Norris a familiar name included in Karlsson trade

Robin Short (robin.short@thetelegram.com)

Josh Norris, shown here play for the United States at the World Junior Hockey Championship last January in Buffalo, is the son of St. John’s native and former NHLer Dwayne Norris. – Associated Press

Josh Norris, one of the young prospects sent to the Ottawa Senators in the Erik Karlsson trade Thursday, is the son of St. John’s native and former hockey star Dwayne Norris.

The younger Norris was born in Michigan, where the family now resides. The 19-year-old was the 19th overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft. He had 23 points (eight goals, 15 assists) in 37 games as a University of Michigan freshman last season.

Norris was also a member of the U.S. team which won the bronze medal at the World Junior Hockey Championship last January in Buffalo.

Ottawa received forwards Chris Tierney and Rudolfs Balcers, along with defenceman Dylan DeMelo from the San Jose Sharks, in addition to the rights to the unsigned Norris, a first-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft or 2020 NHL Draft, a second-round pick in the 2019 draft, and two conditional draft picks.

Forward Francis Perron was also acquired by the Sharks.

Dwayne Norris played 20 games in the NHL with the Quebec Nordiques and Anaheim Mighty Ducks. But he’s best known for being part of the Canada’s silver-medal team at the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Olympics, and for scoring the winning goal in the final game as Canada won the 1990 world junior hockey championship in Helsinki, Finland.

Following his North American pro career, Dwayne Norris spent 11 seasons in the German DEL.

He’s still involved with hockey, coaching and serving on the board of directors with the Oakland Grizzlies minor organization which plays out of Troy, Mich. He recently took over as director of hockey operations for Total Package Hockey in Detroit.

Norris has two other hockey-playing sons. Coale played his freshman season at Ferris State University last year, while Dalton is preparing to play for the Grizzlies’ U18 team.

http://www.thetelegram.com/sports/hockey/norris-a-familiar-name-included-in-karlsson-trade-241454/

Josh Blackburn hired as new goaltending coach at Detroit CoE

Total Package Hockey is proud to welcome Josh Blackburn to our coaching family.

Blackburn is joining the TPH Center of Excellence staff in Detroit as the program’s new goaltending coach.

Blackburn brings a wealth of playing and coaching experience to the TPH Detroit team. The native of Choctaw, Okla., spent four seasons as the starting goaltender for the University of Michigan before playing professionally for three seasons. From there, he worked as the goaltending coach of his alma mater for eight seasons.

“We are very excited to have Josh Blackburn join our TPH Detroit Center of Excellence staff,” said Dwayne Norris, director of hockey for TPH CoE Detroit. “He is very knowledgeable in his craft, from both playing and coaching at some of the highest levels of hockey. Josh is going to be a great asset to our staff, and he’s already establishing a close connection with our young goaltenders at the CoE.”

Blackburn played three seasons in the USHL with the Dubuque Fighting Saints and the Lincoln Stars before joining the college ranks. He was named the USHL’s goaltender of the year in 1998.

At Michigan, he backstopped the Wolverines to consecutive Frozen Four appearances in 2001 and 2002. Blackburn helped Michigan win two CCHA regular-season titles and two CCHA playoff titles, and he was named to the CCHA All-Rookie Team in 1999.

He finished with 92 wins, a 2.29 goals-against average and a .905 save percentage over four seasons under Red Berenson.

After graduating, he spent the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons in the ECHL with the Augusta Lynx and the Columbus Inferno. In 2004-05, he suited up for the CHL’s Corpus Christi Rayz.

Blackburn returned to Ann Arbor following his playing career to serve as Michigan’s volunteer goaltending coach while operating his own goaltending school in southeast Michigan.

ABOUT TPH: Founded in 2001, Total Package Hockey is a hockey service provider with the vision to become the world leader in positively impacting the lives of student-athletes through the game of hockey.  TPH prides itself on operating at a standard that exceeds expectations of players, families, coaches, advisors and all other entities of the hockey world, one choice at a time. Our staff is committed to providing positive, energetic, hands-on instruction and mentorship, in an effort to develop each individual on and off the ice.  If each individual develops as a player, athlete and person, he or she will be better prepared to advance to the highest levels of junior, collegiate and professional hockey, while learning the skills necessary for success in the ultimate game: the game of life.

For more information about TPH, click here

For more information about the TPH Center of Excellence, click here

Nic Dowd looks to nail down one of few available spots on the Caps’ opening night roster, the fourth-line center slot

In the wake of winning the first Stanley Cup title in franchise history late last spring, the Caps didn’t suffer much in the way of offseason attrition, at least not in terms of sheer numbers. Goaltender Philipp Grubauer was traded to Colorado after three excellent seasons as a backup in D.C., and center Jay Beagle signed a four-year deal with Vancouver as an unrestricted free agent after a decade of yeoman’s work in Washington. CLICK HERE TO READ FULL ARTICLE

Dan Riedel joins TPH Detroit coaching staff

Total Package Hockey is proud to announce that Dan Riedel has joined the TPH Detroit staff as a player development coach and mentor at the Center of Excellence.

Riedel has playing experience at the NAHL, USHL, NCAA, ECHL, IHL and CHL level. A Rochester Hills native, Riedel played for Ferris State University for two seasons following his NAHL/USHL junior career. He was named First Team All-CCHA in 2005-06.

Following his time in Big Rapids, he played professionally for five seasons before returning to his home state. Since, Riedel has worked as a scout for the USHL’s Cedar Rapids RoughRiders and the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires and as head coach of the Oakland Jr. Grizzlies 16U team.

With OJG, he has found considerable coaching success – multiple National Championship tournament appearances, 29 players being selected in the USHL Draft, nine in the OHL Draft, and 18 players making Division 1 college commitments. Three have made USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program – Drew DeRidder, Josh Norris and Joey Cassetti – and two have been drafted by NHL organizations – Norris and Brandon Halverson.

“We are very excited to have Dan Riedel join our staff at the Center of Excellence in Detroit,” said Dwayne Norris, director of hockey for the Bloomfield-based school. “I have had the privilege of working with Dan in a youth hockey capacity, and seeing how he treats and helps his players, we know he will be a valuable asset for our student-athletes.”

ABOUT TPH: Founded in 2001, Total Package Hockey is a hockey service provider with the vision to become the world leader in positively impacting the lives of student-athletes through the game of hockey.  TPH prides itself on operating at a standard that exceeds expectations of players, families, coaches, advisors and all other entities of the hockey world, one choice at a time. Our staff is committed to providing positive, energetic, hands-on instruction and mentorship, in an effort to develop each individual on and off the ice.  If each individual develops as a player, athlete and person, he or she will be better prepared to advance to the highest levels of junior, collegiate and professional hockey, while learning the skills necessary for success in the ultimate game: the game of life.

For more information about TPH, click here

For more information about the TPH Center of Excellence, click here