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USHL U.S. National Team

U.S. Sinks Finland; Clinches Top Seed in Group B

April 22, 2014 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
U.S. National Team News Release


LAPPEENRANTA, Finland. - Kyle Connor(Shelby Township, Mich.) extended his scoring streak to four games, andJack Eichel(North Chelmsford, Mass.) scored the game-winning goal,as the U.S. Men's National Under-18 Team defeatedFinland, 4-3, here tonight at Lappeenranta Arena. With the win, Team USA clinches the top seed in Group Bat the 2014 International Ice Hockey Federation Men's Under-18 World Championship with a 3-0-0-1 (W-OTW-OTL-L) record.

Finland opened the scoring at the 9:54 mark of the first frame.Late in the opening period, Finland was whistled for a tripping call onDylan Larkin(Waterford, Mich.). Nine seconds later on the ensuing power play,Noah Hanifin(Norwood, Mass.) collected the puck and threw a hard shot at the net that snuck pastKaapo Kahkonen to knot the game at one goal apiece.

Team USA took the lead 19 seconds into the middle stanza when Larkin foundAnders Bjork(Mequon, Wis.) near the top of the faceoff circle. Bjork fired a wrist shotto beat Kahkonen for the score. Back-to-back tallies by the Finns at 5:42 and 13:53 reclaimed the lead for the host country beforeKyle Connor(Shelby Township, Mich.) answered for the United Stateswith less than one second showing on the scoreboard. Hanifin andAuston Matthews(Scottsdale, Ariz.) assisted on the play.

The final frame remained scoreless, and the game tied, until 1:04 remained in the contest. Eichel took a pass from Sonny Milano (Massapequa, N.Y.) and touched the puck between his legs onto his forehand. Eichel quickly fired a shot that caromed off Kahkonen and into the net to secure the 4-3 victory for Team USA.

The U.S. Men's National Under-18 Team will next skate in the quarterfinals of the U18 World Championship on Thursday (April 24). Having earned the topseed in Group B, Team USA will cross over to face Slovakia. The contest will be broadcast live, for free, on FASTHockey.com.

2014 IIHF Men's U18 World Championship Schedule - United States

April 17-27, 2014 - Lappeenranta, Finland

Date Opponent Time (Local/EDT)/Result Live Webcast

Tues., April 14 Germany* W, 9-1 --

Thurs., April 17 Switzerland L, 2-4 --

Sat., April 19 Czech Republic W, 3-0 --

Sun., April 20 Denmark W, 7-0 --

Tues., April 22 Finland W, 4-3

Thurs., April 24 Quarterfinals - Slovakia TBD FASTHockey.com

Sat., April 26 Semifinals TBD TBD

Sun., April 27 Bronze-Medal 3:00 p.m. / 8:00 a.m. TBD

Gold-Medal 7:00 p.m. / 12:00 p.m. TBD

*pre-tournament game

NOTES: For a complete U.S. roster, click here ... Team USA outshot the Finland, 46-20 ... Dylan Larkin was named Team USA's best player ... Kyle Connor holds a four-game scoring streak, netting one goal in each of Team USA's preliminary-round games, placing him second in the tournament in goals scored. The Youngstown Phantoms product also scored in the pre-tournament contest against Germany ... Sonny Milano has at least one point in each of his first four tournament games, including two goals and four assists. Factoring in the pre-tournament game versus Germany, the forward has eight points (4-5) in five games ... The U.S. Men's National Under-18 Team is led byDanton Cole, serving as head coach at his second IIHF Men's Under-18 World Championship. Cole is currently in his fourth season as one of two head coaches at USA Hockey's National Team Development Program in Ann Arbor, Mich. ... The U.S. squad seeks its eighth gold medal in the event after capturing the tournament title in four of the last five years. Team USA had won four-consecutive gold medals before having its streak snapped last year in Sochi, Russia. The silver medal in 2013 marked 10-straight top-three finishes for the U.S. ... Twenty players on the U.S. roster come from USA Hockey's NTDP.Kyle Connor(Shelby Township, Mich.) skated this season for the Youngstown Phantoms of the United States Hockey League.Alex Nedeljkovicplayed for the Ontario Hockey League's Plymouth Whalers ... The roster for the U.S. features 15 players recently listed on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of draft-eligible players. Among those players in the top twenty are forwards Alex Tuch (Baldwinsville, N.Y./12th), Sonny Milano (Massapequa, N.Y./16th) and Dylan Larkin (Waterford, Mich./17th). Goaltenders Alex Nedeljkovic (Parma, Ohio) and Edwin Minney (Wind Gap, Pa.) were ranked fourth and seventh respectively ... Team USA's roster includes 20 players born in 1996 and two from the 1997 birth year. ForwardAuston Matthews (Scottsdale, Ariz.), born Sept. 17, 1997, is Team USA's youngest player, while Nedeljkovic, born Jan. 7, 1996, is the oldest ... Eleven different states are represented on the roster. New York leads the way with five skaters, while Minnesota boasts four ... The U.S. enters the tournament having captured a record 10-consecutive medals, including back-to-back golds in 2005-06 and four-straight gold medals from 2009-12; three silver medals (2004, 2007, 2013); and one bronze medal (2008). Team USA's seven gold medals are the most of any country in IIHF Men's Under-18 World Championship history. The event began in 1999. Team USA earned its first gold medal in 2002 ... The U.S. will play in Group B alongside the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland and Switzerland. Group A consists of Canada, Germany, Russia, Slovakia and Sweden ... Follow@USAHockeyScoreson Twitter for live scoring updates during the tournament. Scores will be designated with the#U18Worldstag ... For additional coverage, visit the NTDPFacebookpage and follow@USANTDPon Twitter ... The U.S. National Under-18 and Under-17 Teams train withThe Hockey IntelliGym, a software program that trains hockey sense. To learn more, visitUSAHockeyIntelliGym.com.

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