World class

Jordan Smith has been through a lot in his hockey career.

On the fast-track to the NHL before an eye injury cut those dreams short, the Sault Ste. Marie defenceman accepted his fate and decided to keep playing anyway, joining the Lakehead Thunderwolves program and furthering his education.

On Tuesday he was rewarded for his determination, earning one of 31 spots next week at Team Canada’s World University Games tryout camp in London, Ont. Smith was one of three Thunderwolves to garner an invite; also making the trek for the Dec. 10-14 camp will be forwards Matt Caria and Kris Hogg.

“I have gone through a bit,” Smith said Wednesday after a rigorous early-morning practice. “It’s definitely nice to be recognized as one of the top players and I’ll go there and put my best foot forward and hopefully make the team.”

Smith, who has two goals and four assists, has been rock-solid on the Wolves blue-line this season, keeping the team in the top third defensively in the competitive OUA West.

He plans to continue that style of play in London, under the watchful eye of Team Canada coach Clarke Singer, looking to represent his country for the first time since he donned a Team Ontario jersey at the 2002 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.

“I think I know the reason I’m going, it’s the way I’ve played so far, and I don’t need to change anything going in there,” Smith said. “It’s no secret I’m not an offensive guy. I don’t think they expect me to go in there and put up points. I just have to be solid defensively and see what happens.”

Hogg, a 24-year-old from Sicamous, B.C., might be the hottest player in the country heading to camp. On a seven-game point streak that’s seen him put up a dozen points in helping the Wolves win seven straight to close the first half.

He said he thinks his hard-working style of play is what convinced Team Canada officials to send him an invite.

But he was also quick to deflect credit for the honour.

“It is an individual honour, but with that comes team success,” Hogg said. “I think you can see our record, we’re ranked in the top 10 and we have some pretty skilled players out there who help out, which helps my cause.”

Caria has been an all-world player for the Wolves since returning from the Carolina Hurricanes training camp.

Fourth in the OUA – whose players will represent the country at the Games in Erzurum, Turkey starting Jan. 27 – Caria has been too good to ignore. It’s a good feeling, he said.

“This is going to be a big stage, a big opportunity, so it’s exciting. I’m going with two good guys and it’s a good opportunity to showcase Lakehead and yourself,” said Caria, who still has dreams of playing professional hockey in the back of his mind.

This marks the first time since 2005 that the OUA has been chosen to represent the country. Six years ago five Thunderwolves – Jeff Richards, Erik Lodge, Murray Magill, Peter Cava and current LU coach Joel Scherban – made the trek to Innsbruck, Austria.

Scherban, who would lose the players for the 10 days of the tournament, plus travel and pre-tournament time, said he’s got simple advice for the trio.

“It’s not very often you get to represent your country. That first day at training camp, when they get to pull that Team Canada jersey over their head, it’s a pretty good experience. Just enjoy it, try your best and I’m confident all three of them will make the team,” Scherban said.
The team is expected to be trimmed to 25 when training camp breaks on Dec. 14.