ST. PAUL – A St. Paul youth will be heading to Italy from April 23 to 30 to play with the North American Selects hockey team at the Bauer World Cup.
The North American Selects are a AAA hockey organization with U13, U15, and U17 hockey teams competing in international tournaments in Europe.
William Potratz of St. Paul, who currently plays for the Alberta Wolfpack U15 in the Premier Hockey League (PHL), will be playing in the U15 division with the North American Selects.
The Selects won silver last year at the Bauer World Cup and are aiming for the gold this year.
Potratz says being invited to play for the Selects was a big surprise. “I never really thought I’d be one of the only people from Canada to play for the [North American Selects] team,” he says.
He admits that while he’s excited, he’s also nervous to compete against the best of his age level in Europe. However, it just means he needs to work harder.
“You got to really start trying now and you really got to put the work in.”
Rosemarie Ortman, Potratz’s mother, expressed her pride for her son.
“He eats, lives and breathes hockey. There’s nothing he wants more than hockey - football maybe,” she says.
Potratz also plays for the St. Paul Bengals, a bantam football team that won its second consecutive bantam 9-a-side Tier 1 provincial championship in 2023.
Ortman says since her son started playing hockey eight years ago, “He’s been super dedicated and motivated.” She says her son spends over an hour each day, five days a week, practicing and improving his skills.
Her son is also very fortunate to have great coaches with the Alberta Wolfpack, and a private coach – Chance Szott – who is also the owner and founder of CrossIce Developments.
Asked who the biggest influence in hockey is to Potratz, the young athlete answered without delay. “Her,” he says, glancing at his mother. “She always sends me videos on Instagram… always telling me after a bad game what I could have done better and gets me to watch over my games.”
And “She’s also the number one supporter whenever I do have a good game,” says Potratz.
Ortman recalls how when her son started playing hockey, he could barely skate, but she knew he would be successful.
“I knew you were athletic,” says Ortman, to her son. She knew that in six months, he would be skating circles around the other players.
Being a strong skater is now one of her son’s finest points.
Ortman will be accompanying Portratz to Italy.
“The really neat thing about the North American Selects is you’re not just going there to play hockey, there’s quite a lot of sightseeing tours they’ve included,” which she hopes will be an educational learning opportunity for her son.
When Potratz, who is a student at École Racette Junior High School, comes back from the trip, he plans to do a presentation and an essay about his experience.
The North American Selects will be in Italy for eight days. They will be playing in Turin and Aosta.
