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U.S. National Team finishes fifth at 2005 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge

January 6, 2005 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
U.S. National Team News Release


LETHBRIDGE, Alberta -- The United States National Under-17 Team topped Finland, 9-2, on Monday, January 3, to close out tournament play and finish fifth at the 2005 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.

Team USA only suffered one loss in five games and finished third in Pool A, missing the semifinal round by a point as Canada's Team West and Team Ontario secured the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds. In Pool B action, two of the remaining three regional Canadian teams (Pacific and Atlantic) topped the standings and qualified for the semifinals.

The United States, Finland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Quebec and Germany placed fifth through 10th, respectively.

Team USA opened play on December 29, 2004, skating to a 2-2 tie with Slovakia. After falling behind by a goal just 58 seconds into the game, the United States battled back with two power-play goals to take a 2-1 lead. Erik Caladi tallied his second goal of the night for the Slovaks while on the power play at 1:41 of the third to end the game in a tie. James O'Brien (Maplewood, Minn.) and Erik Johnson (Bloomington, Minn.) scored for Team USA, while Patrick Kane (Buffalo, N.Y.) notched two assists.

December 30 marked the United States' first win of the tournament as the Under-17 Team downed Russia, 5-1. Jumping out to a 5-0 lead before the end of the second period, including three power-play goals, U.S. netminder Joseph Palmer (Yorkville, N.Y.) allowed Russia's lone goal less than a minute before the end of the game. Kyle Okposo (St. Paul, Minn.), an addition to the team from Shattuck St. Mary's Prep School, scored his second goal of the game at 18:08 of the second frame to close out the U.S. scoring. Kane totaled two more helpers and Michael Carman (Apple Valley, Minn.) added the game-winning goal and an assist.

Despite a four-goal first-period effort against Ontario, the U.S. team picked up its first loss, 7-5, on New Year's Day. A 5-3 U.S. lead heading into the final period was not good enough for the win as Team Ontario scored four unanswered goals for the 7-5 final score.

After the heartbreaking New Year's loss, Team USA bounced back to hand Team West its only loss of the tournament, 3-2, on Jan. 2, 2005. Ryan Flynn (Lino Lakes, Minn.) broke a 1-1 tie at 4:09 of the second period and gave the United States the lead until Kirt Hill scored for Team West at 6:02 of the third for the 2-2 tie. Bill Sweatt (Elburn, Ill.) notched the game-winner just over a minute later as Team USA finished pool play with a 2-1-1 record.

Just one point behind Teams West and Ontario, the United States settled for third in the Pool-A standings and played Pool B's third seed, Finland, for fifth place on Jan. 3. Rhett Rakhishani (Huntington Beach, Calif.) scored two goals, including the game-winner, as the U.S. team held the lead throughout the game and blasted the Fins, 9-2. Kane led scoring for Team USA with eight points (1-7) in five games, while Chris Atkinson (Sparta, N.J.) finished second with six points (1-5). Flynn, Blake Geoffrion (Brentwood, Tenn.) and O'Brien each had five points.

For individual game summaries, please visit USAHockey.com.

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