Bernardsville Pee Wee Hockey Player Heading to Quebec

Liam Kelly, a seventh grade student at Bernardsville Middle School, has been selected as a goaltender for the New York Rangers Pee Wee Hockey Team, an elite group of 2000 birth-year players who will compete in the 54th annual Quebec International Pee Wee Hockey Tournament, often referred to as the “World Championships of Pee Wee Hockey.”

Kelly will be among about 2,200 talented youth hockey players from 16 countries that will travel to Quebec in mid-February to compete in what is considered the most prestigious minor hockey tournament in the world, drawing crowds of approximately 200,000 to the Pepsi Coliseum in Quebec City over the course of the 10-day tournament.  

Many stars from the National Hockey League have passed through this tournament in prior years, including Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Sidney Crosby. In addition to competing in a world-class competition, players also participate in a cultural exchange program, living with French-Canadian families during their stay in Quebec.

The New York Rangers Pee Wee Team is coached by Doug Messier, father of legendary hockey player Mark Messier; Jeff Devenney; and former goaltender and New York Rangers legend Mike Richter. The team will compete in the Tournament’s highest division, which will include other squads representing their local NHL franchises, such as the Detroit Red Wings, St. Louis Blues and the NY Islanders, as well as some of the best teams from North America, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Russia. 

Kelly is a goaltender for the New Jersey Colonials AAA Pee Wee Major hockey team, as well as the Bernards-Somerville Middle School team during the regular season.

—Courtesy Nuala Kelly