Vancouver Canucks brass said they have confirmed participation, at least for this year, in the NHL Young Stars tournament in Penticton.
Late last week a social media post from an Edmonton journalist suggested that the tournament could be coming to an end because scouts said last year鈥檚 event was 鈥渄isappointing for the calibre of kids taking part.鈥�
Related:
鈥淵oung Stars is a fantastic tournament and the City of Penticton does a tremendous job as host,鈥� said Trevor Linden, president of hockey operations for the Vancouver Canucks. 鈥淲hile the format and number of participating teams may change, we鈥檝e confirmed our continued participation this year. We鈥檒l have more details to share in the near future.鈥�
The tournament has gone through some evolution since it was introduced seven years ago. The first event included the Canucks, Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, San Jose Sharks and Anaheim Ducks. The U.S. teams eventually did not come back and the Winnipeg Jets now participate.
Event chair for the Penticton organizing committee, Andrew Jakubeit, said almost 80 players that have participated in the tournament have gone on to become regulars in the NHL.
鈥淩ight now, I鈥檓 confident there will be an event this fall,鈥� he said. 鈥淲hat the shape, size or scope of teams is; I can鈥檛 confirm or deny yet.鈥�
Here are some fan reactions to the original social media post:
Incredibly disappointing if that comes to pass.
鈥� David Harvey (@davidharvey74)
Disappointing in what regard? Top prospects competing at high level. If this is cancelled brutal decision...
鈥� Dean (@dinoprimo)
Maybe they could look at involving all the Canadian teams. Have a 鈥淐anada Cup鈥� per say. And maybe have it in say Saskatoon or another small city in Canada instead of Penticton every year. Change things up a bit.
鈥� algdubldubl (@algdubldubl)
