BRINGING THE POWER: The Under-18 Team went a perfect 3-for-3 on the power play Saturday night at USA Hockey Arena, matching their team-high for most power-play scores in a game this season. The U18s also potted three scores on the man advantage back on September 30 in a 10-3 win over Green Bay.

On Saturday, the U18s got a pair of PP scores from Cole Eiserman (Newburyport, Mass.), as well as a man-up marker from captain Brodie Ziemer (Hutchinson, Minn.).

Eiserman's two scores brings him up to a team-high nine power-play tallies this season, six more than any other U18 skater. Ziemer's was his third of the season, tying him for second on the team alongside James Hagens (Hauppauge, N.Y.), Kamil Bednarik (Chicago, Ill.), Teddy Stiga (Sudbury, Mass.) and Cole Hutson (Chicago, Ill.).

The U18 power play is up to a 24.3% success rate throughout the campaign, and the team has connected on all four of its opportunities over the past two games.

JANUARY BLUES: Both the Under-17 and Under-18 Teams suffered tough, one-goal losses to the Chicago Steel last weekend to continue a difficult start to 2024.

Since the calendar turned, the two teams have combined to go 1-10-0 in their 11 games played. The U17s have dropped all five in USHL play, while the U18s notched a win in Sioux Falls, but have dropped their other five, three to high-end NCAA Division I competition and two more to USHL opponents.

The hard start to the new year comes after the two teams combined to go 10-5-2-0 in December and 10-1-2-3 in November.

CLIMBING THE CHARTS: As we get closer to the end of the season, a trio of Under-18 skaters are making their ascents in the all-time NTDP record books.

Forward Cole Eiserman collected his ninth multi-goal effort of the season in Saturday night's loss to Chicago, and he has now scored five goals over his past three games. Eiserman's 103 goals ranks third all-time, and is just one goal behind Phil Kessel for second place in program history. Eiserman has also compiled 159 total points across his two seasons, which currently places him 10th all-time. Auston Matthews' 167 points is next on the list.

James Hagens notched three assists Saturday night to extend his point streak to four consecutive games. The native of Long Island is up to 87 career assists, which marks 12th all-time at the NTDP. With two more assists, Hagens will catapult to 9th all-time, as alums Auston Matthews, Patrick Kane and JD Forrest all have 88. 

Defenseman Cole Hutson added a pair of helpers Saturday night to give him 29 points on the season and 97 in his NTDP career, which ranks fourth among all defensemen and second among two-year defensemen at the NTDP. Cam York holds the current two-year mark as he registered 103 points from 2017-19.

U18 FIVE NATIONS: USA Hockey Arena is proud to host the 2024 U18 Five Nations Tournament, taking place from February 6-10, in Plymouth, Michigan.

The best hockey players under the age of 18 from the United States, Czechia, Finland, Sweden and Switzerland will all compete in a round-robin style schedule, facing off against all other teams throughout the week.

All tickets for the Five Nations will be sold as day passes - one ticket provides entry to both games on a given day. Tickets for all five days of the tournament are on sale now and fans can purchase by online at USAHockeyArena.com/fivenations, visiting the USA Hockey Arena box office in person or by calling 734-453-8400!

This tournament will be Team USA's final international competition prior to the 2024 IIHF Under-18 Men's World Championship, set to be played in April in Espoo, Finland.