NEW YORK – For the fourth consecutive year, NHL Network U.S. will showcase the best teams in Canadian major junior hockey as they compete for a national championship title at the 2011 MasterCard Memorial Cup tournament. NHL Network U.S will feature a combination of live and tape delayed broadcasts throughout the 10 days of competition from the tournament's host city of Mississauga, Ontario.
Fans will have the opportunity to see the NHL's future stars and 2011 draft picks as they take to the ice from May 19-29 at the Canadian Hockey League's pinnacle tournament. Those teams challenging for the 2011 MasterCard Memorial Cup include Western Hockey League (WHL) champion Kootenay Ice, Ontario Hockey League (OHL) champion Owen Sound Attack and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) champion Saint John Sea Dogs, plus the host team Mississauga St. Michael's Majors (OHL).
NHL Network U.S. will air Rogers Sportsnet's coverage of all tournament games with the broadcast team of play-by-play man Peter Loubardias, analyst Sam Cosentino and host Rob Faulds. All games will be broadcast in high definition.
Tournament coverage will begin on Saturday, May 21, at 9:00 a.m. ET with the re-broadcast of the previous night's action between the Saint John Sea Dogs and the host Mississauga St. Michael's Majors. Saint John is led by top-ranked prospects C Jonathan Huberdeau (No. 3 ranked) and D Nathan Beaulieu (No. 5 ranked), two of nine Sea Dogs on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking list. Mississauga's captain C Casey Cizikas, drafted 92nd by the NY Islanders in 2009, will lead the Majors to their first Memorial Cup appearance since 1961.
In the second game of Saturday's double-header, NHL Network U.S. will provide live coverage when the Owen Sound Attack take on the Kootenay Ice at 7:00 p.m. ET. WHL Eastern Conference MVP and Kootenay center Cody Eakin, drafted 85th by the Washington Capitals in 2009, will lead the Ice against Owen Sound, which is coming off a big Game 7 win in the OHL championship series. The Attack's 17-year-old, draft-eligible goaltender Jordan Binnington only allowed four goals on 70 shots over the last two games of the series.
Additional live game coverage will be added to the NHL Network U.S. schedule as the NHL's Conference Finals series conclude. Fans are encouraged to check the schedule at www.nhlnetwork.com for updates.
All of NHL Network's live broadcasts will feature intermissions originating from the NHL Network studio in Toronto. NHL Network will also feature nightly Memorial Cup coverage on NHL On The Fly with tournament news and notes and game analysis.
NHL.com also will have special coverage of the tournament in its entirety with a team of reporters and videographers on-site to cover the sights and sounds of the CHL's best.
The 2011 MasterCard Memorial Cup tournament features 25 recently drafted players from 20 NHL Clubs and 17 players eligible for the 2011 NHL Entry Draft who have been ranked by NHL Central Scouting.
Kootenay Ice
Brayden McNabb | BUF | 66th in 2009 |
Cody Eakin | WSH | 85th in 2009 |
Max Reinhart | CGY | 64th in 2010 |
Joey Leach | CGY | 73rd in 2010 |
Drew Czerwonka | EDM | 166th in 2010 |
John Neibrandt | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 170 | |
Jagger Dirk | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 188 |
Mississauga St. Michael's Majors
Casey Cizikas | NYI | 92nd in 2009 |
Brett Flemming | WSH | 145th in 2009 |
Maxim Kitsyn | LA | 158th in 2009 |
Devante Smith-Pelly | ANA | 42nd in 2010 |
Justin Shugg | CAR | 105th in 2010 |
Rob Flick | CHI | 120th in 2010 |
Gregg Sutch | BUF | 143rd in 2010 |
Stuart Percy | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 53 | |
Joseph Cramarossa | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 63 | |
Dylan DeMelo | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 121 |
Owen Sound Attack
Jesse Blacker | TOR | 58th in 2009 |
Garrett Wilson | FLA | 107th in 2009 |
Michael Zador | TB | 148th in 2009 |
Scott Stajcer | NYR | 140th in 2009 |
Joey Hishon | COL | 17th in 2010 |
Geoffrey Schemitsch | TB | 96th in 2010 |
Jordan Binnington | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 3 Goalie | |
Andrew Fritsch | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 84 | |
Keevin Cutting | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 87 |
Saint John Sea Dogs
Jacob DeSerres | PHI | 84th in 2008 |
Simon Després | PIT | 30th in 2009 |
Éric Gélinas | NJ | 54th in 2009 |
Steven Anthony | VAN | 187th in 2009 |
Stanislav Galiev | WSH | 86th in 2010 |
Mathieu Corbeil-Thériault | CBJ | 102nd in 2010 |
Stephen MacAulay | STL | 164th in 2010 |
Jonathan Huberdeau | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 3 | |
Nathan Beaulieu | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 5 | |
Zack Phillips | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 15 | |
Tomas Jurco | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 20 | |
Scott Oke | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 44 | |
Ryan Tesink | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 47 | |
Gabriel Bourret | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 92 | |
Aidan Kelly | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 94 | |
Jason Cameron | 2011 eligible - ranked No. 124 |
2011 MasterCard Memorial Cup on NHL Network U.S. Schedule (all times Eastern)
Date
|
Game | Time (ET) |
Sat., May 21 | Saint John vs. Mississauga
|
9:00 a.m. (tape delay from 5/20) |
Owen Sound vs. Kootenay | 7:00 p.m. (LIVE) | |
Sun., May 22 | Mississauga vs. Kootenay | 7:00 p.m. (LIVE) |
Tues., May 24 | Owen Sound vs. Saint John | 12:00 p.m. (tape delay from 5/23) |
Wed., May 25 | Kootenay vs. Saint John | 12:00 p.m. (tape delay from 5/24) |
Thurs., May 26 | Mississauga vs. Owen Sound | 12:00 p.m. (tape delay from 5/25) |
Fri., May 27 | Tie-Breaker (if necessary) | 12:00 p.m. (tape delay from 5/26) |
Sat., May 28 | Semi-Final
|
1:00 p.m. (tape delay from 5/27) |
Sun., May 29 | Championship Game | 7:00 p.m. (LIVE) |
** for a complete Memorial Cup schedule, visit www.mastercardmemorialcup.com