Matt Spencer Named to Canada's National Men's Under-18 Team

Published on April 9, 2015 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Peterborough Petes News Release

(Peterborough, ON)- The Peterborough Petes are excited to announce that defenceman Matt Spencer has been named to Canada's National Men's Under-18 Team for the 2015 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 World Championship, which will be held April 16-26 in Zug and Lucerne, Switzerland.

Spencer, along with nine other players on the 2015 roster, won a gold medal with Canada's National Men's Summer U18 Team at the 2014 U18 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup in the Czech Republic and Slovakia last August.

The 6'2", 201lbs right defenceman from Oakville, Ontario, registered seven goals, 24 assists, 31 points and 66 penalty minutes in 72 regular season and playoff games in the 2014/15 season. He was selected by the Petes in the first round, third overall in the 2013 OHL Priority Selection, and is eligible for the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.

Canada will play a pair of pre-tournament games, both in Zug; it will face Slovakia on April 13 (1:30 p.m. ET/10:30 a.m. PT) before taking on Germany on April 14 (noon ET/9 a.m. PT). Players that have been eliminated from the Canadian Hockey League playoffs will be added to complete the roster for the tournament. Canada opens the 2015 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 World Championship on April 16 against Latvia, and will also face the Czech Republic, Finland and Switzerland during preliminary round play.

The players selected, born in 1997, were selected by Ryan Jankowski, Hockey Canada's director of player personnel, with support from head coach Tim Hunter (Calgary, Alta./Moose Jaw, WHL) and assistant coaches Ian Herbers (Jasper, Alta./University of Alberta, CWUAA) and Louis Robitaille (Montreal, Que./Drummondville, QMJHL). Jankowski evaluated the players during the 2014-15 season, following them along with numerous other candidates during league play, as well as in international competition.

Ontario Hockey League Stories from April 9, 2015

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• Josh Brown Signs Entry-Level Contract with Florida Panthers - Oshawa Generals
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• 17 CHL Players Named to Canada's National Men's Under-18 Team - OHL
• Matt Spencer Named to Canada's National Men's Under-18 Team - Peterborough Petes
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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.

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