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Photo by Michael Caples
PLYMOUTH, Mich. - Will Moore (Ithaca, N.Y.) scored Team USA's 2024 Teddy Bear Toss goal and finished with three points and Harrison Boettiger (Wheat Ridge, Colo.) made 31 saves to help lead the U.S. National Under-18 Team to a 4-1 win and weekend sweep over the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders Saturday evening at USA Hockey Arena.
Moore let the teddy bears fly with an assisted marker just 4:26 into the game. He made a great defensive play at the attacking blue line and drove around a RoughRiders defender before finishing on the backhand to rain down bears.
A little more than 10 minutes later, Moore connected for his second of the period on the power play to give Team USA a 2-0 lead. From the point, Conrad Fondrk (White Bear Lake, Minn.) went to LJ Mooney (West Mifflin, Pa.) at the left circle. He found Moore in the bumper position, who sniped a wrister in the top corner for his 10th score of the season.
Cedar Rapids got on the board with 1:02 to play in the first, getting a back-door tap-in past Boettiger to make it a 2-1 contest after 20 minutes.
Neither side could light the lamp in the middle frame in large part to Boettiger's huge period, earning 12 saves in the middle 20 minutes.
Fondrk regained the two-goal advantage for the U18s less than two minutes in the final period. Drew Schock (Green Bay, Wis.) went D-to-D with Charlie Trethewey (Woodbine, Md.), who found a cutting Fondrk on the door step for a one-touch score and 3-1 lead.
Cole McKinney (Lake Forest, Ill.) capped the game's scoring with Team USA's second power-play tally of the night at 5:28 of the third. Fondrk found Moore in the bumper, looking for the hat-trick, but his shot deflected high and right in front of McKinney who roofed a quick backhand for the 4-1 final.
Boettiger was sturdy in net all night long and finished with 31 saves, his fourth game of the year with 30 or more stops, and his third victory of the season in net.
The U18s are back at USA Hockey Arena next Wednesday, Dec. 11, as they host the Muskegon Lumberjacks in the annual Kids Day morning game. Puck drop is set for 10:30 a.m. ET and tickets are available at USAHockeyNTDP.com/tix or by calling the box office at 734-453-8400.