Sports stats



NAHL U.S. National Team

U.S. National U-17 Team To Play At Traverse City Tuesday And Two Contests At Alpena This Weekend

March 3, 2008 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
U.S. National Team News Release


THIS WEEK: The U.S. Nat'l Under-17 Team plays a rematch with Traverse City this Tuesday (March 4) at Centre Ice Arena. Opening faceoff is slated for 7:05 p.m. EST. Team USA continues its road swing with games against the Alpena IceDiggers on Friday (March 7) and Saturday (March 8). Both contests are set to start at 7 p.m. EST.

U.S. NAT'L UNDER-17 TEAM HEAD COACH RON ROLSTON: Ron Rolston is in his fourth season with USA Hockey's National Team Development Program. He has compiled a career record of 148-82-11-7 (W-L-T-OTL).

SEASON SERIES AGAINST THE NORTH STARS: The U.S. Nat'l Under-17 Team is 4-3 against Traverse City this season. Team USA is 2-2 in Traverse City and 2-1 vs. the North Stars at the Ann Arbor Cube. The U.S. Nat'l Under-17 Team was defeated, 4-0, in the last meeting between the two squads in Ann Arbor on Feb. 27.

ABOUT TRAVERSE CITY: The North Stars are 20-19-11 overall, and are tied for fifth in the North American Hockey League North Division standings with 51 points.

Harrison Niemann is the top point getter for Traverse City up front with 57 (21-36), while Nate Urbaniak is second with 56 points (23-33). Brandon Stephenson (8-12-4, 3.26, .889) and Chris Paliafito (8-6-6, 3.09, .897) have split time in net.

SEASON SERIES AGAINST THE ICEDIGGERS: The U.S. Nat'l Under-17 Team is 2-3 vs. Alpena in the 2007-08 slate. In the most recent meetings between the two clubs, Team USA and the IceDiggers each picked up one win at the NAHL North Division Showcase (Jan. 18-21) in Boardman, Ohio. After falling, 6-5, to Alpena Jan. 18, Team USA responded with a 3-1 victory Jan. 20. The U.S. Nat'l Under-17 Team is 1-1 in Alpena this season, compared to an 0-1 mark at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube.

ABOUT ALPENA: The IceDiggers (27-19-5) rank third in the NAHL North Division Standings with 59 points. Erik Peterson leads the IceDiggers with 70 points (24-46), while Evan West is the top point getter on the blue line with 20 (4-16). Nate Pellegrino (12-9-1, 2.93, .901) and Nick Graves (13-4-4, 2.68, .906) have both seen consistent action between the pipes.

U.S. NAT'L UNDER-17 TEAM NOTES: The U.S. Nat'l Under-18 and Under-17 Teams have combined to field a 23-21-2 record in the NAHL North Division standings, good for sixth place with 48 points. Team USA is three points behind Marquette and Traverse City, but it has played four less games than both the Rangers and North Stars. The top four teams in the division will qualify for the NAHL playoffs ... Team USA has won 17 games when it tallies at least four goals in 2007-08 ... Twelve of the U.S. Nat'l Under-17 Team's 26 wins this year have come in games it scored five or more goals ... Team USA has received game-winning goals from 17 different players in the 2007-08 campaign ... The U.S. Nat'l Under-17 Team is 2-2 in shootouts during the 2007-08 slate.

UP NEXT: The U.S. Nat'l Under-17 Team challenges the St. Louis Bandits next Friday (March 7) and Saturday (March 8) at the Summit Center. Both contests are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. CST.

FOLLOWING THE U.S. NAT'L UNDER-17 TEAM: Log on to www.nahl.com/b2.cfm to access B2 Networks, which provides live video broadcasts for each of Team USA's games against NAHL opponents.

GOLEMBIEWSKI LETHAL ON THE POWER PLAY: Zach Golembiewski (St. Clair, Mich.) has tallied six goals with a man advantage in the 2007-08 slate, good for second on the squad. Jeremy Morin (Auburn, N.Y.) leads the club with seven power-play markers. Golembiewski chipped in two goals and one assist vs. Marquette (Feb. 22-23), including the game-winning tally. He is fourth among Team USA point getters with 29 (13-16).

LYNCH PROVIDING TIMELY GOALS: Kevin Lynch (Grosse Pointe, Mich.) leads Team USA with four game-winning goals after he netted the go-ahead marker at Alpena (Feb. 24). He has totaled 20 points (15-5) this year, including one power-play goal and one shorthanded tally.

D'AMIGO A CONSTANT IN THE LINEUP: Jerry D'Amigo (Binghamton, N.Y.) has skated in each of the U.S. Nat'l Under-17 Team's 54 games this year, a feat only he has achieved. The forward contributed two assists against Marquette (Feb. 22-23). D'Amigo has recorded 21 points (9-12) this season.

TREAIS STEPPING UP: A.J. Treais (Bloomfield Hills., Mich.) has amassed eight points (4-4) in his last nine games, including one goal against Marquette (Feb. 22). The forward ranks sixth on the U.S. Nat'l Under-17 Team with 26 points (10-16), and is tied for third on the squad with five power-play goals.

MATTSON OFFENSIVE ON THE BLUE LINE: Nick Mattson (Chanhassen, Minn.) has compiled a team-best 20 points (1-19) this season. Born on Oct. 25, 1991, Mattson is the the second-youngest player on the the U.S. Nat'l Under-17 Team. Only Cam Fowler (Farmington Hills, Mich.), who was born on Dec. 5, 1991, is younger.

CLEMENTE PERFORMING WELL IN NET: Goaltender Michael Clemente (Great Falls, Va.) owns a 5-2 record in his last seven appearances with the U.S. Nat'l Under-17 Team. During that span, he has compiled a 2.15 goal-against average and a .915 save percentage.

NATIONAL TEAM DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM TRYOUTS: USA Hockey's National Team Development Program Tryout Camp will be held on March 22-25 at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube in Ann Arbor, Mich. A total of 44 players from the 1992 age group will be in attendance at the camp.

Check out the U.S. National Team Statistics



North American Hockey League Stories from March 3, 2008


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central