NAHL U.S. National Team

U.S. Nat'l Team Development Program Falls in NAHL Top Prospects Opener

Published on February 17, 2008 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
U.S. National Team News Release


ANN ARBOR, Mich. - Robbie Czarnik (Washington, Mich.) scored a pair of goals, but the U.S National Team Development Program was defeated, 3-2, by the Central Division All Stars in the opening day of the North American Hockey League Top Prospects Tournament tonight at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube.

The Central Division All Stars scored the only goal of the opening frame just 1:34 into the game when Matt Larke wristed a shot from the left circle past Team USA goaltender Nick Maricic (Alta Loma, Calif.) on the short side.

Team USA tied the game up at one apiece as Czarnik notched an unassisted marker at 10:58 of the second frame. After winning the faceoff, Czarnik unleashed a high shot from the slot that ended up inside the cross bar.

Cory Patterson gave the Central Division All Stars a 2-1 lead at the 17:46 mark of the middle stanza, off an assist from Kyle Greco. Patterson put a backhander past Maricic up high on the glove side. Ben Beaudoin chipped in an additional marker, on the power play, to give the Central Division All Stars a two-goal lead 5:54 into the third period. Luke Nesper and Mikael Lickteig each recorded assists on the play.

Team USA added one more tally with 1:11 left in the final session, thanks to an extra attacker goal from Czarnik. A.J. Treais (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.) added an assist on the goal. The U.S. National Team Development Program fired several more shots on net in the waning seconds, but came up just short on the scoreboard.

Maricic finished with 18 saves, while Robby Moss (eight saves) and Scott Pederson (16 saves) combined to stop 24 shots for the Central Division All Stars.

The NAHL Top Prospects Tournament continues Monday (Feb. 18) when the U.S. National Under-18 Team takes on the South Division All Stars at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube. Opening faceoff is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. EST. The North Division All Stars and the Central Division All Stars will play in the early game at 4 p.m.

Notes: The first annual NAHL Top Prospects Tournament is being held at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube from Feb. 17-19 ... The North Division All Stars recorded a 6-3 win over the South Division All Stars in the first game of the tournament Sunday afternoon.

Check out the U.S. National Team Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



North American Hockey League Stories from February 17, 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