The CJAHL in partnership with Hockey Canada announced today the two individuals who will perform the roles of General Manager and Head Coach for Team Canada East at the 2008 World Junior A Challenge.
Team Canada East stated that they have appointed Marty Abrams from the Wellington Dukes of the Ontario Provincial Junior A Hockey League (OPJHL), as their General Manager.
“Marty did a tremendous job with Team Canada East at this event the last two years,” declared the CJAHL Representative for Team Canada East, Brent Ladds. “As an Assistant Coach in 2006 and as a General Manager in 2007, his leadership skills and determination led Team Canada East to an appearance in the gold medal final for two consecutive years. We are optimistic that he has the knowledge and experience to lead the team to a gold medal finish this November.”
Abrams, as the Head Coach and General Manager Wellington Dukes has amassed a 342-91-30-13 record during his 7 seasons with the Dukes and led his team to their second consecutive Eastern Conference Championship this season.
Team Canada East also announced today that they have appointed Mark Grady from the Cumberland Grads of the Central Junior A Hockey League (CJHL), as the team’s head coach.
“Mark Grady is an excellent coach who showed that he has the right combination of character and commitment to lead this team at the 2008 World Junior A Challenge,” admitted Brent Ladds. “Mark did a great job last season as an assistant coach for Team Canada East. We have no doubt that he will use his experience gained from last year’s event, and will translate that into a winning formula to take the team to top.”
Grady, as the Head Coach / General Manager of the Cumberland Grads, led his team to the top of the Robinson Divison this season in the competitive CJHL.
The 2008 World Junior A Challenge will take place from November 1st to 9th in Camrose, Alberta. Canada will look to continue its tremendous success at the event, as Team Canada East played Team Canada West in the championship finals of the 2006 and 2007 World Junior A Challenge events, winning silver and gold medals respectively in back-to-back years.
Team Canada East and West will be making the announcement of their respective Assistant Coaches in the not too distant future. Please stay tuned to www.cjahl.com for more details.
The CJAHL is an amalgamation of ten Junior A hockey leagues from across Canada. More information on the CJAHL can be found by clicking on the league website.
