Pens Elite forward puts on dominant performance for North America-based CCM All Out team at 2023 WSI
At last year’s 15U World Selects Invitational (WSI), Ryan Roobroeck broke the all-time tournament record for points. A mark that stood for 10 years, Roobroeck scored 28 points for Pro Hockey to help break the record and win the 2022 WSI. That mark stood for just 350 days, as Alex McLean would one-up Roobroeck’s mark this past weekend in Nashville.
McLean — a Canadian-born forward who played for No. 3 Pittsburgh Penguins Elite this season — scored an empty-net goal with 17 seconds left in the tournament to put the championship game away, 4-1 over DraftDay-Black. That goal broke the scoring record and set a new mark of 29 points in a single tournament. Additionally, the final goal of the ‘08 WSI earned CCM All Out the gold medal, and title as 15U world champions of youth hockey.
The team’s 9-0-0 record in the Music City, and an astounding plus-62 goal differential is one of the most dominant performances in WSI history. Especially considering that the tournament featured 51 games decided by two goals or fewer, CCM All Out stood out from the crowd in a very competitive field of teams. Eighteen games were decided by a shootout, but not when it came to CCM. They defeated opponents by an average margin of victory of nearly seven goals per game.
McLean, Rudlfs Berzkalns, Maximus Crete and Kent Greer were some of the biggest performers for CCM — and the entire tournament — on their path to a 15U world championship.
McLean Makes WSI History with tournament-leading 29 points
Alex McLean began the tournament with a six-point performance against Toronto Elite Hockey on Wednesday. The following day, McLean recorded back-to-back multi-point performances against ALPS Selects and NorthStar Elite Green. The 5-foot-9 forward finished pool play with 20 points, as CCM All Out earned the No. 1 seed in the playoffs.
Teammates Rudolfs Berzkalns and Maximus Crete were major factors in the offense as well. Berzkahlns — a Lativa native who played last season for national champion Bishop Kearney Selects — factored in on 18 of McLean’s 29 points scored this week. He finished second with 20 total points, while Crete had 19.
Additionally impressive was the performance of McLean’s teammate Kent Greer. Both played for Pens Elite this past season, both played for CCM All Out this weekend, and both led their respective positions in scoring. Greer is a 5-foot-9 defenseman who is one of the best at the position in North America. He led all defensemen with 18 points; 10 more than any other D-man.
In the elimination rounds, McLean scored four goals and nine points. That was nearly half of his team’s offense in the playoffs, with 7-1, 6-0, 3-0 and 4-1 wins en route to a championship. In 360 minutes of game action, CCM All Out never trailed.
World Selects Tournament Series Continues
The ‘08 WSI in Nashville was just one of 12 World Selects events scheduled for this spring and summer. Team Minnesota was victorious at the ‘07 WSI this weekend as well, after defeating Performance Hockey 4-1 in the championship. North American Prospects won the first girls’ tournament of the season, taking the U14 title over Sweden Selects. On top of that, Toronto Elite won the 12U AAA tournament in Bolzano, Italy, as well.
Three more World Selects tournaments are slated for this week. The 2011 Boys Elite square off in Italy as well. ‘09 AAA and ‘10 AAA tournaments take place in Prague, Czech Republic and Chamonix, France on Wednesday.
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