Dave Cameron had just hung up his skates. It was 1985 and he needed a new job after 168 NHL games, plus plenty more in the minors. He found his place working at a young offenders' facility and as a high school guidance counsellor.
There was passion for the craft, matched only by what he felt for the sport ingrained in his soul. A plan was hatched. "Coaching combined them both," Cameron explained.
"My love of hockey and my love of teaching." The product of Kinkora, P.E.
I., coached junior A part-time for nearly a decade after retiring as a player until he made life behind the bench his full-time gig. It's been a winding road ever since with stops across North America, including seven seasons in the NHL, along with a stint in Austria and success on the international stage.
Almost 40 years into that journey, Cameron wouldn't have it any other way as he prepares to lead Canada into the 2025 world junior hockey championship in Ottawa. Dave Cameron returning to Canada world junior bench after 3-year absence "You bounce around a little bit and you have to accept the challenge," Cameron said. "I started in what we would call 'old-school hockey' and 'old-school coaching.
' I've been able to adapt and keep up with the changing game. "That's probably the thing I'm most proud of." Canada lost in last year's quarterfinals Hockey Canada reached out to Cameron following last year's disastrous fifth-place finish in Sweden that saw the powerhouse nation meekly bounced at the quarterfinal stage .
