Chiefs’ Anderson-Dolan Named Captain Of Team Canada
Spokane Chiefs forward Jaret Anderson-Dolan has been named captain of Canada’s under-18 team set to compete at the upcoming 2017 IIHF U18 World Championship in Slovakia, as announced by Hockey Canada on Wednesday. Fellow Chief Ty Smith has also officially made the team as an underage player.
“We are very excited about our leadership group,” said Darren Rumble (Barrie, Ont./Moncton, QMJHL), head coach of Canada’s National Men’s Under-18 Team, in a Hockey Canada release. “Jaret, Max and Stelio have shown great leadership right from day one. They are excellent competitors on the ice, and super people off the ice.”
The recognition comes on the heels of Anderson-Dolan’s jump from 40th to 21st in the NHL Central Scouting’s final rankings for the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. The Calgary native has some experience in a leadership role with Team Canada as he wore an “A” for Canada White at the 2015 World U17 Hockey Challenge. Anderson-Dolan had a standout sophomore season with the Chiefs during which he scored 39 goals and 76 points, becoming just the fourth 17-year-old player in franchise history to reach 30 goals.
“It’s a huge honor; if you look at some of the guys who’ve worn the ‘C’ for Team Canada before, there’s some big names out there,” said Anderson-Dolan about Wednesday’s news. “It’s just an honor to be recognized on this team as one of its leaders. I’m going to do everything I can to represent Canada as best I can and to help us win a gold medal.”
Smith, who just completed his rookie 16-year-old season with Spokane, continues his prolific national team career as an underage player on the U18 roster. The smooth skating defenseman was team captain and a silver medal winner on Team Canada at the 2016 Youth Winter Olympic Games as well as Team Canada Black at the 2016 World U17 Hockey Challenge. He ranked 13th among all WHL rookies during the 2016-17 season with 32 points (3rd among 16-year-olds).
Anderson-Dolan, Smith and the rest of Team Canada begin tournament play on Thursday, April 13 versus Latvia at 6:30 a.m. PT. More information on the tournament, including schedule, roster and statistics, is available at hockeycanada.ca.
