2017 U.S. National Junior Team Game Notes Game Team Junior National U.S
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2017 U.S. NATIONAL JUNIOR TEAM GAME NOTES 2017 INTERNATIONAL ICE HOCKEY FEDERATION WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP | MONTREAL AND TORONTO, CANADA SEMIFINALS • USA (5-0-0-0) VS. RUSSIA (3-0-0-2) • WED., JAN. 4, 2017 • 3:00 P.M. ET • MONTREAL • BELL CENTRE (CAPACITY: 21,287) TODAY’S GAME LAST GAME JAN. 2: USA 3, SUI 2 (QUARTERFINAL) The U.S. National Junior Team faces Russia today in the semifinals of the Jeremy Bracco and Jordan Greenway each tallied a goal and an assist 2017 IIHF World Junior Championship here in Montreal. The two teams met and Tyler Parsons made 19 saves to help Team USA win its quarterfinal in the preliminary round (3-2, USA) and are facing off in the semifinals for the game for the second IIHF World Junior Championship. Team USA went second consecutive year (2-1, RUS). Puck drop is set for 3:00 p.m. ET and 2-for-4 on the power play and 2-for-4 on the penalty kill but was outshot will be televised in the U.S. live on NHL Network with updates also available by the Swiss, 17-21. Bracco was named the U.S. Player of the Game on Twitter @USAHockey with the hashtags #USAWJC and #WorldJuniors. and Greenway scored his second game-winning goal in as many games. THE SERIES VS. RUSSIA THINGS WORTH MENTIONING Last Thursday (Dec. 29), the U.S. topped Russia, 3-2, in a preliminary After the quarterfinal win on Monday (Jan. 2), Team USA took a chartered round tilt at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto. Clayton Keller (St. Louis, flight to Montreal and arrived close to midnight ...Clayton Keller (3-5--8) Mo./Boston University) tallied two points (1-1) and Tyler Parsons has a point in every U.S. game while Colin White (4-1--5) and Charlie (Chesterfield, Mich./London Knights) made 25 saves in the win. Troy McAvoy (1-3--4) have points in four of Team USA’s five games ... Team Terry (Highlands Ranch, Colo./University of Denver), who scored the USA, which has yet to trail in tournament play, has a power play goal in game-winning goal, was named the U.S. Player of the Game. each game while at least six players have tallied a point each game ... The victory ended a five-game losing streak to Russia in tournament Team USA won its preliminary round group for the first time since 2011 play, which included three-straight playoff round meetings and one and third time in the last 10 IIHF World Junior Championships after also bronze medal-game. Team USA has never beeaten Russia in the playoff finishing atop the group in 2008 ... While the 2017 U.S. National Junior round (0-7) and trails the all-time series 6-0-0-12-0 (W-OTW-OTL-L). Team had two Toronto Maple Leafs prospects (Jeremy Bracco, Joseph Woll) skating in Toronto, the lone Team USA connection to the NHL’s IN GOAL TODAY Montreal Canadiens is through Kieffer Bellows, whose father, Brian, Tyler Parsons (Chesterfield, Mich./London Knights) is the likely starter won a Stanley Cup with the Canadiens in 1993 ... Ron DeGregorio, USA again for Team USA. In three games for the U.S., Parsons has stopped Hockey’s chairman of the board and 2015 U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame 55 of the 60 shots he’s faced to post a 1.67 goals against average and inductee, is in Montreal for today and tomorrow’s games. Also here are .916 save percentage while allowing just five goals. Mike Bertsch, USA Hockey’s assistant executive director of events, marketing and communications, and Kevin Couture, USA Hockey’s TEAM USA IN SEMIFINAL PLAY director of events, both of whom are here as part of initial preparations All-time, Team USA holds a 4-0-1-7 (W-OTW-OTL-L) record and has and meetings for the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship, which will been outscored, 27-37, in 12 semifinal appearances. Last year, Team take place in Buffalo, New York, from Dec. 26, 2017 through Jan. 5, 2018. USA scored the game’s opening goal but fell to Russia by a 2-1 count. Team USA In Last Five WJC Semifinal Appearances TEAM USA SCHEDULE DATE OPPONENT W OTW OTL L GF GA 1/4/16 Russia L 1 2 Broadcast NHL NETWORK EASTERN TIME TV 1/3/13 Canada W 5 1 All U.S. tournament games to be televised live on NHL Network 1/3/11 Canada L 1 4 TOURNAMENT 1/3/10 Sweden W 5 2 Wed., Dec. 21 SWITZERLAND W, 4-3 1/4/08 Canada L 1 4 Oshawa, Ontario Blue Jersey PRE LAST YEAR’S LOSS NOT FORGOTTEN Fri., Dec. 23 CZECH REPUBLIC W, 4-0 Team USA’s alternate captains Charlie McAvoy (Long