By Peter Watts /

What is it about Winnipeg hockey that has more scouts looking closely at players produced out of this community?

Netminder Chet Pickard, who’s playing in Tri-Cities in the Western Hockey League this season, is one of four goalies named to the training camp roster for the World Junior team who will play in Ottawa at Christmas.

Another netminder, Brant Hilton, is on the roster of the FISU Games team going to Harbin, China in February.

The Winnipeg Thrashers went to the Telus Cup national midget championship last season and made the final.

The Thrashers are the host team for this year’s tournament.

Coming up the hockey ladder are a bunch of bantam prospects led by defenceman Brett Cote of Springfield, defenceman Dylan Kuzak from the Winnipeg Sharks, another blueliner, Travis Brown, from the Winnipeg Monarchs, and goalie Teaghan Sachert from the Sharks.

They are being actively scouted by WHL teams which will be drafting again next May in Calgary.

“Neil Chow has run a very strong Sharks program for more than a decade,” said hockey scout Lorne ‘Ned’ Saunders.

“I know I used to work for Tri-Cities and that organization had 15 players on its training camp roster from Winnipeg.

“The Americans have really kept a close eye on the Sharks and they obviously like what Neil has been able to do with developing young players.

“I think the trend really started a few years ago.  You look at the ’85 birth year guys: Nigel Dawes (New York Rangers), Travis Zajac (New Jersey Devils), Derek Meech (Detroit Red Wings), and Tyler Arnason (Colorado Avalanche) have all had time in the NHL and some of them are regulars.

“The Class of ’86 includes Dustin Boyd (Calgary) and Cam Barker (Chicago). Darren Helm’s an ’87 and he’s helped Detroit. And, of course, there’s Jonathan Toews with Chicago, who I think has made the biggest individual impact.

“Young players see what he’s been able to accomplish and aspire to follow in his footsteps.”

Toews has one of the most distinguished resumes of any of the new stars in the NHL.

He spent two seasons at Shattuck-St Mary’s School in Minnesota, scoring 110 points in 64 games in his second season.

He moved on to the University of North Dakota where, in his first season, he was the youngest player in the NCAA.

All he did in Grand Forks was produce 85 points in 76 games over two seasons.

Drafted No. 3 overall by Chicago in 2006, he’s now the captain and acknowledged leader of one of the most exciting young teams in 
the NHL.

Along the way, he also captained a Team West to the gold medal at the World U-17 tournament in 2005 and earned gold with the national junior team in 2006 and 2007.

He became the first Canadian player to achieve a unique double when he won gold with the senior men’s team at the 2007 
world championships.

Scott Miller is a personal trainer who’s worked with hockey players for several years.

In the last few months, he’s started a new company called NRG Fitness (www.nrgfitness.ca), which works with players as young as 10, all the way up to players who are in junior hockey.

“I see a higher level of commitment to off-season training and to personal fitness,” he said. “The difference is that it used to be driven by parents, who wanted their youngsters to train so that they could compete and play at higher levels.

“Today, it’s the athletes themselves who are prepared to make the commitment. I’ve got about 50 athletes on programs at 
the moment.”

Miller also does a fair bit of athletic therapy, operating out of the University of Winnipeg and from a clinic in Selkirk.

“It’s all about promoting safety and injury prevention,” says Miller.