Shane Willis

The Jr. Hurricanes are back in Quebec, looking to defend their championship in the Quebec International Pee Wee Hockey Tournament. Throughout the tournament, Canes Youth and Amateur Hockey Coordinator Shane Willis will be blogging here to offer insight on the team's play, recapture countless experiences from the historic city, tell tales and triumphs of individual players and more! You can also follow along with the team on Twitter for in-game updates and photos from the tournament!

Thanks for reading, and check back often!

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Lunch at East Side Mario's
Tuesday, 02.14.12 / 2:00 p.m.

Hello from the Jr Canes. Enjoying a team lunch at East Side Mario's.Not sure what we are on the east side of! twitter.com/JrCanesQuebec/…

— Jr Canes Quebec (@JrCanesQuebec) February 14, 2012

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Fun Times in Quebec
Tuesday, 02.14.12 / 11:30 a.m.

The Jr. Hurricanes continue to enjoy their stay in Quebec. The boys played a spirited game Sunday against our rivals from Hershey. Devin Barresi played like a young Cam Ward and kept the game close. The Canes came up short in a 1-0 loss. The boys finished the day with some more pond hockey and free time in the snow with their billets.

On Monday, the Canes hit the ice against the Halifax Mooseheads at the Mall. Yes, an arena in the middle of a mall! One minute you are buying a hat at Lids, and the next you are watching a hockey game. It was a great experience for the boys. It was also another spirited effort from the team, and we came away with a 3-1 win! Goals by Riley Johnson, Christian Roble and Colby Pederson gave the Jr. Canes the victory. I missed the second goal as I was watching the roller coaster shoot over the rink. What a place!

We look forward to the rest of the week. Today, we will practice and continue to work on our team's systems. Wednesday will be a day off to go to the snow park. The best way to describe this place is a water park, but on snow. Riding tubes down all the slopes. We will face the Caps from Washington on Thursday to prepare for our big test on Friday when we're back at the Colisee in a tournament game vs. Lakeshore at 9:15 a.m. Check back later for highlights from our week!

Salut!

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Big Win!
Monday, 02.13.12 / 9:00 a.m.

Canes storm the Colisee!

Friday marked the first day of tournament play as we prepared to take on Basse-Laurentides Est Conquérants, a team from Canada. It would be our first game in Class AA.

The team started off the day with a brisk walk around the city (30 degrees) to get the legs going. The boys then had an hour to spend with their families and let the Moms get their much needed hugs. After a team lunch it was headed to the Colisee for the game.

We stormed the ice and got an early lead with a goal from Perry Winfree. The Jr. Canes skated hard and took a 1-0 lead into the locker room. The second period was a chess match with the momentum swinging back and forth, but the score remained 1-0 after two periods. The Basse Laurentine came out strong in the third and had some great chances. Britt League stole the show with an unbelievable save doing the splits and a highlight-reel glove save late in the game. The boys tightened up defensively and skated to a 1-0 victory. We finished our day with a victory dinner with our parents, billets and teammates at Mount-Tourbillon.

Saturday was a day off, and we played some pond hockey and let the boys enjoy the city. We faced our arch rivals from Hershey in a exhibition game Sunday. Our next tournament game is not until Friday the 17th at 9:15 am.

Au revoir!

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Bonjour from Quebec
Friday, 02.10.12 / 12:00 p.m.

The Jr. Hurricanes are gearing up for their first tournament game. We had a great trip up on Wednesday with no delays or problems. We were extremely proud of our boys when a flight attendant said we were the best behaved group she had ever seen!

We started our day on Thursday with an enthusiastic practice. The boys were excited and ready to go. After a great lunch at Mike's Restaurant, we headed to our first exhibition game against Beaubourg. The boys came out flying and controlled the play early but couldn't solve the Beaubourg goalie. A late goal by Beaubourg gave them a 1-0 lead. The airplane legs showed up in the second, and we fell behind 3-1 with a goal by Skyler Brind'Amour to keep us alive. We finished with a spirited effort and scored our second at the buzzer. Despite the 3-2 loss, it was overall a good start to our trip, and everyone is excited about the real test today when we will face the Basse Laurentide East at the Colisee. You can watch the game and entire tournament online for just $30!

Go Jr. Canes!

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The Champs Return to Quebec
Friday, 02.10.12 / 10:00 a.m.

For the 10th consecutive year, the Carolina Hurricanes are sending a team to the Quebec International Pee Wee Hockey Tournament. The Pee Wee team includes 18 youth hockey players ages 11 and 12 from the Carolinas, who will be led and coached by the Canes Youth and Amateur Hockey Coordinator Shane Willis. Throughout the tournament, you can keep up with the team two ways: Willis will be blogging to offer insight on the team’s play, recapture countless experiences from the historic city, tell tales and triumphs of individual players and more. You can also follow the Jr. Hurricanes on Twitter for in-game updates, photos from daily experiences and more.

Last season the Carolina Jr. Hurricanes dominated the Quebec Pee Wee International B Bracket in 2011 and came home with the gold for its first championship in this prestigious tournament. This year, they have been moved up to the A Bracket.

2012 marks the 53rd anniversary of the Tournoi International de Hockey Pee-Wee de Quebec. The tournament hosts over 2,000 youth players who will play in front of 200,000 fans over an 11-day period. In addition to competing in the prestigious tournament, the players will be roomed with billet families in Quebec City and fully entrenched in the French-Canadian culture.  

Ties to the Hurricanes are seen all over the tournament program. Ron Francis played for Sault Ste. Marie two consecutive years in 1975-76. Chad LaRose and Tim Gleason battled against each other one year as LaRose was with Detroit Compuware and Gleason was with Detroit Little Caesars. Drayson Bowman played in 2001 along with Derek Joslin and Brett Sutter. Bowman and Jiri Tlusty played in 2002. Also, Canes Vice President and Assistant General Manager Jason Karmanos and TV color man Tripp Tracy competed in the Quebec tournament.

Thanks for reading, and come back often!

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