Top Prospects Arrive in Oshawa
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rIt’s been a whirlwind week for Evander Kane.
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One week after helping Canada win the gold medal at the World Junior Championships, the Vancouver Giants star scooted back out west to help his team to a pair of wins in the Western Hockey League on the weekend and then jetted back to Ontario on Monday to strut his stuff for the NHL scouts in Oshawa.
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Kane is one of 40 Canadian Hockey League players that arrived at the General Motors Centre on Monday to play in the Home Hardware CHL NHL Top Prospects Game on Wednesday (7:00 p.m. Eastern on Rogers Sportsnet).
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Despite the hectic travel schedule, Kane said that he has enjoyed every minute of his jet-setting life during the past couple of weeks.
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“There’s been a lot of travel in the last month and a bit,” said Kane, who was sent home after the World Junior selection camp but was recalled by the team when Dana Tyrell was injured in a pre-tournament game. “It’s something that I’m going to have to get used to. I doesn’t really bother me too much.”
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Kane said that he has had the date circled on his calendar ever since last summer and was anxious to play in the league’s annual showcase of the top draft-eligible talent.
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“It’s obviously exciting to be here,” Kane said. “It’s something that you look forward to as your draft year progresses on. It’s just another opportunity to showcase yourself in front of all the NHL scouts.”
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Kane will be joined in the game by Team Canada teammates John Tavares of the London Knights and Ryan Ellis of the Windsor Spitfires.
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Even though he is playing for Team Cherry while Tavares and Ellis will suit up for Team Orr, Kane was glad to see some familiar faces when he arrived in Oshawa. It will help ease some of the tension that comes with playing in this event in front of a capacity crowd that will include hundreds of National Hockey League scouts.
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Kane said that he puts a lot of pressure on himself to perform well in this event.
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“It’s obviously going to be very competitive and you have to be at your best,” Kane said. “I think if you aren’t putting that pressure on yourself to perform well then you aren’t going to perform well. I think the guys that take it lightly aren’t going to have the best time out there. For me, I take it really seriously and try to be at my best when game time comes.”|
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Top Prospects Notebook: Simon Després of the Saint John Sea Dogs is the top prospect from the QMJHL this season and said that he is anxious to suit up against the other top-rated talent in game this week. “It’s a great opportunity and I’m really excited about it,” Després said after arriving in Oshawa on Monday. “With all of these good players, it’s going to be easy to play with them.”…Nazem Kadri of the London Knights will play in the Top Prospects Game with his new teammate John Tavares, but the two will be on opposite sides in the game. Kadri said that he thinks it will be an emotional time for Tavares to be back in Oshawa but that he will quickly find himself at home in London. “The trade didn’t happen too long ago so I think he’s still got some General in his blood; but I think that will be soon washed out,” said Kadri, who was shifted to the wing to play with Tavares in their first game together on Sunday.
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Photo: Aaron Bell/CHL