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USHL U.S. National Team

U.S. Men's National Team Loses to Latvia, 6-5, at IIHF Men's World Championship

May 15, 2014 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
U.S. National Team News Release


MINSK, Belarus - Four U.S. players scored and Team USA rallied to tie the game three times, but the U.S. Men's National Team fell to Latvia, 6-5, in the preliminary round of the International Ice Hockey Federation Men's World Championship here today.

"Tonight was disappointing because we fought back a couple times to get into the game and then we made some mistakes that cost us the game," said Peter Laviolette, head coach of the 2014 U.S. Men's National Team. "We have a big game coming up tomorrow night against Kazakhstan, so we'll regroup and be ready."

Latvia scored the game's first goal at 15:39 of the opening frame, but Craig Smith (Madison, Wis./University of Wisconsin/Nashville Predators) found the back of the net one minute later to tie the game at 1-1. After Latvia chipped the puck out to center, Jake Gardiner (Minnetonka, Minn./University of Wisconsin/Toronto Maple Leafs) made a quick transition pass to Smith, springing him cleanly into the offensive zone. Smith worked his way to the top of the right circle and fired a shot past Latvian goaltender Kristers Gudlevskis' blocker.

The Latvians converted on a rebound at 18:57 of the first period and then scored a power-play marker at 8:08 of the second stanza to build a 3-1 advantage. Brock Nelson (Warroad, Minn./University of North Dakota/N.Y. Islanders) and Tyler Johnson (Spokane, Wash./Tampa Bay Lightning) netted back-to-back power-play goals to bring the U.S. back to even.

Seth Jones (Plano, Texas/Nashville Predators) started the first play when he fed Nelson with a pass at the left dot. Nelson took the puck, turned towards the net and flipped a backhander over Gudlevskis' shoulder at 8:57 to make it 3-2. Then, just 1:03 later, Johnson parked at the side of the net and knocked a rebound in to knot the score at 3-3. Smith and Jacob Trouba (Rochester, Mich./University of Michigan/Winnipeg Jets) were credited with the assists on the play.

Latvia took a 4-3 lead with 8:35 remaining in regulation when Kaspars Daugavins beat U.S. goaltender Tim Thomas (Flint, Mich./University of Vermont/Dallas Stars) with a shot from the point, but Kevin Hayes (Dorchester, Mass./Boston College) answered quickly when he tipped a Jones shot just inside the far post.

The Latvians grabbed the lead for good with 5:23 left in the third period on a goal during a delayed penalty. They made it 6-4 on a breakaway with 2:21 to play in the contest.

Nelson cut the Latvia lead to 6-5 with 1:30 remaining in regulation when he redirected a Johnny Gaudreau (Carneys Point, N.J./Boston College/Calgary Flames) pass into the net, but the U.S. couldn't knot the score despite a late push.

The U.S. Men's National Team (2-0-0-2) continues preliminary-round play tomorrow (May 16) at 9:45 a.m. ET against Kazakhstan. The game will be broadcast live on NBC Sports Network.

NOTES: Tonight's box score and photos are available here ... Craig Smith was named Team USA's best player ... The U.S. dropped to 8-0-0-3-1 (W-OTW-OTL-L-T) all-time against Latvia in the IIHF Men's World Championship ... Team USA's captain is Justin Abdelkader. The alternate captains are Craig Smith, Colin McDonald and Tim Stapleton ... Peter Laviolette is serving as head coach of the 2014 U.S. Men's National Team for the third time (2004-bronze, 2005). The assistant coaches are Joe Sacco, Phil Housley and Don Granato ... For Team USA's roster, click here ... Twenty of the 25 members of Team USA played U.S. college hockey ... Seven of the 25 players are products of USA Hockey's National Team Development Program, including Jimmy Hayes, Seth Jones, Jake McCabe, Peter Mueller, Connor Murphy, Drew Shore and Jacob Trouba ... Thirteen NHL teams are represented on the roster: Buffalo Sabres, Calgary Flames, Dallas Stars, Detroit Red Wings, Edmonton Oilers, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, New York Islanders, Phoenix Coyotes, San Jose Sharks, Tampa Bay Lightning, Toronto Maple Leafs and Winnipeg Jets ... The staff and players of the 2014 U.S. Men's National Team are selected by the U.S. Men's National Team Advisory Group, led by Jim Johannson, assistant executive director of hockey operations for USA Hockey. Other members, all affiliated with National Hockey League teams, include Stan Bowman (Chicago), Brian Burke (Calgary), Paul Holmgren (Philadelphia), Dean Lombardi (Los Angeles), David Poile (Nashville), Ray Shero (Pittsburgh), Dale Tallon (Florida), and Don Waddell (Pittsburgh). Tom Kurvers (Tampa Bay) will be part of the advisory group for this year's championship ... USA Hockey's international council, chaired by Gavin Regan, vice president of USA Hockey, has oversight responsibilities for all U.S. national teams ... Sixteen teams are competing at the 2014 IIHF Men's World Championship, divided into two groups of eight. Teams will play a round-robin format among their group with the top four teams from each group advancing to quarterfinals ... NBC Sports Network is televising and streaming all Team USA games in the 2014 IIHF Men's World Championship.

Team USA 2014 IIHF Men's World Championship Schedule

May 9-25 - Minsk, Belarus

Date Opponent Venue Time (Local/EDT)/Result NBCSN Broadcast

Fri., May 9 Belarus Minsk Arena W, 6-1

Sat., May 10 Switzerland Minsk Arena W, 3-2

Mon., May 12 Russia Minsk Arena L, 1-6

Thurs., May 15 Latvia Minsk Arena L, 5-6

Fri., May 16 Kazakhstan Minsk Arena 4:45 p.m./9:45 a.m. Live

Sun., May 18 Finland Minsk Arena 4:45 p.m./9:45 a.m. Live

Tues., May 20 Germany Minsk Arena 12:45 p.m./5:45 a.m. Live

Thurs., May 22 Quarterfinals TBD TBD tape delay

Sat., May 24 Semifinals Minsk Arena 2:45 p.m./7:45 a.m.

6:45 p.m./11:45 a.m.

tape delay

tape delay

Sun., May 25 Bronze-Medal Game Minsk Arena 4:30 p.m./9:30 a.m. tape delay

Gold-Medal Game Minsk Arena 9:00 p.m./2:00 p.m. Live

Check out the U.S. National Team Statistics



United States Hockey League Stories from May 15, 2014


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