The U.S. National Under-17 and Under-18 Teams will both hit the road this weekend for United States Hockey League action as the squads will play a total of four games. Team USA is a combined 23-20-3 (W-L-OTL) in conference play this season.

OUT TO IOWA: The U.S. National Under-18 Team will face a familiar foe this week when it heads to Cedar Rapids for a series with the RoughRiders on Friday and Saturday. The U18s swept a pair of games at home against Cedar Rapids last week, posting a 5-4 overtime victory on Friday and a 3-2 win on Saturday.

“We have really set this up to try to parallel the U18 Worlds,” head coach Danton Cole said. “Every team you play is going to know a little more about you. They will have a little more film and will make adjustments. We will need to be able to adjust on the fly. We have prepared it that way for our guys to get a little better each game. It’s a good four-game set that we have, and they are an excellent team. It’s a good test for our squad.”

In Friday’s win over Cedar Rapids, Sonny Milano (Massapequa, N.Y.) tallied a pair of goals including the overtime winner. Alex Tuch (Baldwinsville, N.Y.), Auston Matthews (Scottsdale, Ariz.) and Jack Eichel (North Chelmsford, Mass.) also scored. Blake Weyrick (Ojai, Calif.) finished with 16 saves in net.

In game two, Brandon Fortunato (North Hills, N.Y.), Eichel and Matthews registered goals. Edwin Minney (Wind Gap, Pa.) stopped 19 shots to earn the win.

“It’s important to learn how to play in those tight games,” Cole said. “We played in a lot of those last year and came up on the wrong side. It’s been nice to be on the right side. We will continue to work on things. I thought we had chances to extend the lead but their goalie played well. Winning is a skill.”

NEBRASKA BOUND: Fresh off a bye week, the U.S. National Under-17 Team heads out to Nebraska for two games. The U17s will meet the Lincoln Stars on Friday before facing the Omaha Lancers on Sunday.

“It was good for our squad to have practice time and time in the weight room last week,” head coach Don Granato said. “We have two difficult opponents on the road this week. We have a good understanding of what we need to do as a team to be successful when it comes to playing on the road. It will be important for our players to stay focused, play our game and work hard.”

The U17s posted a 5-2 win over Dubuque in their last outing on March 2.

Former National Team Development Program defenseman Seth Jones (Plano, Texas/2010-12) is in his rookie season with the Nashville Predators. He has won three gold medals for Team USA: two at the World Under-18 Championships (2011 and 2012) and at the 2013 World Junior Championship.

How did the NTDP help you reach your goals?
If I didn’t come to the NTDP, I wouldn’t be where I am today in Nashville. It helped me so much — physically, mentally and developing as a player and as a person off the ice. I learned so much from the people I played with and the coaches. I’m very happy I had the chance to play for the program.

What do you remember most from your time in Ann Arbor?
Playing basketball in Polo Fields on the basketball courts with my teammates. I have so many memories from that court. The bonding away from the rink is so important.

• Former NTDP and current Western Michigan University forward Chase Balisy (Fullerton, Calif./2008-10) was named the National Collegiate Hockey Conference Offensive Player of the Week for the week of Feb. 24-March 2. Balisy tallied four goals in a split with the University of Denver.
• Forward Kyle Osterberg (Lakeville, Minn./2010-12), who plays for the University of Minnesota Duluth, earned NCHC Rookie of the Week honors after posting one goal and four points in a sweep of Miami University.
• University of Minnesota forward Travis Boyd (Hopkins, Minn./2009-11) was named the Big Ten Conference First Star on March 4. Boyd registered one goal and four points in a two-game sweep of Penn State.
• Jack Eichel is moving up the NTDP career charts. Eichel has 61 career goals, placing him 8th on the all-time goals list. R.J. Umberger (Pittsburgh, Pa./1998-2000) is ninth with 64 career goals. In addition, Eichel has 119 career points and is just one point away from tying Colin Wilson (Greenwich, Conn./2005-07) for 10th.
• Sonny Milano has 74 career assists to place sixth on the career list. Milano needs three more helpers to surpass Rocco Grimaldi (Rossmoor, Calif./2009-11) and Phil Kessel (Madison, Wis./2003-05), who are tied for fourth with 76.
• The U18s carry a 32-14-1 (W-L-OTL) mark into this week’s action.
• Sonny Milano (21-47) paces the U18s with 68 points, while Jack Eichel (32-35) is second with 67 points. Alex Tuch (28-26) is third with 54 points, while Dylan Larkin (Waterford, Mich./23-20) is fourth with 43 points. Ryan Hitchcock (Manhasset, N.Y./8-30) sits fifth with 38 points.
• Edwin Minney and Blake Weyrick split time between the pipes for the U18s. Minney is 18-8-1 with a 2.62 goals-against average and a .905 save percentage. Weyrick is 9-4-0 with a 2.87 GAA and an .889 save percentage.
• The U17s bring a 28-16-2-0 (W-L-OTL-T) overall mark into this weekend’s action.
• Jeremy Bracco (Freeport, N.Y./13-51) leads the U17s with 64 points. Colin White (Hanover, Mass./32-31) is second with 63 points, while Luke Kirwan (DeWitt, N.Y./26-21) sits third with 47 points. Christian Fischer (Wayne, Ill./14-20) is fourth with 34 points. Three players — Luke Kunin (Chesterfield, Mo./18-15), Jordan Greenway (Potsdam, N.Y./14-19) and Auston Matthews (12-21) — are tied for fifth with 33.
• In net for the U17s, Michael Lackey and Luke Opilka split duties. Lackey is 14-9-1 with a 3.22 GAA and an .874 save percentage. Meanwhile, Opilka is 14-7-1 with a 3.57 GAA and an .869 save percentage.

Story from Red Line Editorial, Inc.