NCAA Top Men's Hockey Freshmen coming into the 2023-24 season Does team USA have what it takes to win gold this year? [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAzMDI3MzU5MDUyMzQyODUx/usatsi_13938843.jpg] Does team USA have what it takes to win gold this year? Twenty-two college hockey players will lace up for Team USA’s 25-player roster at the 2024 World Junior Championship. The Americans will look to earn their first gold medal since 2021 after earning bronze last December. Much of this group is assembled from the 2004 age group that has yet to win IIHF gold, but it has the talent to make waves in this tournament. Now, the emphasis is on converting talent into results. Considering the emphasis of college players at this camp, here is a breakdown of who the Americans are playing, and what they could look like in Sweden. Forwards Rutger McGroarty / Cutter Gauthier / Jimmy Snuggerud One of the biggest qualms with this American roster is its lack of size, but this top line should be able to hang with most physical challengers. Featuring three returners and leaders of this roster, this line can play heavy while also posing a strong scoring threat. McGroarty’s health was perhaps the biggest question of this camp, specifically whether an upper body injury sustained in November would be healed enough for him to travel to Sweden. But Saturday, general manager John Vanbiesbrouck said McGroarty should be able to play in the tournament. “(Rutger is) first to go for a drill, like not many injured players go first in a drill so we're kind of encouraged by that and by his enthusiasm,” Vanbiesbrouck said. “And we were told that with his lung, he's really good, and with the other parts with ribs, it’s pain management, and he looks to be doing well.” For the rest of the line, early in this camp it seemed as though Gauthier’s position was up in the air, specifically whether he would play center or wing. USA coach David Carle opted to play him at center. On the right wing, Snuggerud’s shot should find plenty of use this tournament with two playmakers setting him up. This line will undoubtedly play a central role in the Americans’ outlook. Gabe Perrault / Will Smith / Ryan Leonard From the NTDP to Boston College, this line is too good to break up. All three looked great in camp together as expected, and they’ll be a big part of USA’s success. They’ve combined for 23 goals for the Eagles this year, and fans should expect lots of scoring threats to be generated by this unit. It’s yet another solid, complementary line for Carle to utilize. Building chemistry is important for tournaments like World Juniors with very little runway, and that usually proves true on defense especially. It’s a boon to the Americans that these three can play together so often, predicting where they’re going to be better than some other lines who might’ve only had the summer showcase to materialize a connection. Isaac Howard / Frank Nazar III / Gavin Brindley Carle emphasized his desire for his team to pressure puck carriers and win back pucks, and this line should excel at that. All three are exceptionally good skaters, allowing them to cover a lot of ground on the Olympic sheets of Sweden. Nazar is really the linchpin tying this line together, with his chemistry alongside Howard readily apparent since the summer showcase. Brindley proved last year that his motor and skating translate into excellent forechecking. This line is speedy and tenacious. Not only can the three play quickly, but they can play well quickly. That’s going to make them very effective, especially at five on five. Quinn Finley / Danny Nelson / Gavin Hayes Finley burst onto the scene at this camp after a decent freshman start at Wisconsin, scoring five goals and seven points in the first half. I really like his skating, and I think he’s a player who could slot in higher in the lineup should any injuries occur. A large mix of players tried out the penalty kill, and while I think players like Nazar and Gauthier are more likely to get PK looks, I also think Nelson would fit well in that role. He makes really sound defensive decisions on the ice, which makes sense for a player coached by Notre Dame’s Jeff Jackson. “(Nelson has) gotten to the college game and really excelled at Notre Dame,” Carle said. “Good on face offs, playing in all situations — not an easy thing for true freshmen to do, and especially with the size I mean, it's sometimes a little harder for bigger guys to get around and such. I think he's done an excellent job, and that’s obviously been showcased here as well.” Hayes had a good camp, and he plays mistake-limiting hockey that you want a bottom six skater to play. Much like Nelson, he’s a larger skater at 6-foot-2, which should help him in a checking role against large opponents. Oliver Moore, Carey Terrance In football, gadget players can make a name for taking advantage of one particular strong suit, and I think Moore could be utilized in a similar way thanks to his fleet skating. Put him next to Nazar and you’ve got one of the fastest duos at this tournament (yes, I’m still on this narrative). If Carle wants to really swarm the puck, Moore’s skating makes him a huge problem for opponents. He flashed that in drills Saturday, skating for a partial breakaway though he didn’t convert. Meanwhile, Terrance offers a heavier look that could plug into a lot of different lines. He seems more likely to cameo in a bottom six role than any major scoring position. I found it interesting for Terrance