MUSKEGON LUMBERJACKS: The U.S. National Under-18 Team gets ready for its final regular season weekend of the 2023-24 campaign, playing in a home-and-home set with the Muskegon Lumberjacks.

The U18s take the short drive to the west side of the state Friday night to open the series. Muskegon comes into play with a 36-20-1-1 record, good for 74 points and the team has already clinched a berth in the Clark Cup Playoffs.

Russian forward Matvei Gridin not only leads the 'Jacks in points, he leads the entire USHL in scoring. The University of Michigan commit is fourth in the league in goals with 35 and has added 42 assists for a whopping 77 points in 56 games played. Sacha Boisvert has added 34 scores and 30 helpers for 64 points while Ethan Whitcomb has also eclipsed the 60-point mark with a 17-44--61 line in 56 games.

On the blue line, Xavier Veilleux and Easton Young have paced the Muskegon defenders offensively. The former has a team-high 31 points (3g-28a) from the back end while Young has posted 25 points (3g-22a) in 57 games.

Shikhabutdin Gadzhiev leads the team in net as the 'Jacks lone qualified netminder. He has an impressive 16-8-0-0 record with a 3.20 GAA and .902 SV% in 26 appearances.

The two sides have split the two previous matchups this season, with two points aside, so the winner of this weekend will win the season series.

MADISON CAPITOLS: After traveling to Madison two weeks ago, the Under-17 Team returns to America's Dairyland for their final two matchups with the Capitols this season. The U17s won the initial game of the season series, but Madison took the previous two games over the past two weeks.

The Capitols have clinched a berth in the Clark Cup Playoffs, but are jockeying for seeding as they enter the weekend with a 29-22-4-2 record and currently sit in fifth place in the USHL's Eastern Conference.

The team is led offensively by NTDP alum Austin Burnevik, who is second in the league in goals with 38, and eighth in overall scoring with 66 points in 56 games played.

He gets help from fellow forwards James Hong (16g-33a--49pts), Andrew Kuzma (27g-21a--48pts) and Max Nagel (19g-22a--41pts), who have all had extremely productive seasons.

Jack Henry paces the blue line as he leads the team's defensemen with six goals, 18 assists, three power-play tallies and 24 total points.

In net, it's another NTDP alum in Carsen Musser leading the way for the Capitols. In 30 appearances this season, Musser has produced a 16-10-2-2 record, 2.71 GAA and .906 SV%, both of which place him in the top-3 of all USHL netminders.