Tag Archives: International Ice Hockey Federation

A changing of the guard among Great Britain’s ice hockey players of color

20 Friday Apr 2018

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Like the ceremonial changing of the guard outside London’s Buckingham Palace, ice hockey players of color in Great Britain are experiencing a generational shift.

Nottingham Panthers forward-assistant coach David Clarke, one of Great Britain’s greatest home-grown ice hockey players, retired from the game last month at the age of 36 last month.

He represented Great Britain over 90 times in international competition during a playing career that spanned from 1996-97 to 2017-18.

“In terms of a role model within British ice hockey… it was always great to see a black player in such a high-profile position not only at the highest playing level but also representing GB,” said Ethan James, a 19-year-old goaltender from London who played for Great Britain’s Under 20 team in December. “He’s definitely been the biggest name for all kids to follow.”

Nottingham Panthers forward says goodbye to fans in his final game. He retied as one of Great Britain’s most decorated players (Photo/Nottingham Panthers).

Now it’s the next generation’s turn to lead, and they’re eager to take the reins.

Team GB forward Mason Alderson Biddulph, was the fourth-leading scorer at the 2018 International Ice Hockey Federation U18 World Championship Division II-Group A in Tallin, Estonia, earlier this month with 6 goals and 3 assists.

His nine points, tops for Great Britain, helped the team win a gold medal in the six-nation tournament and secure a promotion to IIHF Division I-Group B.

Mason Biddulph led the gold medal-winning British team in scoring and was the fourth-leading scorer among all players at the 2018 IIHF U18 world championship in April (Photo/Hendrik Soots).

Biddulph was voted best forward by the tournament’s directorate, selected best player for Great Britain by coaches, and was named bestTeam GB player in 6-3 victory over Estonia in which he had two goals.

“I had no expectations of what we were going to do at the world champs, as it was my first time there,” Biddulph said. “So when we won the gold medal in Estonia and earned promotion, it was a surreal feeling and a moment I will never forget. It was important to GB as it was the first promotion in ten years, but it was important to me as an individual because it became the highlight of my career so far.”

The 16-year-old’s performance was just part of a a stellar 2017-18 season. As captain of the Guildford Firekings U18 team, Biddulph scored 29 goals and 10 assists in nine regular season games.

Biddulph comes from a hockey family. His father, Brian Biddulph,  was a rugged defenseman who played in Great Britain from 1982-83 to 1999-00 for teams in Streatham, Slough, Peterborough and Lee Valley.

Great Britain forward Mason Biddulph, also known as Alderson, celebrates after scoring a goal against Estonia in April 2018 (Photo/Hendrik Soots).

The elder Biddulph also played junior hockey briefly in Canada for a team called the Langley Eagles in what was then known as the British Columbia Junior Hockey League.

Like his father, Mason Alderson Biddulph is looking to test his talents in North America. Next week, he’s scheduled to attend a training camp of the Smith Falls Bears, a Junior A team in the Central Canadian Hockey League.

“The ideal hockey path I want to take is the Canadian junior A to an NCAA college route because of the standard of hockey and the chance to get a good education,” the younger Biddulph said. “Of course, I’d hope to turn pro in North America with dreams of the NHL, like any kid. But I would never overlook playing in Europe’s top leagues like the KHL,  NLA, DEL. .. Magnus and Serie A.”

Ethan James has already ventured across the pond to North America to play. He recently finished his second season with the Essa Stallions of the Canadian Premier Junior Hockey League.

He showed that size doesn’t matter when it comes to stopping the puck. The 5-foot-6 netminder compiled a 17-1 record in 24 games with the Stallions in 2017-18. He had a stingy goals-against average of 1.37 and a .949 save percentage, both CPJHL bests.

He backstopped the Stallions to the CPJHL championship with a 6-1 record playoffs record and a 2.16 goals-against average. James was a first-team CPJHL All-Star in 2016-17.

