NAHL U.S. National Team

U.S. National U-18 Team Falls to Fairbanks, 3-2

Published on September 20, 2007 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
U.S. National Team News Release


BLAINE, Minn. - Despite Joe Cannata's (Wakefield, Mass.) 22 saves, the U.S. National Under-18 Team fell to the Fairbanks Ice Dogs, 3-2, in a shootout here today at the 2007 North American Hockey League Showcase.

"There is a lot we can build off of and analyze from this game tonight to better prepare for tomorrow's game," said John Hynes, head coach of Team USA. "I thought Cannata was excellent for us tonight. He was very focused and confident and ended up making a lot of saves for us."

Team USA jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first period when David Warsofsky's (Marshfield, Mass.) slap shot from the left face-off circle beat goaltender Cody Reichard. Cannata stopped all 18 shots he faced in the opening stanza to preserve Team USA's lead after 20 minutes.

With a two-man advantage, the Ice Dogs tied the game 21 seconds into the second stanza when Isaiah Bennis collected a rebound and slid it past a sprawling Cannata. Just 2:23 later, Gianni Baldassari's wrist shot from inside the left face-off circle sailed over Cannata's glove to give the Ice Dogs a 2-1 advantage. Team USA tied the game after David Wohlberg (South Lyon, Mich.) shoved the puck into the open net after a rebound at 5:18. Neither goaltender allowed a goal for the remainder of regulation.

The score remained tied after the overtime period sending the game to a shootout. Fairbanks struck first when Austin Block slipped the puck between Cannata's legs. Colin Moore (Medfield, Mass.) tied the shootout, 1-1, with a backhand shot into the top-left corner. The next goal did not come until the seventh round when Arthur Bidwell fired a slap shot past Cannata to give Fairbanks the 3-2 victory.

The U.S. National Under-18 Team returns to action tomorrow against the Topeka Roadrunners at 6:30 p.m. CDT at the Schwan Super Rink.

NOTES: Team USA currently sits at 1-0-0-1 in the 2007 NAHL Showcase ... David Warsofsky's first-period goal was the first of his career with the National Team Development Program ... All NTDP games played in the NAHL will be broadcast live via the B2 Networks. A link to the broadcasts can be found on the NTDP page at usahockey.com.

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North American Hockey League Stories from September 20, 2007


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