Music: {allcanada} Canada 2022 World Junior Selection camp invites 35 players

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Owen Power, selected by the Buffalo Sabres with the No. 1 pick in the 2021 NHL Draft, and Shane Wright, the projected No. 1 pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, were among 35 players invited to take part in Hockey Canada's national junior team selection camp.

The camp, which includes 21 forwards, 11 defensemen and three goalies, will be held at Winsport Arena at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary from Dec. 9-12. The event is the final step in picking the team that will play for host Canada at the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship, scheduled for Dec. 26 to Jan. 5 in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta.

Power, a sophomore defenseman at the University of Michigan, is tied for second among NCAA players with 23 points (three goals, 20 assists) in 16 games. He will be joined at selection camp by Michigan teammate, sophomore forward Kent Johnson (Columbus Blue Jackets, No. 5, 2021 NHL Draft), who is tied with Power with 23 points (four goals, 19 assists) in 16 games.

Power and Johnson are two of 14 first-round NHL draft picks invited to Canada's camp joining goalie Sebastian Cossa (Detroit Red Wings, No. 15, 2021); defensemen Kaiden Guhle (Montreal Canadiens, No. 16, 2020 NHL Draft) and Carson Lambos (Minnesota Wild, No. 26, 2021); and forwards Xavier Bourgault (Edmonton Oilers, No. 22, 2021), Mavrik Bourque (Dallas Stars, No. 30, 2020), Zach Dean (Vegas Golden Knights, No. 30, 2021), Ridly Greig (Ottawa Senators, No. 28, 2020), Dylan Guenther (Arizona Coyotes, No. 9, 2021), Hendrix Lapierre (Washington Capitals, No. 22, 2020), Mason McTavish (Anaheim Ducks, No. 3, 2021), Jake Neighbours (St. Louis Blues, No. 26, 2020) and Cole Perfetti (Winnipeg Jets, No. 10, 2020).

"A lot of effort has gone in to selecting 35 athletes who have a chance to represent Canada at the 2022 World Juniors, and we expect to make some difficult decisions when it comes to selecting a final roster," Hockey Canada senior vice-president of hockey operations Scott Salmond said. "It is always an honor to represent Canada on the world stage, and even more so when you can do it on home ice, and we know our athletes and staff are excited for the opportunity to compete in Edmonton and Red Deer."

The camp will include practices and two exhibition games against a team of U SPORTS all-stars Dec. 11 and Dec. 12, before traveling to Banff, Alberta, for training camp Dec. 14-19.

Canada is scheduled to play preliminary-round games at Rogers Place in Edmonton in Group A against Finland, Czech Republic, Germany and Austria. The United States is scheduled to play preliminary-round games at WP Centrium in Red Deer in Group B against Russia, Sweden, Slovakia and Switzerland. It's 31-player selection camp roster was announced Tuesday.

The top four teams in each group will play in the quarterfinals Jan. 2. The semifinals are Jan. 4, and the championship and third-place games are Jan. 5.

Wright (6-foot, 185 pounds), an A-rated forward on NHL Central Scouting's players to watch list who plays for Kingston in the Ontario Hockey League, is one of two players attending camp who are eligible for the 2022 draft, along with goalie Brett Brochu (5-11, 171) of London (OHL).

Wright has scored 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists) in 19 OHL games. He was one of the final players cut prior to the 2021 World Juniors. Canada lost the championship game 2-0 to the United States at Rogers Place on Jan. 5.

"Personally it was tough for me to watch the team play knowing that I was so close to making that team," Wright said.

The 17-year-old said he feels more prepared heading into selection camp this year.

"The overall message [when I was cut] was I just had to come on harder and really show that I could make a difference," Wright said. "I didn't really stand out at all to the coaches, really didn't do anything special or anything to make them keep me around. I have to make sure that I'm always doing things to help the team in any way possible."

Connor Bedard, a 16-year-old forward eligible for the 2023 NHL Draft, also was invited to selection camp. Bedard has scored 17 points (11 goals, six assists) in 21 games with Regina of the Western Hockey League. He scored 14 points (seven goals, seven assists) in seven games to help Canada win the 2021 IIHF Under-18 World Championship, becoming the third double underage player ever for Canada (John Tavares, Connor McDavid).

"We look forward to assembling a group that will wear the Maple Leaf with pride and embrace the opportunity to once again compete in front of fans in Alberta," Hockey Canada director of player personnel Alan Millar said.

HOCKEY CANADA WJC SELECT CAMP ROSTER

GOALIES: Brett Brochu, London, OHL (2022 draft eligible); Sebastian Cossa, Edmonton, WHL (Detroit Red Wings); *Dylan Garand, Kamloops, WHL (New York Rangers)

DEFENSEMEN: Lukas Cormier, Charlottetown, QMJHL (Vegas Golden Knights); *Kaiden Guhle, Edmonton, WHL (Montreal Canadiens); Daemon Hunt, Moose Jaw, WHL (Minnesota Wild); Vincent Iorio, Brandon, WHL (Washington Capitals); Carson Lambos, Winnipeg, WHL (Minnesota Wild); Ryan O'Rourke, Sault Ste. Marie, OHL (Minnesota Wild); Owen Power, Michigan, BIG TEN (Buffalo Sabres); Donovan Sebrango, Grand Rapids, AHL (Detroit Red Wings); Ronan Seeley, Everett, WHL (Carolina Hurricanes); Jack Thompson, Sudbury, OHL (Tampa Bay Lightning); Olen Zellweger, Everett, WHL (Anaheim Ducks)

FORWARDS: Connor Bedard, Regina, WHL (2023 draft eligible); Xavier Bourgault, Shawinigan, QMJHL (Edmonton Oilers); Mavrik Bourque, Shawinigan, QMJHL (Dallas Stars); William Cuylle, Windsor, OHL (New York Rangers); Zach Dean, Gatineau, QMJHL (Vegas Golden Knights); Elliot Desnoyers, Halifax, QMJHL (Philadelphia Flyers); William Dufour, Saint John, QMJHL (New York Islanders); Luke Evangelista, London, OHL (Nashville Predators); Jack Finley, Spokane, WHL (Tampa Bay Lightning); Ridly Greig, Brandon, WHL (Ottawa Senators); Dylan Guenther, Edmonton, WHL (Arizona Coyotes); Kent Johnson, Michigan, BIG TEN (Columbus Blue Jackets); Hendrix Lapierre, Acadie-Bathurst, QMJHL (Washington Capitals); Mason McTavish, Peterborough, OHL (Anaheim Ducks); Jake Neighbours, Edmonton, WHL (St. Louis Blues); *Cole Perfetti, Manitoba, AHL (Winnipeg Jets); Joshua Roy, Sherbrooke, QMJHL (Montreal Canadiens); Justin Sourdif, Vancouver, WHL (Florida Panthers); Logan Stankoven, Kamloops, WHL (Dallas Stars); Ryan Tverberg, Connecticut, HE (Toronto Maple Leafs); Shane Wright, Kingston, OHL (2022 draft eligible)