Victoria Royals defenceman Joe Hicketts has been named to Hockey Canada’s National Junior Team Summer Selection Camp for the 2016 World Junior Hockey Championships.
Hicketts joins Royals’ head coach Dave Lowry, who was named the bench boss for the national team earlier this year.
The selection camp will see 40 players born in 1996 or later from across Canada compete for a spot on the World Junior team.
The camp takes place from Aug. 1 to Aug. 6 in Calgary. The annual tournament will be held in Helsinki, Finland from Dec. 26 to Jan. 5.
Last January, Hicketts along with Lowry, who served as an assistant coach, helped Canada win the gold medal at the 2015 World Junior Hockey Championships. In seven tournament games Hicketts recorded three assists to go along with a plus-3 rating and two penalty minutes.
During the 2014-15 season, Hicketts led the Western Conference in scoring for defencemen and finished second in the WHL with 64 points (12g-52a).
The 5-8, 175 lb. blueliner set the Royals’ single season record for most assists with 52 and recorded the franchise mark for most powerplay assists by a defender with in a campaign with 27.
Hicketss is a top prospect of the Detroit Red Wings.