Canadian hockey juniors to train with Austrian club
Hockey Canada has enlisted the help of an Austrian professional club as part of its quest to capture a fourth consecutive gold medal at the upcoming world junior hockey championships.
The Canadian junior team will conduct on- and off-ice training with EC Red Bull Salzburg of the Austrian Hockey League beginning Saturday, Hockey Canada announced Monday.
The objective of the five-day camp, during which the Canadian team will use Salzburg's training facilities, is to promote physical training and team morale leading up to the 2008 world junior championships in the Czech Republic, which run Dec. 26 - Jan. 5.
Team Canada's stay will be highlighted by an exhibition game in Salzburg against the Red Bulls' affiliated under-20 team.
"We're excited for the opportunity to work with Hockey Canada," Salzburg head coach Pierre Pagé, a former NHL bench boss, said in a news release. "Hosting the world's premier junior program will have not only an immediate impact on the players and coaching staff of EC Red Bull Salzburg, but make a lasting imprint on the ideology and ambitions of Austrian hockey.
"The knowledge-sharing that will be conducted here is symbolic of the dialogue needed between established and emerging hockey nations to help advance the sport around the world and secure its prosperity."
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