The National Team Development Program is the pinnacle of USA Hockey’s amateur player development program. The NTDP scouts and selects the top 23 players in two age groups (Under-17 and Under-18) to train and develop in a highly competitive environment. The two teams (Under-17 and Under-18) face a rigorous domestic schedule including competition against older, more- developed players.
The Under-17 Team plays the majority of a 62-game junior schedule in the United States Hockey League against opponents whose ages range from 17-20. The Under-18 Team "shares" the junior schedule, playing about 25 games, while also playing a challenging selection of top NCAA Division I and Division Ill teams (ages 18-24).
Perhaps the most unique attribute to playing with the NTDP is that both teams play several age-specific international events each year against national teams from around the world.
In addition to the on-ice component, the players face a daily routine of off-ice development that includes strength training, cross-training and cognitive skill testing. Players must maintain strong academic standards, and nearly all earn full scholarships to top colleges. Finally, players are taught that from the moment they join the NTDP, they are representing the United States of America, at home, at school and abroad, 24 hours a day.
The “U” represents “under” and the numbers represent the age of the players. On the U18 Team, all of the players were born in 2008. On the U17 Team, all of the players were born in 2009. These designations are commonly used in sports such as hockey and soccer around the world.
The objective of the NTDP is to develop the most promising players from anywhere in the United States. NTDP players come from across the country. In the 25-plus years of existence, the NTDP has had players hail from 38 states, plus Washington D.C., with the majority coming from Minnesota, Michigan, New York, Massachusetts and Illinois.
The NTDP players are tracked and evaluated for two years prior to coming to Plymouth.
The culmination of the two-year scouting process is the annual, invitation-only NTDP Evaluation Camp that is held in March at USA Hockey Arena. The 23 members for the U.S. National Under-17 team are selected from this process.
The differences in the two teams help emphasize the beauty of what the NTDP is all about: Development!
The young men who join the NTDP work, play and develop in a two-year apprenticeship.
The U18 Team has trained and played together for a full season coming into the 2025-2026 campaign. Its success is a byproduct of hard work on and off the ice. But they still face the challenge of older competition in junior hockey and elevate their competition level by facing more experienced NCAA Division I and Ill teams.
The U18 Team has trained and played together for a full season coming into its second campaign. Their success is a byproduct of hard work on and off the ice. But they still face the challenge of older competition in junior hockey, and elevate their competition level by facing more experienced NCAA Division I and III teams.
One of the main tenets of the NTDP is to place our nation’s top players in a challenging environment and provide them the resources to flourish. The USHL provides that, especially for the U17s. They play in all situations and all critical times (power play, penalty kill, overtime, etc.) against older, more experienced players.
The crucible of competition against older teams means players have to develop quickly. And we’ve found—through experience—that they do improve at a rapid pace when playing against older, more experienced players.
The U17 Team is early in this process, but fans will be astonished at the progress they make as they come back to USA Hockey Arena throughout the next two years to cheer on the Red, White and Blue.
The NTDP is a full-time member of the USHL. We differ from a traditional franchise because we have two teams (U17 & U18) that register in the standings as one (Team USA). The combined records of the U17s and U18s are shown within the USHL standings.
All 16 USHL teams play a total of 62 games. In the NTDP, the U17 Team plays approximately 35, and the U18 Team plays approximately 25 games.
In the event that Team USA qualifies for the playoffs, the U17 Team would represent the NTDP in the chase for the Clark Cup (USHL championship), while the U18 Team is representing the United States at the International Ice Hockey Federation Under-18 Men's World Championship against the best from countries like Canada and Sweden. The U18 World Championship is the pinnacle event for the players in the NTDP.
The simple answer is: when you represent your Country, there are no exhibition games.
The NTDP schedule is made up of USHL games, NCAA Division I and III games, international tournaments, as well as a handful of miscellaneous games against squads from the NAHL, for example. The NTDP counts all wins and losses, so the overall record encompasses all of these contests.
The concept is not much different than college football, basketball or hockey. Win-loss records and individual statistics are often tabulated as league and then overall. We do the same.
Many trades are made in the USHL throughout the year. The NTDP, however, does not make any trades and does not cut players. Acceptance into the NTDP is a two-year agreement between the player and USA Hockey. No player in the NTDP has to worry about being cut or traded; they are here to develop as student-athletes and as individuals.
USA Hockey governs the USHL, the only Tier 1 junior hockey league in the United States. The USA Hockey Junior Rules can be found at usahockey.com. Also visit USHL.com for information on league rules and history.
Most rules are similar between the Canadian Hockey League and the USHL. There are minor differences, as there are between college hockey and international rules.
NTDP players are all under the age of 18. The NTDP follows international guidelines in this area. Players under the age of 18 must wear full facial protection. NCAA Division I and III hockey requires full facial protection as well. So NTDP players wear full facial protection at all times.
The NTDP is the first step for many players in the process of representing the United States on the world stage. It features prominently in the development of future Olympians.
Since the NTDP was founded in 1996, the number of alumni on the U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team has grown significantly.
In 2006, three NTDP alumni represented the United States in Torino, Italy. That number grew to seven on the silver-medal winning squad in Vancouver, British Columbia, in 2010. Nine NTDP alumni wore the colors of their country in 2014 in Sochi, Russia. In 2018, the NTDP had five alumni travel to compete in PyeongChang, South Korea. At the most recent 2022 Olympics in Beijing, China, eight NTDP alumni represented the United States.
Alumni also represent the United States on the world stage at various International Ice Hockey Federation World Championships. The 2019 team had a record 16 NTDP alumni, including two first overall picks in Jack Hughes (NTDP 2017-2019) and Patrick Kane (NTDP 2004-2006).
The U.S. captured its first-ever gold at the lIHF World Junior Championship in 2004. Team USA followed its success with gold-medal finishes in 2010, 2013, 2017, 2021, 2024 and 2025 along with silver in 2019. Each year, the U.S. World Junior squad is comprised heavily of NTDP alumni. Seventeen NTDP alums represented Team USA in its back-to-back gold medal finishes in 2024 and 2025 and included 12 first rounders between the two teams.
The U.S. Men's National Under-18 Team that competes in the annual IIF Under-18 World Championship is primarily comprised of current NTDP players. The U.S. has won this event 11 times, the most of any nation, and most recently in 2023.