CALGARY, ALBERTA – Brent Sutter, Head Coach, General Manager, and majority owner of the WHL’s Red Deer Rebels, has been named Head Coach of Canada’s 2005 National Junior Team which will be taking part in the 2005 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship in Grand Forks, North Dakota. The announcement was made by Hockey Canada and the Canadian Hockey League on Monday.

The 2005 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship will be held December 25, 2004 through January 4, 2005 in Grand Forks, North Dakota and Thief River Falls, Minnesota.

Sutter, 41, has just completed his 5th season with the WHL’s Red Deer Rebels. The native of Viking, AB played 18 NHL seasons with the New York Islanders and the Chicago Blackhawks, and is a two time Stanley Cup champion with the New York Islanders (1982 and 1983). Brent led the Red Deer Rebels to the WHL championship and won the 2001 Memorial Cup. He was named coach of the 2001 and 2002 WHL Eastern All-Star Team, 2001 CHL Prospects game Assistant Coach, and the 2001 CHL and WHL Coach of the Year and 2001 Executive of the Year. He holds a 216-100-43 (.662) coaching record with the Rebels.

As a player, Sutter represented Canada on four occasions: 1991 Canada Cup (1st place), 1987 Canada Cup (1st place), 1984 Canada Cup (1st place) and the 1986 World Hockey Championship (bronze medal).

“I am honoured to be named as Team Canada’s World Junior Head Coach, “ said Sutter. ”As a coaching staff, we look forward to achieving many goals as a team over the next few months, beginning with our August development camp. Our philosophy will be to accomplish short term goals, day to day, as we built our team towards our ultimate goal as the best junior team in the world.”

Hockey Canada and the CHL also announced the appointment of Sutter’s assistant coaches with the 2005 National Junior Team, both of whom where Assistant Coaches for the 2004 silver medal winning National Junior Team.

· Dean Chynoweth, Calgary, AB

· Jim Hulton, Head Coach of the OHL’s Kingston Frontenacs

The appointments were announced following a thorough screening process carried out by Canada’s National Junior Team Policy Committee, which is made up of Bob Nicholson, President, Hockey Canada, Dave Branch, President of the Canadian Hockey League and Commissioner of the OHL, Gilles Courteau, the QMJHL Commissioner and WHL Commissioner Ron Robison. Hockey Canada was also represented Ken Corbett, vice-chair at large on the Hockey Canada Board and Denis Hainault, Director, High Performance.

Hulton, 34, led Canada’s National Under-18 Team as the Head Coach to a gold medal at the 2002 Eight Nations Cup. Hulton was an Assistant Coach with Canada’s National Under-18 Summer Team which won the 2001 Six Nations Under-18 Tournament in the Czech Republic in August, 2001.The native of Wolfe Island, ON coached the Belleville Bulls for three years prior to joining Kingston, including an OHL Eastern Conference regular season championship in 2001-2002.

Chynoweth, 35, spent four seasons as Head Coach of the Seattle Thunderbirds in the WHL. He led the Thunderbirds to a first place finish in the WHL’s Western Conference U.S. Division in 2002-03. A native of Calgary, AB, Chynoweth was an assistant coach under Hulton with Canada’s National Under-18 Team which captured gold at the 2002 Eight Nations Cup. Chynoweth was an assistant coach with the IHL’s Utah Grizzlies prior to joining Seattle. Chynoweth played three seasons with the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers, capturing two Memorial Cups, prior to spending parts of nine seasons in the NHL with the New York Islanders and the Boston Bruins.

The coaching staff will welcome a group of players to Team Canada’s summer development camp in Calgary, AB which will tentatively take place August 10-19, 2004.

In June, Hockey Canada’s Head Scout Blair Mackasey and the coaching staff, will name a list of players invited to the National Junior Team’s Development Camp.

Canada has won the World Junior Championship 10 times in the history of the championship, including seven of the last 15 gold medals. Team Canada won an unprecedented five straight World Junior titles from 1993-97. Canada also took home silver medals in 2004 in Finland, 2003 in Halifax, NS, in 2002 in the Czech Republic and in 1999 in Winnipeg, MB as well as bronze medals in 2001 in Russia and in 2000 in Sweden.

Director, High Performance, Denis Hainault and Head Scout, Blair Mackasey join the coaches on the 2005 National Junior Team staff, along with a support staff, which was also named on Monday.

TEAM CANADA 2005 WORLD JUNIOR TEAM SUPPORT STAFF:

• Bryan Boyes (Oshawa Generals, OHL) Equipment Manager
• Doug Stacey (London Knights, OHL) Therapist
• Dr. Ian Auld (Hockey Canada) Team Physician
• Mario Richer (Gatineau Olympiques) Video Coach

For further information on Hockey Canada and the Program of Excellence, visit Hockey Canada’s official website at www.hockeycanada.ca