TORONTO – Only two days after falling to the San Jose Sharks in game six of the National Hockey League (NHL) Western Conference Finals, former Alaska Hockey captain Colton Parayko has made headlines once again, this time being named to the Team North America roster in the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, announced on Friday. Parayko, a defenseman, was one of seven players added to the roster on Friday, completing the 23-man team.
Put together by the NHL and the NHL Players Association, the World Cup of Hockey was announced last September and will feature eight teams, including: Team Finland, Team Russia, Team Czech Republic, Team Sweden, Team Europe, Team USA, Team Canada and Team North America. The international tournament will be held at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto from Sept. 17 through Oct. 1, 2016. The tournament marks the first World Cup of Hockey since 2004 when Team Canada won the gold.
Parayko, who was with the Alaska Nanooks for three years (2012-2015), chose to forego his final year of NCAA eligibility to sign with the St. Louis Blues of the NHL. In his rookie season with the Blues, Parayko played in 79 games and posted 33 points (nine goals, 24 assists) from the blueline during the 2015-16 regular season. After knocking out the defending Stanley Cup Champions (Chicago Blackhawks) in the opening round of the NHL playoffs, St. Louis went seven games to defeat the Dallas Stars to move onto the Western Conference Finals and face the San Jose Sharks. Despite being knocked out of Stanley Cup contention on Wednesday, Parayko posted two goals and five assists for seven points during the playoffs, fourth amongst all NHL rookies in postseason play. Parayko is one of seven St. Louis Blues players who will participate in the tournament.
Team North America's roster is restricted to players 23 years old or younger as of Oct. 1 and is a combination of American-born and Canadian-born players. The team will be co-managed by Stan Bowman of the Chicago Blackhawks and Peter Chiarello of the Edmonton Oilers and will be coached by Todd McLellan, also of the Edmonton Oilers. Team North America is the only team in the World Cup of Hockey that will have an age limit on their roster, as Team USA and Team Canada feature a much more veteran squad of professional players.
The first 16 players for Team North America were named on Mar. 2, with the final seven being announced on Friday (including Parayko); the 23-man roster is now finalized. The team features three goaltenders, seven defensemen and 13 forwards.
The tournament format will feature two preliminary rounds featuring the eight teams being split into two groups (Sept. 17-22), from there the top-two teams from each group will advance to the semifinals (Sept. 24-25). The two remaining teams will meet in a best-of-three final on Sept. 27, 29 and if necessary Oct. 1. Group A will consist of Team Canada, Team Czech Republic, Team USA and Team Europe (made up of the top European players from countries outside of the other existing European teams: Czech Republic, Finals, Sweden and Russia), while Group B will feature Team Russia, Team Finland, Team Sweden and Team North America.
The full 2016 World Cup of Hockey Team North America roster:
Goaltenders
John Gibson – Anaheim Ducks
Connor Hellebuyck – Manitoba Moose (Winnipeg Jets hold NHL rights)
Matt Murray – Pittsburgh Penguins
Defensemen
Aaron Eckblad – Florida Panthers
Shayne Gostisbehere – Philadelphia Flyers*
Seth Jones – Columbus Blue Jackets
Ryan Murray – Columbus Blue Jackets
Colton Parayko – St. Louis Blues*
Morgan Rielly – Toronto Maple Leafs
Jacob Trouba – Winnipeg Jets*
Forwards
Sean Couturier – Philadelphia Flyers
Jonathan Drouin – Tampa Bay Lightning*
Jack Eichel – Buffalo Sabres
Johnny Gaudreau – Calgary Flames
Dylan Larkin – Detroit Red Wings
Auston Matthews – ZSC Lions (Swiss National League A)*
Nathan McKinnon – Colorado Avalanche
Connor McDavid – Edmonton Oilers
J.T. Miller – New York Rangers
Sean Monahan – Calgary Flames
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Edmonton Oilers*
Brandon Saad – Columbus Blue Jackets
Mark Scheifele – Winnipeg Jets*
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks Hockey team and their alumni, follow @NanooksHockey on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks Hockey page on Facebook.
