First round pick Cole Peardon is one of two Raiders prospects off to Hockey Canada's U17 camp in July. (Submitted Photo/Prince Albert Raiders)

By Rob Mahon

Raiders to Canada Camp

Raiders first-round picks Peardon, Ritchie, named to Canada’s U17 camp

Jun 9, 2022 | 12:23 PM

There won’t be any gold medals handed out in July, nor will any rosters be confirmed, but two members of the Prince Albert Raiders will get a chance to make a strong impression on Hockey Canada early next month.

Hockey Canada announced today their list of 100 players from around the country invited to their U17 development camp on July 10, and two of the names are ones Raiders fans will be keeping a close eye on.

Cole Peardon and Ryder Ritchie, both first round picks in the 2021 prospects draft, are on the list of players selected.

“We’re extremely happy for those young men,” said Raiders GM Curtis Hunt. “For them, obviously being drafted where they were, they’re elite players, and we’re excited for the experience and the journey they have ahead.”

Peardon, a forward from Outlook, Sask., spent last season with the U18 AAA Saskatoon Blazers, posting 37 points in 35 games. He tacked on four points in four playoff games before traveling with the Raiders through their first-round playoff series against the Winnipeg ICE. He was the 13^th overall selection in the draft.

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Taken just one pick later at 14^th overall, Ritchie is a product of the Rink Hockey Academy in Kelowna. He put up 31 points in 23 regular season games and followed it up with an impressive six points in three playoff games, good enough to lead his team.

“We think they’re going to show very well at the camp,” Hunt said. “They’re good players, they’re good people, they work hard. They were key players for their teams as they wrapped up their season. I know both guys are training extremely hard right now and I think they’ll give themselves a really good opportunity to make that club by their work ethic and their attitudes.”

The Raiders have sent numerous players to Hockey Canada camps over the years, and those players have worn Team Canada colors at many different events. Most recently, forward Harrison Lodewyk played on one of Canada’s squads at their U17 event last year in Ottawa.

“You get to know where you are with your peers, you get on the radar for that next level,” Hunt said. “He (Lodewyk) is a guy that, after he got back and after Christmas, he really worked himself from a young player on a fourth line into a third line role for us. That’s where he completed the season in the playoffs.”

Also named to the event was Debden-born goaltender, Chase Wutzke, a draft pick of the Red Deer Rebels.

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rob.mahon@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @RobMahonPxP