Richmond's Anthony Ast has been named to Team Pacific for the 2012 World Under 17 Hockey Challenge slated for Dec. 29 to Jan. 4 in Windsor, ON.
The final roster announcement concludes an extensive selection process that began with a provincial camp over the summer to identify a shortlist of players. They were then evaluated during the first part of the club team season by a selected group of high performance evaluators.
"We're very excited about the talented group of athletes we're bringing to this competition," said Team Pacific head coach, Michael Dyck. "We feel we have the right pieces in place to compete against the top teams in Windsor next month."
Ast, who helped the Richmond Blues reach the Bantam A1 provincial championship game three seasons ago, spent the 2010-11 campaign with the B.C.
Major Midget Hockey League's Greater Vancouver Canadians.
He is now in his rookie season in the Western Hockey League with the Vancouver Giants and has four points in 16 games to date.
The 2011 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge will bring together the top players in the world born in 1995 or later. The tournament is made up of 10 teams, five from Canada and five international.