At 5-foot-6, British goalie Ethan James, playing in a CPJHL All-Star Game, is proving that size doesn’t matter in net (Photo/Mark Mauno).

“He’s got very good reflexes, he’s quick,” said Stallions Head Coach Sylvain Cloutier, a former American Hockey League and British Elite League forward who skated seven games with the Chicago Blackhawks in 1998-99. “If he was 6-foot-2, who knows where he’d be? ”

Hockey teams from juniors to the pros adore big goalies.  The average size of an NHL goalie is 6-foot-2 and about 201-pounds, but several goalies exceed that.  Dallas Stars netminder Ben Bishop is 6-foot-7; Nashville Predators goaltender Pekka Rinneis 6-foot-5; and Pittsburgh Penguins backstopper Matt Murraystands 6-foot-4.

“I honestly think height shouldn’t matter,” James said.  “If the goalie that is 5-foot-7 can stop the puck just as well as a 6-foot-plus goalie, why shouldn’t they get the chance of going professional?”

Goaltender Ethan James manned the net for Great Britain at IIHF tournaments in 2016 and 2018.

James played for Team GB at the 2018 IIHF U20 World Championship Division II-Group A in Dumfries, Great Britain, in December, appearing in two games a posting a 2.55 goals-against average.

He also played in two games at the 2016 IIHF U18 World Championship Division II-Goup A, in Brasov, Romania, and posted a 5.35 goals-against average in a backup role.

James has become known on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean for something more than his penchant for making big acrobatic saves: His big hair.

He has the best Afro in hockey this side of  retired WashingtonCapitals forward Mike Marson, who sported a natural to the NHL in the 1970s.  But James’ ‘Fro is rooted more in hockey superstition than fashion.

Superstitious, British goaltender Ethan James doesn’t cut his hair during hockey season (Photo/Courtesy Ethan James).

“When I was an Under 12 (player) with Romford I played with the Under 14s and we went undefeated that season and I never cut my hair during that season,” he said. “So ever since then, during the hockey season I just let my hair grow.”

And how does James fit those fluffy ‘Fro into his goalie mask?

“I just push the hair back and put the helmet on,” he said.

Just because David Clarke hung up his jersey doesn’t mean that Team GB is short a Clarke.  Morgan Clarke-Pizzo, his son, was a forward GB’s U20 team in December.

Clarke-Pizzo, 18, attends the Ontario Hockey Academywhere he scored 5 goals and 9 assists for its U18 team in 2017-18. He had 21 goals and 21 assists in 52 games in 2016-17.

He was scoreless in five games at the IIHF tournament in Dumfries but that didn’t stop his father from beaming with pride.

“Time flies for sure! I’m extremely proud to see him living his dream and representing his country and turning into a nice young man,” David Clarke told The Nottingham Post. “He’s still got a long way to go, but it’s good to see him and the team doing well.”

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Asia rising in hockey ahead of Winter Olympics in South Korea and China

14 Sunday May 2017

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Asia rising?

In ice hockey, it sure seems like it.

South Korea Assistant Hockey Coach Richard Park (Photo/Minnesota Wild/Bruce Kluckhohn).

From the winning exploits of  teams from the continent in recent international tournaments to players of Asian heritage poised to be picked in the 2017 National Hockey League Draft, to skaters of Chinese and Malaysian descent who were selected in previous drafts, hockey appears to be gaining ground in Asian nations and Asian communities in North America.

The interest could grow even more once pucks are dropped at the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea, and  the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing, China.

“I think it’s a testament to the growth of the game,” Richard Park, a retired NHL forward and an assistant coach for the South Korean national team that will compete in the 2018 Winter Games, told me recently. “I think it’s very welcoming,  I think it’s very refreshing. I think it’s a testament again to all these cultures that the game is reaching.”

Park, who’s also a development coach for the NHL’s Minnesota Wild, and retired NHL defenseman Jim Paek, the South Korean men’s national team’s head coach, are helping guide the country of their ancestry up the world hockey ladder.