Beach, N.Y.) and Kingston, Ontario White Jersey Colin White (Hanover, Mass.) were both members of last year’s U.S. Mon., Dec. 26 LATVIA W, 6-1 National Junior Team that fell to Russia in the semifinals. ROUND PRELIMINARY “Coach keeps telling us the most important game is the one we’re in, Toronto, Ontario POG: Jordan Greenway Blue Jersey so we won’t put too much thought into either last year’s loss or this year’s Wed., Dec. 28 SLOVAKIA W, 5-2 GROUP A win,” said McAvoy. “We know what we’re capable of if we play our style of hockey. We’ll focus on ourselves and make sure we play our best.” Toronto, Ontario POG: Jack Roslovic White Jersey “We beat them already, so we know they’re going to come out hard,” Thurs., Dec. 29 RUSSIA W, 3-2 said White. “But just having in the back of our minds that they beat us Toronto, Ontario POG: Troy Terry White (Third) Jersey last year in the semifinals is going to be a little edge for us. McAvoy was there too, so we just gotta tell the guys what it’s like, block out Sat., Dec. 31 CANADA W, 3-1 distractions and things like that.” Toronto, Ontario POG: Ryan Lindgren White (Third) Jersey WINNING PEDIGREES ON TEAM USA Mon., Jan. 2 SWITZERLAND (Quarterfinal) W, 3-2 Between the players and staff of Team USA, 24 individuals have been Toronto, Ontario POG: Jeremy Bracco White (Third) Jersey ROUND PLAYOFF on championship-winning teams both at the club and international level. Wed., Jan. 4 RUSSIA (Semifinal) 3:00 P.M. Last year, Jack Ahcan helped the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders claim Montreal, Quebec White (Third) Jersey the USHL’s Anderson Cup while Tyler Parsons backstopped the London Knights to the OHL’s J. Ross Robertson Cup and CHL’s Memorial Cup. In Thurs., Jan. 5 BRONZE MEDAL GAME 3:30 P.M. 2014-15, Kieffer Bellows led the Sioux Falls Stampede to a USHL Clark Montreal, Quebec Cup championship. Thurs., Jan. 5 GOLD MEDAL GAME 8:00 P.M. Internationally, Jeremy Bracco, Casey Fitzgerald, Jordan Montreal, Quebec Greenway, Caleb Jones, Clayton Keller, Luke Kunin, Charlie McAvoy, SOCIAL Jake Oettinger, Jack Roslovic, Troy Terry, Tage Thompson and Colin Social Media FOLLOW USA HOCKEY @usahockey White helped Team USA claim the 2015 IIHF Under-18 Men’s World Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube Championship. In the championship game against Finland, White scored POG: U.S. Player of the game the overtime game-winning goal with assists from Bracco and McAvoy. The U.S. coaches and support staff also has an extensive winning 2017 IIHF WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS pedigree. All four coaches have been part of NCAA championship teams, including head coach Bob Motzko (Minnesota - 2002, 2003), assistant coach Greg Brown (Boston College - 2008, 2010, 2012), Grant Potulny GROUP A GROUP B (Minnesota - 2002, 2003), Kris Mayotte (Providence College 2015) and TEAM W OTW OTL L GF:GA PTS TEAM W OTW OTL L GF:GA PTS SWE 4 0 0 0 18:6 12 USA 4 0 0 0 17:6 12 Steve Miller (Denver - 2004, 2005). DEN 1 1 1 1 11:15 6 CAN 3 0 0 1 21:8 9 Internationally, general manager Jim Johannson has been a part of CZE 1 0 2 0 9:13 5 RUS 2 0 0 2 16:9 6 all three gold medal-winning U.S. National Junior Teams (2004, 2010, SUI 0 2 0 2 11:13 4 SVK 1 0 0 3 6:14 3 2013). Potulny served as an assistant coach on Team USA’s gold medal- FIN 1 0 0 3 6:8 3 LAT 0 0 0 4 6:29 0 winning 2013 U.S. National Junior Team while that year’s U.S. staff also included current Team USA equipment manager Scott Aldrich; athletic trainers Jason Hodges and Stan Wong and team physician Dr. Phil MEDIA CONTACT: Jon Gomez • Manager, Communications • 973.723.5744 • [email protected] All media availability must be arranged through Jon Gomez. All team members, including head coach Bob Motzko, Johnson. Wong was a part of Team USA’s other two gold medal-winning will be available for post-practice interviews in the designated mixed-zone area. Other media requests may be teams (2004, 2010) while Johnson was with the team in 2010. submitted through Jon Gomez. Members of the media are not allowed in the U.S. dressing room. 1 JANUARY 4, 2017 • @USAHOCKEY • TEAMUSA.USAHOCKEY.COM/WORLDJUNIORS2017 • USAHOCKEY.COM • #USAWJC 1 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2017 U.S. NATIONAL JUNIOR TEAM ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ GAME NOTES VS. RUSSIA ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2017 U.S. IIHF WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN NOTABLE TEAM USA STATISTICS SWITZERLAND TALE OF THE TAPE DEC.