Prince George products Brett Connolly and Ryan Howse have made Team Canada's short list for possible duty in the 2011 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship.
On Monday, Connolly and Howse were among 39 players selected to attend the national junior team selection camp, Dec. 12-15 in Toronto. The tournament itself will be held Dec. 26 to Jan. 5 in Buffalo, N.Y.
Connolly, 18, is the captain of his hometown Prince George Cougars. The 19-year-old Howse is a member of the Chilliwack Bruins.
When Hockey Canada held an August development camp in St. John's, Nfld., Connolly wasn't invited to participate. Team officials decided they wanted him to put together a strong first couple months with the Cougars and show that his hip problems from last season were behind him.
Connolly has delivered. He has played in all 26 of the Cats' games and has been an offensive force for the club. He has a team-leading 20 goals and 33 points, a total that has him 14th overall in the WHL.
"It feels really great to be invited and I wanted to work as hard as I could to get to the main selection camp and I've done that," said Connolly, who is riding a five-game points streak and has helped the Cougars move into first place in the B.C. Division. "It was definitely exciting to hear the news."
Connolly will leave for Toronto on Dec. 11.
As for Howse, he skated at the summer development camp but, by his own admission, wasn't particularly impressive. He knew he'd have to be a standout player with the Bruins to earn another look from Team Canada. And, with 34 points (19 goals, 15 assists) in 24 games, he has accomplished his goal. Howse is the Bruins' leading point-producer and sits 10th in the league.
Connolly is a 2010 NHL draft pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning (first round, sixth overall) and Howse was chosen by the Calgary Flames in 2009 (third round, 74th overall).
Once Hockey Canada names its final roster, the team will play three exhibition games in Ontario to get prepared for the tournament. Canada's first game in Buffalo will be Dec. 26 against Russia.
In other news, Cougars defenceman Martin Marincin has made Team Slovakia for the world juniors. Marincin, the first-overall pick in last summer's CHL import draft, is second to Connolly in team scoring (nine goals, 30 points in 26 games) and is currently the WHL's top-scoring blueliner.
The Cougars will be left a little short-staffed around Christmas time because two other team members -- forward Troy Bourke and defenceman Josh Smith -- will be in Manitoba for the Under-17 World Hockey Challenge. That event will run from Dec. 28 to Jan. 4.
The Cougars (14-10-2-0) will host the Calgary Hitmen (6-19-1-0) on Wednesday. Game time is 7 p.m. at CN Centre.
