Taking his shot
Dersch looking to make national junior team for division two tournament
“He was thrilled … No different than a Canadian kid going to try out for a national team. It’s a big deal.”
Jim Hulton, Islanders head coach and general manager
Charlottetown Islanders defenceman Alexander Dersch headed home to Germany on Monday to try and earn a spot on his national junior team.
“He was thrilled,” Islanders head coach and general manager Jim Hulton said Tuesday. “No different than a Canadian kid going to try out for a national team.
It’s a big deal.”
The world junior tournament is in Vancouver and Victoria,
B.C., this year. Germany is in the second division and will host that tournament, which is held in December. They will be looking to be one of the teams to move up to the top division for next year’s competition in the Czech Republic.
“Go in and be yourself,” Hulton said was his message to the big blue-liner. “The reason they like you is from what you’ve shown.”
Dersch has played for his national teams in the past and wore the captain’s C.
The Islanders drafted Dersch 23rd overall in the Canadian Hockey League import draft this summer. The six-foot-two, 180pound blue-liner has eight assists and 17 penalty minutes in 25 games for the Isles.
The Islanders will go this weekend with six defencemen. Canada will release its invite list to its training camp on Monday and Isles captain Pierre-Olivier Joseph, also a defenceman, and goalie Matthew Welsh attended the summer camp.
Hulton is an assistant coach with the team.