Sherwood Park, AB: Carter Savoie (University of Denver), Michael Benning (University of Denver), Carter Gylander (Colgate University) and William Zapernick (University of Alabama-Huntsville) will represent the Sherwood Park Crusaders and the AJHL at the upcoming Junior Club World Cup in Sochi, Russia. The four of them were selected as part of the 22 man roster that will head to Russia this August. The Crusaders organization will also be represented off the ice by Athletic Therapist Josh Armstrong.
“We couldn’t be happier for the group heading over to Russia,” said General Manager Kyle Chase. “These guys are all fully deserving of the opportunity, and we’re extremely proud of what they’ve been able to accomplish.”
Savoie and Benning capped off their first campaigns in the AJHL with honours from the league. Benning was named to the Viterra North All-Rookie team after finishing with 61 points (10 goals, 51 assists) in 60 games which were tied for first amongst defenceman. Savoie joined his teammate Benning on the All-Rookie team but was also selected to the All-League team. The St Albert native was also named the AJHL Rookie of the Year and CJHL Top Rookie.
In his second year with the organization, Zapernick almost doubled his point production from the year before going from 34 points to 62 in 59 games. He scored 28 goals which had him finish Top 20 in the AJHL goal-scoring race. He was named an assistant captain for the 2018/19 season and committed to the University of Alabama-Huntsville for the 2020-21 season.
Between the pipes, Gylander served as the backup to veteran netminder Matt Berlin in 2019. The rookie goaltender played in 22 games for the Crusaders posting a 16-4-0 record with a 2.43 goals against average, 0.915 save percentage, and also three shutouts. In the final NHL Central Scouting rankings, Gylander was ranked 10th amongst North American goaltenders for the upcoming NHL Draft in Vancouver. He was also selected to play in the CJHL Top Prospects game in Okotoks and committed to Colgate University.
“We look forward to watching them and see how they do at the tournament,” said Chase. “They’ll all be big parts of the team, and we wish them and the rest of Team AJHL good luck!”
Team AJHL will compete in an eight-team international tournament from August 23rd to 31st 2019. Players and team staff members will travel to Moscow for a pre-tournament camp from August 16th – 22nd before the tournament.
For further information, please contact Crusaders media coordinator Liam Horrobin at liamhorrobin@sherwoodparkcrusaders.com.