They coached South Korea to a dramatic 2-1 shootout win against Ukraine in April, earning a second-place finish at the International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship Division I Group A tournament in Kiev.

The victory bumped South Korea up to the IIHF’s top division next year, joining the United States, Canada, Russia, Sweden, Finland and other hockey powers.

“Korea has never ever been close, let alone in the top division in the world of hockey,” said Park, who played 738 NHL games for the Wild, Pittsburgh Penguins, Anaheim Mighty Ducks, Philadelphia Flyers, Vancouver Canucks and New York Islanders. “It’s huge. It’s big, it’s never been done before. But in saying that, what it leads to in the future is kind of up to not only the media, but the young kids, and the really young next generation in Korea.”

In North America, a next generation of players of Asian descent is already making its presence known. Just take a glimpse at NHL Central Scouting’s player rankings for the June 23-24 draft at Chicago’s United Center.

Owen Sound Attack center Nick Suzuki is ranked as the 10th-best North American skater. The 5-foot-10 native of London, Ontario, was Owen Sound’s second-leading scorer last season with 45 goals and 51 assists in 65 games.

Owen Sound Attack forward Nick Suzuki hopes he’ll be chosen in the 2017 NHL Draft in June (Photo/Terry Wilson/OHL Images)

His younger brother, forward Ryan Suzuki, was the first player chosen in the 2017 Ontario Hockey League Priority Selection Draft in April, plucked by the Barrie Colts.

Kailer Yamamoto is hoping to hear his named called at next month’s NHL draft.  The 5-foot-8 right wing for the Western Hockey League’s Spokane Chiefs is ranked as the 17th-best North American skater by Central Scouting.

Spokane Chiefs’ Kailer Yamamoto is the 17th-ranked North American skater by NHL Central Scouting (Photo/Larry Brunt/Spokane Chiefs).

A Spokane native of Japanese and Hawaiian heritage, Yamamoto led the Chiefs in scoring in 2016-17 with 42 goals and 47 assists in 65 games. His older brother, Keanu, was Spokane’s fourth-leading scorer last season with 26 goals and 43 assists in 72 games.

USA hockey National Team Development Program defenseman Tyler Inamoto (Photo/Rena Laverty/USA Hockey).

Whether he’s drafted or not, defenseman Tyler Inamoto knows where he’s headed this fall. The 6-foot-2 blue-liner for the USA Hockey National Development Team, ranked the 68th-best North American skater, will be skating for the University of Wisconsin Badgers in 2017-18.

“He’s big, strong and has a mean streak,” said Badgers Head Coach Tony Granato, who enjoyed a long and prolific NHL career, “He’ll be a physical impact player right away next year.”

If drafted, Inamoto, Yamamoto and Suzuki, hope to join a small but growing list of players of Asian heritage who are on NHL career paths.

Center Cliff Pu, Buffalo Sabres’ third-round draft pick in 2016.

Last year, the Buffalo Sabres took London Knights forward Cliff Pu in the third round with the 69th overall pick in the NHL Draft. Pu led the Knights in scoring in 2016-17 with 35 goals and 51 assists in 63 regular season games.

The Florida Panthers chose Peterborough Petes forward Jonathan Ang in the fourth round with the 94th overall pick of the 2016 draft.

Ang, the first player of Malaysian heritage to be drafted by an NHL team, was the Petes’ third-leading scorer in 2016-17 with 27 goals and 32 assists in 69 games.

Andong Song also made history when the New York Islanders selected the Beijing-born defenseman in the sixth round with the 172nd pick of the 2015 draft.

Song, who has committed to play hockey for Cornell University in 2018-19, will likely be a key member of China’s hockey team for the 2022 Winter Olympics, which will be held in Beijing.

George Chiang’s voice fills with pride and hope when he talks about players like Pu and

Forward Jonathan Ang, the Florida Panthers’ 4th-round pick in, 2016.

Ang.

