Release


You'll hear first hand from three Rocket Gold Medalists and their thoughts as they look back on the 2009 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships.

Tyler Myers remembers;

"The 2009 World Junior Championships was the single most amazing and gratifying experience of my life. The whole experience lasted a just under a month, from the tryout camp in early December to the Gold Medal game on January 5th. A month may seem like a long time to be away from home and your regular hockey team but as a player, the whole experience goes by very fast! The last three games against the USA, Russia and Sweden was probably the most nervous I've ever been in my life. Being down 3-0 against the USA, scoring five seconds left against Russia, and battling for Gold against Sweden was mentally and physically draining! Having saying that, it was the happiest time of my life! My favourite part of the World Junior experience would have to be playing with and against the best players in the world. Our team really bonded well together and I'm sure I'll keep in touch with all of them for a very long time. Although that was my favourite part, the one thing I will never forget is standing on the blue-line with my teammates, Gold Medals around our necks, singing OH CANADA together!"

Jamie Benn reflects on the World Juniors;

"My experience at the World Juniors was one I will never forget. Making the team and coming together with all the guys was something pretty special and with all the memories along the way, the road to Gold was worth it. My favourite part of the World Juniors was winning the Gold with the group of guys on that team. We all came together and bonded pretty quick which helped us along the way in becoming World Champs. There were so many memories but the one that stands out the most was when we finally won and got to sing our national anthem on the blue-line. There is no better feeling than knowing you've won it all and get to sing the anthem with all the guys and the 20,000 plus fans in the rink. It was a pretty special moment."

Athletic Therapist Jeff Thorburn has many memories;

"We started a very intense camp during the second week in December to select the team. It was a grueling four days for players and staff. Once selections were made, team pictures and media sessions were in abundance.

The team then traveled to CFB Petawawa for a couple of practices, but more importantly, team building activities. It was an unbelievable experience, and to get to take in a few of the 'beginner' activities that the troops dedicate themselves to daily was really humbling. I think our visit was also a moral boost for the Canadian troops who were based there at the time, as they had lost three soldiers in Afghanistan about a week prior to our arrival. Jumping off of parachute towers, flying in helicopters, shooting machine guns, and taking over 'mock' strongholds at night with night vision goggles on was very fun and a great opportunity. However, the importance of our military and their training really struck home when talking to some of the soldiers. You really understand that for them, it is a very difficult job that they work extremely hard at with a lot of pride.

From Petawawa, we got to fly on a Hercules plane to Toronto, and then made our way to Orangeville, where we based for six days, for practices and our exhibition games (Toronto, Mississauga, and Hamilton). It was great to get away from the spotlight and get the players focused on the task at hand.

Ottawa/tournament;

Unbelievable to me were the crowds not just at Canadian games, but at the other tournament games as well.

It was amazing to see the support that the players got from fans everywhere; horns honking for them, standing ovations walking in or out of restaurants, media and fans everywhere. And even more impressive was how each of them handled themselves with class and professionalism. What could have turned out to be over-pressure; was strictly enthusiasm and courage.

Clearly, wrapping everything up with a Gold Medal was the icing on the cake, but the semi-final game against Russia was the most surreal game I've ever been involved in. The roller-coaster of emotions as that game wore on was unbearable."

Two other Rockets' forwards participated in the World Junior Championships and have some very fond memories of the tournament.

Stepan Novotny reflects on the tournament as a member of the Czech Republic;

"The World Juniors was a great experience, because I got to play at such a high-profile event with, and against some great players from around the World. It gave me a nice idea of where I am as a hockey player. It's always nice to be able to compare yourself with the best guys out there and see where you rank.

My favourite part of the tournament was the two games against Team Canada and Team USA. Against Canada it was just a crazy atmosphere, loudest place I've ever played at. And against the USA, it was a WJC attendance record at the time and most people cheered for us so it was a great hockey environment. Both games were something that you just don't experience every day at this level.

My best memory was just the fact that I was able to get together with a lot of my old buddies. The amount of fun we had every day is definitely the best memory I have from the tourney."

Mikael Backlund was also at the World Juniors, playing in his second straight Gold Medal game with Team Sweden;

"My biggest memory from WJC is the final. It was so loud in the arena that I actually had pain in my ears! Another one of my best memories is when we won the semi-final against Slovakia. It was a big win for us, being down by 2-1 heading into the third period and coming back to win 5-2.

The big thing with this tournament compare to last year is that the WJC is so very big in Canada. It was almost sold out every game we played which was awesome! I had a great time at the tournament and it's so fun to play in those games. I love to compete in big tournaments and against the best players.

The Gold Medal game was my worst lost ever. It was my last chance to win the Gold at the World Juniors and we didn't get it done, so it was sad and disappointing.

However, it was such a good experience for me to play in front of so many people and on NHL size rink.

One part that I liked is the days just prior to the tournament-10 days before everything started we flew to Toronto and had a camp in Mississauga. Then three days before the tournament we went to Ottawa which was a really good feeling. Just to see the arena and the locker room for the first time, it was a great feeling to be there and the fact that in just a few days we are going play in WJC. The atmosphere was so good around the Arena and the hotel; you could feel that something big was coming soon!"

When Will St. Denis Become A Menace Again?

Rockets' forward Kyle St. Denis hasn't seen live action since breaking his wrist on October 24 in a game against the Chilliwack Bruins. St. D, sat down with Ryan 2'ts Watters to talk about his injury and the road to recovery.

RW - Talk about your injury, how is the wrist feeling?

KSD - Pretty good today, usually after practice it'll start aching, then I'll ice it and it feels better, but today it feels pretty good so I'm excited to get back soon.

RW - Which bone is actually broken and why is it taking so long to heal?

KSD - It's called the scaphoid bone, it's located just under your thumb in the wrist and it's taken a while to heal because that's where all the blood flow is and one part of my bone actually wasn't getting any blood. After a couple of months or so, it started getting that blood again and now it's pretty much healed so I'm pretty excited (laughs).

RW - So what have you been doing in the meantime to stay in game shape?

KSD - I've been skating everyday, bag skating, not the most fun thing to do (laughs). Some of the other things I've been doing is biking, running stairs and doing a lot of quick stuff, so I just have to keep that up for a while.

RW - So the million dollar question, when can you come back and play?

KSD - Well it's healed now, but just to be safe I'm taking a little extra time and I'll probably be back this Friday (February 6).

RW - What will be the toughest part of coming back after being out since October 24th?

KSD - I would say finding a line for me, you know I started off with Cody (Almond) and Brandon (McMillan), but they've both settled into a line so I guess coming back I just have to do what I did at the start of the season, be an impact player.

The Rockets' coaching staff is hoping for that as well. Welcome Kyle back to the line up on Friday night when the Rockets host the Everett Silvertips.

Tickets for all February games are AVAILABLE and on sale NOW at the Select Your Tickets box office and online at www.selectyourtickets.com, or call 250-762-5050.

Check out the Kelowna Rockets Statistics



Western Hockey League Stories from February 2, 2009


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central