Jr. Kings 18U Midget AAA coach Jack Bowkus discusses this weekend's Midwest Elite Hockey League Showcase event at Toyota Sports Center in El Segundo and his longtime connections to Michigan hockey with calirubber.com's Chris Bayee. The showcase event marks the first time that the five premier Midget programs from Detroit - Little Caesar's, Honeybaked, Belle Tire, Compuware and Victory Honda - are visiting Los Angeles. The event runs all day Saturday, all day Sunday and Monday morning and afternoon, and admission is free.

In part 2 of our conversation with LA Hockey Club/LA Selects President James Gasseau, he discusses the increased recognition that California hockey teams are receiving in North America and how the increased availability of Tier programs provides more options for players and their families. Gasseau also touches on the club's recent relocation from Westminster to Glacial Garden in Lakewood.

Seal Beach's Mitch Wahl talks about the honor of making the U.S. World Junior Team and how helpful it will be to have a fellow Californian - Rancho Santa Margarita's Jonathon Blum, a WJC veteran - on the squad with him. Wahl also provides an update on how his season is going with the defending Memorial Cup champion Spokane Chiefs in this interview with CaliRubber.com's Chris Bayee.

James Gasseau talks about how an injury changed the course of his career in hockey and how that led to him landing in Los Angeles in 1995 to work at longtime friend Luc Robitaille's Iceoplex in the San Fernando Valley. Gasseau, his brother Sandy and Igor Nikulin would go on to form LA Hockey Club and Selects earlier this decade - one of the state's most successful hockey clubs. The organization's president, Gasseau credits improved coaching and successes of various California clubs as building blocks for the growth of youth hockey in the state.

To hear the first part of his interview with Chris Bayee, click here.