“Cliff Pu has good size and plays for the London Knights, which is great,” Chiang told me recently. “Jonathan Ang just seems to become a better player every year in the Ontario Hockey League. It’s kind of cool seeing those guys.

Chiang is a Canadian hockey dad. His 14-year-old son, Lee Chiang,  played for Lac St. Louis Lions Nord bantam AAA team in Quebec last season and will likely be selected by an OHL team in the league’s priority draft next year.

The elder Chiang dreamed of pursuing a pro career when he was younger. But that dream was stymied by his parents, immigrants to Canada from Taiwan, who initially forbade him from playing hockey.

Lee Chiang playing for the North York Rangers in 2015.

” I came from immigrant parents and they didn’t understand hockey. I begged every year since I was five,” Chiang, 47, told me recently.  “They put me in baseball because they understood baseball. It’s the national sport of Taiwan. Finally, when I was 12 they let me play on a (hockey) team.”

Unlike his folks, Chiang didn’t hesitate in allowing his son to lace up the skates and grab a stick.

“My plan was to also put him in baseball, but he ended up hating baseball and he loved hockey,” George Chiang told me. “He’s a hockey player.”

 

 

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Flyers’ Pierre Edouard Bellemare scores by passing on award at IIHF tournament

09 Tuesday May 2017

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The phrase “consummate team player” is an often over-used piece of sports-writing jargon, but every now and then you see the meaning behind the words.

Philadelphia Flyers LW Pierre Edouard Bellemare

Case in point: Philadelphia Flyers left wing  Pierre Edouard Bellemare. A native of France, Bellemare is basking in Paris co-hosting the International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship with Cologne, Germany.

Bellemare is a fourth-line player in the National Hockey League but he a top line forward for France.

After France upset Finland 5-1 in Paris Sunday, officials decided to name Bellemare the best player of the game for the French team.

Bellemare, who had a goal in the game, disagreed.

He passed on the honor and persuaded officials to give it French goaltender Florian Hardy, to the delight of the 11,433 spectators inside Paris’ AccorHotels Arena. Hardy had 42 saves in the game.

France, ranked 14th in the world, had previously lost eight straight to the 3rd-ranked Finns, dating back to 1993.

Sunday’s win was the latest in what’s been an excellent 2016-17 hockey season for Bellemare that began with his standout play as the only French skater on Team Europe in the World Cup of Hockey.

The Flyers failed to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but the team rewarded the 32-year-old Bellemare for his play during the National Hockey League season by re-signing him to a two-year deal at $1.45 million per year.

The team also made him an assistant captain, an honor he shares with high-scoring right wing Wayne Simmonds.

And Sunday’s gesture in Paris shows why.

Foley, Greenway, and Jones make U.S. roster for junior championship tourney

24 Saturday Dec 2016

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Erik Foley, Jordan Greenway, and Caleb Jones received early Christmas presents Saturday – roster spots on the U.S. team that will compete in the International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship.

With its final roster announcement, USA Hockey will skate one of the most diverse teams in the 10-nation tournament that begins Monday in Toronto and Montreal.

The three American players join Team Canada’s Mathieu Joseph and  Team Sweden’s Oliver Kylington members of the diverse National Hockey League draft class of 2015 who will represent their countries in the tournament.

Providence College Friars forward Erik Foley in action for Team USA against Finland (Photo/Rena Laverty/USA Hockey).

Providence College Friars forward Erik Foley in action for Team USA against Finland (Photo/Rena Laverty/USA Hockey).

Foley, a Winnipeg Jets third round draft pick, is a forward for Providence College Friars of Hockey East. A sophomore, Foley leads the team in scoring with 7 goals and 8 assists in 15 games.

Boston University's Jordan Greenway earns spot on U.S. roster for IIHF world junior championship (Photo/Rena Laverty/USA Hockey).

Boston University’s Jordan Greenway earns spot on U.S. roster for IIHF world junior championship (Photo/Rena Laverty/USA Hockey).

