The USA never sends its premier U18 team – the players that are members of the National Team Development Program – to the Hlinka Gretzky Cup. As a result, the USA doesn’t dominate the summer tournament the same way it does at the IIHF U18 World Championship in April. However, it would be a mistake to call the team weak and it does serve a development purpose.
Clark Donatelli, who coached the US team at the summer U18 tournament back in 2016, explained at the time: “In the National Development Team, they pick guys to commit for two years and a lot can change in those two years. Some guys grow and develop at different rates and you see guys that might get overlooked one year and the next year they’re real good players. If they were to pick that national team now they’d probably take some of the guys from this team.”
The roster includes defenseman Blake Fiddler, son of ex-NHLer Vern Fiddler, who will be playing in the home rink of his WHL club, the Edmonton Oil Kings. The team also includes forward Travis Hayes of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, who made the OHL’s All-Rookie Team, and Ben Kevan, who was nearly a point-per-game player as a 17-year-old in the USHL. Nicholas Sykora is the son of former NHLer Petr Sýkora.
Goaltenders (3): Ryan Cameron (Long Island Gulls, NEPACK), Carter Casey (Grand Rapids High School, USHS), Charles Menard (Culver Academy, USHS).
Defensemen (7): Tommy Bleyl (Albany Academy, TNPHL), Edison Engle (Des Moines, USHL), Blake Fiddler (Edmonton, WHL), Matt Grimes (Sioux Falls, USHL), Cullen McCrate (Dubuque, USHL), Carter Murphy (Youngstown, USHL), Jacob Rombach (Lincoln, USHL).
Forwards (13): Alexander Donovan (Shattuck-St. Mary’s, USHS), Travis Hayes (Sault Ste. Marie, OHL), Chase Jette (Bishop Kearney Selects, NEPACK), Sam Kappell (Madison, USHL), Ben Kevan (Des Moines, USHL), Matthew Lansing (Waterloo, USHL), Mason Moe (Eden Praitrie High School, USHS), Teddy Mutryn (St. Sebastian’s School, USHS), Jesse Orlowsky (Long Island Gulls, NEPACK), Cooper Simpson (Tri-City, USHL), Sam Spehar (Sioux Falls, T1EHL), Kade Stengrim (Brainerd High School, USHS), Nicholas Sykora (Omaha, USHL).
Coaches: Garret Raboin, Nick Oliver, Chad Kolarik, Ben Gordon.
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