NAHL U.S. National Team

U.S. Nat'l Under-17 Team Set to Face NAHL's Top Two Squads

Published on March 28, 2007 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
U.S. National Team News Release


THIS WEEK: The U.S. National Under-17 Team will conclude its North American Hockey League regular-season schedule with a pair of road contest versus league-leading Mahoning Valley this weekend at the Boardman Ice Zone in Boardman, Ohio. Friday's (Mar. 30) tilt at Mahoning Valley will begin at 7:00 p.m. EDT while Saturday's (Mar. 31) contest has been moved to a 2:30 p.m. start.

Following the conclusion of the regular season, Team USA will travel to St. Louis, Mo., to take on the St. Louis Bandits at the Scottrade Center on Tuesday (April 3) at 7:30 p.m. The game will serve as a prelude to the NCAA Men's Frozen Four that will take place in the Scottrade Center on April 5 & 7. The Scottrade Center seats more than 21,000 fans and is home to the National Hockey League's St. Louis Blues. Tickets for the U.S. National Under-17 Team-St. Louis Bandits contest may be purchased at 636-536-4882 or at the door the night of the game.

U.S. HEAD COACH JOHN HYNES: John Hynes is in his fourth season with USA Hockey's National Team Development Program. He has amassed a career record with the NTDP of 125-73-10-5 (W-L-T-OTL). Hynes has earned a gold (2006) and a silver medal (2004) at the International Ice Hockey Federation World Under-18 Championships as a head coach and a gold (2002) as an assistant. In 2005, Hynes led the U.S. National Under-17 Team to a first-place NAHL North Division regular-season finish and a North Division playoff championship, marking the first time this double feat was accomplished by the NTDP. Prior to his arrival in Ann Arbor, he spent time as an assistant coach at the University of Massachusetts Lowell and the University of Wisconsin. Hynes will serve as head coach of the U.S. National Junior Team that will compete at the 2008 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship Dec. 26, 2007 - Jan. 5, 2008, in Liberec and Pardubic, Czech Republic.

U.S. HEAD COACH JOHN HYNES ON THE WEEK AHEAD: "Playing the top two teams in the league in a four-day span will really test our young club, but that's why the players came to this program. You want to play the best and that's the opportunity we have this week. It'll be great for our kids to play a pair of teams that have had consistent success throughout the 2006-07 regular season."

U.S. NATIONAL UNDER-17 TEAM NOTES: The U.S. National Under-17 Team has clinched a berth in the NAHL playoffs and will face the Alpena IceDiggers in the North Division semifinals ... Defenseman Ryan Grimshaw (Rochester, N.Y.) will rejoin the U.S. National Under-17 Team this weekend after spending the last 11 games with the U.S. National Under-18 Team ... Forward Mike Cieslak (Penfield, N.Y.) will make his first appearance with the U.S. National Under-17 Team this weekend versus Mahoning Valley.

GAME NOTES - MAHONING VALLEY: The Phantoms currently lead the NAHL with 91 points. With two games to play in the season Mahoning Valley leads the St. Louis Jr. Blues by two points in the race for the top-overall seed for the 2007 NAHL Playoffs ... Mahoning Valley has a record of 45-14-1 through 60 games this season ... The Phantoms power-play unit ranks second in the league with an 18.76% efficiency rate ... Mahoning Valley forwards Dustin Cloutier, Chris Fairbanks, Nathan Longpre and Derek Graham all rank in the NAHL's top-25 in points. Cloutier (41-38-79) is currently tied for fourth while Fairbanks (25-37-62), Longpre (26-35-61), and Graham (18-39-57) rank 11th, 14th, and 18th, respectively.

LAST TIME OUT: The U.S. National Under-17 Team split a road series with the NAHL's Marquette Rangers. On Friday (March 23) defenseman Sam Lofquist (Faribault, Minn.) notched two tallies but the National Team dropped a tough 4-3 decision to the Rangers. The Under-17 Team bounced back on Saturday (March 24) evening with a 3-2 shootout victory. Goaltender Adam Murray (Anchorage, Alaska) made 30 saves and stopped all three Marquette skaters in the shootout to collect his fifth win in six starts this season.

RACE TO THE ROBERTSON CUP: As the NAHL schedule heads into its final weekend the playoff picture is clearing up. The top four clubs from each of the league's three divisions (North, South, and Central) will advance to the divisional playoff round. The field for the North Division is set as top-seeded Mahoning Valley will take on Marquette, and the NTDP will face second-seeded Alpena. The three divisional playoff champions, along with tournament host Fairbanks, will advance to the 2007 Robertson Cup National Championship Tournament. This year's National Championship will be hosted by the Ice Dogs at the Big Dipper Ice Arena (Fairbanks, Alaska) beginning on Thursday, May 3, and concluding with the championship game Saturday, May 6.

UP NEXT: After taking on the St. Louis Bandits, the U.S. National Under-17 Team will begin its preparation for the 2007 NAHL Playoffs. The NTDP will begin the second season on the road at Alpena (Mich.) with games on Saturday, April 7, and Sunday, April 8. The National Team will host the third and fourth games of the best-of-five series at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube on April 12-13.

ABOUT THE NTDP: Founded in 1996, USA Hockey's National Team Development Program was created to prepare student-athletes under the age of 18 for participation on U.S. National Teams and success in their future hockey careers. Its efforts focus not only on high-caliber participation on the ice, but creating well-rounded individuals off the ice. Located in Ann Arbor, Mich., the 46 players in the program are split into two squads - the U.S. National Under-18 and Under-17 Teams. In the eight years NTDP players have been eligible for the draft, 124 players have been selected, including the number one overall selection in both 2000 (Rick DiPietro) and 2006 (Erik Johnson).

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North American Hockey League Stories from March 28, 2007


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