Greenway, a Minnesota Wild second round draft pick, is a forward for Boston University of Hockey East. The sophomore is the Terriers’ second-leading scorer with 6 goals and 10 assists in 16 games.

Portland Winterhawks defenseman Caleb Jones will patrol the blue line for Team USA at IIHF world junior championship (Photo/Rena Laverty/USA Hockey).

Portland Winterhawks defenseman Caleb Jones will patrol the blue line for Team USA at IIHF world junior championship (Photo/Rena Laverty/USA Hockey).

Jones, an Edmonton Oilers fourth round draft pick, plays defense for the Portland Winterhawks, a major junior team in the Western Hockey League. Jones, the younger brother of Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Seth Jones, is fifth on the Winterhawks in scoring with 3 goals and 28 assists in 32 games. He’s tenth in scoring among WHL defensemen.

Mathieu Joseph, right, will play for Canada at the world junior championship tournament in Montreal and Toronto (Photo/Matthew Murnaghan/Hockey Canada Images)

Mathieu Joseph, right, will play for Canada at the world junior championship tournament in Montreal and Toronto (Photo/Matthew Murnaghan/Hockey Canada Images)

Team Canada’s Joseph, a Tampa Bay Lightning fourth round selection, is a forward for the Saint John Sea Dogs of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. He’s the Sea Dogs’ second-leading scorer with 33 goals and 40 assists in 58 games.

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And let’s not forget Sweden’s Kylington. When he isn’t wearing his country’s classy Three Crowns jersey, the Calgary Flames second round draft pick skates for the Stockton Heat, the Flames’ American Hockey League affiliate.

Kylington is ninth on the Heat in scoring – and second among defensemen – with 4 goals and 9 assists in 25 games. He appeared in one game for the Flames in 2015-16.

 

 

Hockey’s expanding international reach proves that it’s a small world after all

02 Saturday Apr 2016

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How much is hockey becoming a truly international sport?

I came across a YouTube video from 2012 – before this blog was created – on the Anaheim Ducks hosting a clinic for a Mexican youth hockey team at the National Hockey League team’s California practice facility.

I don’t know if the Ducks have repeated this endeavor – I’m waiting to hear back from the team. Hello? But it wouldn’t surprise me if this one clinic helped spur more interest in hockey south of the border and benefit Mexico’s national hockey program.

In January, Mexico won the International Ice Hockey Federation’s Under-20 Division III world championship at a tournament in Mexico City.

Last July, the Dallas Stars invited three members of South Korea’s national hockey program to its development training camp in Texas. The Stars extended the invitation at the request of former NHLer  Jim Paek, who’s looking to build a competitive South Korea hockey team for the 2018 Winter Olympics, which the country will host in Pyeongchang.

Four years later, it will be China’s turn. Beijing will host the 2022 Winter Games. And Andong Song, who became the first player born in China  to be drafted by an NHL team when the New York Islanders took him in the 6th round with the 172nd overall pick of the 2015 draft, has become the young face of his country’s Winter Olympics effort.

Like South Korea, China is quickly trying to build a hockey team good enough to compete with Canada, the United States, Russia, and other major hockey powers at the Winter Games. Song, a defenseman who skated for Massachusetts’ Phillips Academy, this season, could be its captain.

India is trying to become more of a presence on the international hockey stage, too. Money is tight, equipment is scarce, and the talent pool is thin, but that’s not stopping a group of very determined women from dreaming of someday competing in the Olympics.

India’s women’s team played its first international match last month and got crushed by Singapore, 8-1 in the Challenge Cup of Asia. Still, India’s women’s team hopes to advance to next year’s Asian Winter Games. To do that, the team must leapfrog Singapore, Thailand and Chinese Taipaei.

Female or male, it’s not easy being a hockey player in India. For all our nostalgic talk of playing the game on frozen ponds and lakes in North America and Europe, it’s a way of life for most Indian players. Many of them come from Ladakh, near the Himalayas and can only play for two or three months when the ponds are frozen.

