Simon Chen recently became one of few Chinese-born players to ever participate in an NHL development camp.
From July 4-6, Chen to part in the Vancouver Canucks’ Summer Showdown prospects game at the Rogers Arena. The tournament also featured blue-chip prospect Elias Pettersson and Brock Boeser.
The 20-year-old was invited to the team’s development camp as a free agent. Chen claims his love for hockey began at the age of six after his mother dropped him and his friends off at an arena in Beijing. Two years, later, the 5’10’ 180 pound defenceman moved to Nova Scotia where he attended a hockey school. From there, he fine-tuned his game and worked his way up to the BCHL, where he recorded one goal and two assists in three games with the Cowichan Valley Capitals last season.
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The Canucks will play the Los Angeles Kings at Shanghai’s Mercedez-Benz Arena on September 21, in an effort to grow hockey in China. Though it seems unlikely Chen will is unlikely to crack the lineup and make the trip given his small frame and low production in Junior A, but it’s still nice to see a player come such a long way and complete such an incredible goal.
Chen isn’t the only player from Beijing to garner attention in the hockey world. In 2015, defenceman Andong Song was drafted by the New York Islanders at 172 overall and became the first Chinese-born player to ever be selected. He spent the 2016-2017 season with the USHL’s Madison Capitols.
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If the NHL’s experiment in China is successful, we could see many more Asian players like Chen and Song participating at summer development camps in the future.
(H/T NHL)
