Rudolph, Desjardins Reflect on CHL USA Prospects Challenge

The CHL USA Prospects Challenge came right down to the wire.

After Team CHL won Game 2 by a 4-3 score at the VisitLethbridge.com Arena, it would be the USNTDP taking home the title thanks to Victor Plante’s goal in the three-on-three sudden death overtime frame to decide the series winner.

During a media availability after the series completed in Lethbridge, Team CHL head coach Willie Desjardins says he liked what he saw from his players.

“I really want to compliment our players, they were outstanding. It's a really tough two days for them. They want so much to impress the scouts. Every guy wants the opportunity and it's really hard if you don't get that opportunity, but there was such good character on the bench. I'd also like to compliment the US team. I thought they played really well. I thought they're really classy too. We had jersey problems in the first game and they went in there. They changed their jerseys before the start of the game and didn't complain, so that took a lot of class because that's something you could have complained about so I got it. You got to give them some credit and they thought they played hard.”

The event was absolutely crawling with scouts from every NHL franchise. A majority of clubs had multiple representatives in the building in Lethbridge on Wednesday and the total number of scouts in the building could have easily reached the triple digits.

With the pressure of trying to impress, Desjardins says he thought some members of Team CHL did a good job of showcasing a complete game.

“I thought the first period in the first game, we were a little bit tight. We were tight and our structure wasn't great. But I thought after that, lots of guys stepped up. I thought Liam Ruck did a great job, too, killing penalties and things. I thought we had lots of guys that took advantage of this situation, because a lot of them are offensive guys, and they had to play defense here. The scouts didn't know how good they could play defense, so I thought they had an opportunity to showcase that as well.”

While the series took place in Calgary and Lethbridge, the lone player in the series from the province of Alberta was Prince Albert Raiders defenceman Daxon Rudolph, who hails from Lacombe.

“Not too many guys get this opportunity, so I'm very grateful for that.” Rudolph said. “The event itself was awesome. I mean, not the result we wanted obviously, but I thought we battled hard and played well today. I think when you come to events like this, you learn a lot. You're playing with a bunch of new guys you can learn from, new cultures, things like that. I try and take as much as I can back to PA and hopefully keep it rolling there.”

With players on Team CHL coming from all over the country for the two game series, it took a while to gel as a team. Rudolph says he was proud of how the team was able to come together in that short time.

“It's always tough. We've got guys from all over coming together in a short amount of time, but I thought we did a really good job today. Obviously, it took us one game to get under our belt, but unfortunately, that's the way it is. I thought we played really well today and worked really hard.”

Over the offseason, several CHL players took the option to play for NCAA schools this season instead of playing for their junior teams. When asked by a reporter about his thoughts on the future of the CHL in the new landscape, Desjardins says he thinks there is no threat to the league.

“I thought it was a great event and I think for our guys, whenever you get to work with young men of this caliber, it's impressive. To see them, how much they care and how hard they try, anybody could get in that room, you would be so impressed by them. When you have young men like that, the league is in pretty good hands.”

Make sure you bookmark THN's WHL site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.   

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