A country with more than 1.2  billion people has only 10 indoor ice rinks, according to the International Ice Hockey Federation. The cricket-mad nation has 1,104 hockey players – 315 men, 541 juniors and 248 women and girls.

Take some time and watch the excellent Al Jazeera English feature below on the fun and frustration of playing hockey in India.

The efforts by India, South Korea, China and Mexico prove that, when it comes to hockey, it’s truly a small world.

 

 

Nashville Predators’ Seth Jones named to 2014 U.S. World Championship team

16 Wednesday Apr 2014

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Nashville Predators defenseman Seth Jones’ rookie National Hockey League season is over, with the Preds failing to make the playoffs, but his hockey year is far from being done.

No NHL playoffs for Nashville's Seth Jones but more international hockey as a Team USA member.

No NHL playoffs for Nashville’s Seth Jones but more international hockey as a Team USA member.

Jones was among the first 15 players named Tuesday to the U.S. Men’s National Team that will play in the 2014 International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship May 9-25 in Minsk, Belarus. Jones, the fourth player selected in the 2013 NHL Draft, played in 77 games for the Predators and tallied six goals and 19 assists. He averaged 19:37 minutes on ice per game.

Jones adds a wealth of international experience to the U.S. squad, having played for U.S. national development teams since 2010-11.  He was a member of U.S. junior teams that won Gold Medals in 2013, 2012, and 2011. The son of former NBA player Popeye Jones was invited to the 2014 U.S. men’s hockey team’s pre-Olympic orientation camp last summer, the only invitee who hadn’t played in an NHL game.

He didn’t make the U.S. Olympic team but USA Hockey officials made it clear that Jones is definitely on their radar for the 2016 Winter Olympics, if the NHL sends its players to the Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea. In the meantime, playing in the 2014 Worlds will mean that Jones will postpone rest for what already has been a long hockey period for him.  He started the 2012-13 season with the Western Hockey League’s Portland Winterhawks, then played in the Junior World Championship, then returned to the Winterhawks for hockey’s Memorial Cup championship. He took about two-three weeks off between the time the Winterawks lost to the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League’s Halifax Mooseheads in the Memorial Cup final and the 2013 NHL Draft. “It definitely felt like a 12-year – er, 12 month season,” Jones said at the pre-Olympic orientation camp.

Jones could be a vital cog in USA Hockey rebuilding its national team after an American squad filled with NHL players failed to medal at

the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.  That team was led by Pittsburgh Penguins Head Coach Dan Bylsma. USA Hockey

Former Flyers Coach Peter Laviolette seeks to improve U.S. hockey team's performance.

Former Flyers Coach Peter Laviolette seeks to improve U.S. hockey team’s performance.

Tuesday named former Philadelphia Flyers Head Coach Peter Laviolette the bench boss of the 2014 men’s national team.

Laviolette served as an assistant coach in Sochi. Laviolette and his players will look to avenge the poor U.S. performance in Sochi and

improve upon the Bronze Medal the Americans won at the 2013 Worlds played in Helsinki and Stockholm last May.

The other players named to the team Tuesday were New York Islanders defenseman Matt Donovan; Torontoa Maple Leafs defenseman Jake Gardiner; Florida Panthers forward Jimmy Hayes; Boston College forward Kevin Hayes; goaltender Connor Hellebuyck of the University of Massachusetts-Lowell; Buffalo Sabres defenseman Jake McCabe; forward Peter Mueller of Switzerland’s Kloten Flyers; New York Islanders forward Brock Nelson; Edmonton Oilers defenseman Jeff Petry; Florida Panthers forward Drew Shore; Nashville Predators forward Craig Smith; forward Tim Stapleton of the AK Bars Kazan of Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League; Florida Panthers forward Vince Trocheck; and Winnipeg Jets defenseman Jacob Trouba.

The rest of the U.S. roster could be filled later with NHL players whose teams didn’t make the Stanley Cup Playoffs or are eliminated in the early rounds.