COMING IN HOT: U18 forwards Rutger McGroarty (Lincoln, Neb.) and Frank Nazar III (Mount Clemens, Mich.) got off to exceptionally fast starts this season, as each player has accumulated five points over the first pair of games.

McGroarty opened up the season with a pair of assists in Muskegon on Friday morning before returning home with a hat-trick performance Saturday night, capped by a great individual effort for his third goal of the night. McGroarty created a defensive-zone turnover and sprinted down the right wing, before dragging the Muskegon defenseman and finishing for his third goal of the season.

Nazar had a three-point performance in the team's opening game with a goal and two helpers and backed that up with another goal and assist in the back end of the home and home set.

YOU'LL ALWAYS REMEMBER YOUR FIRST: The NTDP's 2005-born group won its first game as the U.S. National Under-17 Team Saturday night, defeating the Janesville Jets by a 2-1 final in Blaine, Minnesota. 

The team got goals from Oliver Moore (Mounds View, Minn.) and the game-winning tally from Austin Burnevik (Blaine, Minn.) early on in the third period.

Goaltenders Trey Augustine (South Lyon, Mich.) and Michael Chambre (Fort Myers, Fla.) split the game in net with an impressive performance, making a combined 33 saves for the U17s. 

SPECIAL SPECIALS: The U18s' special teams have been on fire out of the gate. The power play has tallied five goals in 10 opportunities with the man advantage while the PK has been more than sturdy, killing off nine of the first 10 man-down situations of the season.

Jimmy Snuggerud (Chaska, Minn.) leads the team with a pair of markers while Ryan Chesley (Mahtomedi, Minn.), Devin Kaplan (Bridgewater, N.J.) and Cole Spicer  (Grand Forks, N.D.) have all chipped in a PPG apiece.

NO KAP: Kaplan has been one of the best playmakers for the U18s, tying for the team lead with a trio of helpers throughout the team's first two games. Additionally, the Boston University commit's +4 rating currently leads the team.

Kaplan is looking to build off of an impressive 2020-21 campaign which saw him net 14 goals and add 28 helpers for 42 total points in his U17 season. 

A FAMILY AFFAIR: While U17 forward Gabe Perreault (Hinsdale, Ill.) is the first Perreault at the NTDP, the family is no stranger to the game.

Gabe's older brother, Jacob, was a 2020 1st-round pick (27th overall) of the NHL's Anaheim Ducks after starring for the OHL's Sarnia Sting for two seasons. Jacob skated in 27 games with the American Hockey League's San Diego Gulls last season and is on the roster to begin the 2021-22 year.

Their father, Yanic, was a 14-year NHL veteran who skated in 859 career games and racked up 516 points (247g-269a) with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Los Angeles Kings, Montreal Canadiens, Nashville Predators, Phoenix Coyotes and Chicago Blackhawks. Yanic is currently the head coach of the Chicago Mission 16U team, while serving as a Development Coach for the Blackhawks.

LOOKING AHEAD: After this weekend, both teams will return home for their next games. The U17s will make their debut at USA Hockey Arena on Friday, October 1 as they host the Youngstown Phantoms in the team's first ever USHL contest.

The U18s will skate the next day as they play host to the Michigan State Spartans, the team's first collegiate game of the season.

Team USA last played the Spartans on October 18, 2019, a 2-1 loss to MSU at Munn Ice Arena. The team looks to snap Team USA's six-game losing streak to the green and white.