to make the team while really talented scorers like James Hagens and Will Whitelaw were cut, but in reality, the Americans have a lot of players of that style. Terrance can make a defensive impact, and I think that’s ultimately why he made this team. “We have depth as far as from the goal right on out, and we have interchangeable parts,” Team USA general manager John Vanbiesbrouck said Saturday. “We have a lot of players that can really shoot the puck, butI also think that they want to defend hard, and a lot of times when you look at great players, and we have a deep team that way, you look at the offense, and then how they want to defend, and I think we have a passionate team that way.” While Vanbiesbrouck did not speak specifically on Terrance making the team, I think it’s hard to ignore such a quote about defensive buy-in and not think that played a role in Terrance making the cut over two other options. Defense Lane Hutson / Ryan Chesley Team USA found success with the Hutson-Chesley duo last tournament, and now they’ll reprise their performance overseas. Hutson is the defensive leader of this year’s roster and for good reason considering his success the past two years. Chesley’s shutdown ability brings balance to the pairing, giving Hutson the privilege to roam free on offense knowing he has someone covering behind him. Considering he’s the leading guy on the blue line, Chesley locking down the back end should give Hutson the ability to make plays. Good things (namely goals) happen when Hutson plays like that. Zeev Buium / Seamus Casey I dove into this pairing earlier, namely because of how much it shirks convention when it comes to roster construction. Most teams employ a shutdown defenseman with a scorer, but Carle is really trying to stack the deck with this duo. Such an overload strategy is a testament to the depth that the Americans think they have on defense, even with three really talented scorers who they want to see the ice often. “It's good to bring my physicality and defensive game to the group,” Chesley said Friday. “Everyone has their roles and it’s important that we each embrace it.” Drew Fortescue / Eric Pohlkamp Both of these players were a bit under the radar heading into camp, especially since all the focus went to the three offensive bell cows on this blue line. But in Fortescue, there’s another shutdown defender who I think can particularly make an impact on special teams, and Pohlkamp offers another offensive option to deliver pucks down low, alongside his notable physical play. Considering the overall talent in the top four, I think it’s fair to say this pairing won’t play so much when games come down to the nitty gritty. However, I think their biggest value is in taking lots of the physical burden off their teammates. “Canada’s gonna have some bigger guys, Sweden’s gonna have some bigger guys,” Pohlkamp said Saturday. “If they're hitting, if I go out there and make a big hit, I don't know, get in a guy's face, whatever I have to do and let (Hutson, Buium and Casey) play their game which they play very well, I think that's how I can kind of help them and let them do their thing.” Adam Minnetian, Sam Rinzel Rinzel plays a physical game that makes sense for the tallest player on this roster at 6-foot-4. He used it very well in the summer showcase, but I didn’t see so much physical dominance show up at this week’s training camp — probably because his coaches don’t want him laying out teammates. I think he could really flash in the preliminary games against a real opponent, and much like Pohlkamp I think Rinzel’s physical impact helps him carve a niche on a really talented blue line. Minnetian seems like the bottom of the depth chart here, and I found it a bit surprising that he made it over a guy like Jake Livanavage. Minnetian wasn’t super noticeable — for good or bad — during training camp in my eyes. He plays a little more on the physical side, which makes me think Team USA wants him as a reserve for a more defensive role as opposed to carrying Livanavage when there are three exceptional scorers already patrolling the blue line. Goaltending Trey Augustine, Jacob Fowler, Sam Hillebrandt There was no doubt that these were the three goaltenders because, well, there were only three invited. However, the controversy starts when considering who to start. Augustine seems the easiest choice as a returning starter who played well in last year’s tournament. His hot start at Michigan State this season was kickstarted by the same confidence and steady presence that allowed him to earn the net last season. He also plays a very technically sound game, making routine saves and not putting himself in bad positions. I dove into Augustine’s play earlier this week, especially his confidence that makes him such a strong netminder. Fowler, meanwhile, is really good at winning games even if he’s a little less technically sound. He’s a gamesman, someone who can rise to the occasion in big moments — and, the type of goalie who tends to excel in these single elimination tournaments. Neither option is a bad one for Team USA, and I would expect Carle to employ a tandem before elimination games. The burden of depth is making the correct choice in the end, and the Americans have a lot to mull over during the round robin. As for Hillebrandt, I don’t expect him to play much, if at all, considering the two guys ahead of him. That said, he’s competing for a medal too, and this camp is a great opportunity for him to develop as a player. RELATED
