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U18s Begin New Year With 4-3 Win Over Muskegon

By USA Hockey's NTDP, 01/03/25, 9:45PM EST

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Kvasnicka nets twice; Schock adds two points and shootout score


Photo by Rena Laverty

MUSKEGON, Mich. Jacob Kvansicka (Wayzata, Minn.) scored two goals and Drew Schock (Green Bay, Wis.) collected two points and added a shootout tally, to help lead the U.S. National Under-18 Team to a 4-3 win over the Muskegon Lumberjacks Friday night at Trinity Health Arena. 

After good pace and back and forth action throughout the majority of the opening frame, Muskegon finally tallied first when Vaclav Nestracil went top shelf over Harrison Boettiger (Wheat Ridge, Colo.) at 17:08 of the first. 

Box Score

Team USA answered the score on a Kvasnicka power-play tally with just 36 seconds to play in the period. LJ Mooney (West Mifflin, Pa.) went coast-to-coast and drove the crease for a backhand attempt. It was pushed aside but Kvasnicka was waiting on the doorstep for a putback and 1-1 score. 

Midway through the second period, Kvasnicka made it a multi-goal night with a highlight-reel tally he finished on the backhand to give the U18s their first lead of the night. Will Belle (Minnetonka, Minn.) won a puck battle along the boards to spur Kvasnicka, who sped past the defense and deked Shika Gadzhiev before sliding five-hole for the lead.

The U.S. doubled its lead less than three minutes later when Will Moore (Ithaca, N.Y.) tapped in a Schock feed on the back-door to make it a 3-1 contest. 

Five minutes into the third, Mikey Berchild (Minnetonka, Minn.), making his U18 debut, had a grade-A opportunity in the crease off of beautiful passes from Mooney and Schock, but Gadzhiev gloved the attempt to keep the score at 3-1. 

A few minutes later, Muskegon made Team USA pay as Russian import Ivan Ryabkin, making his USHL debut, lit the lamp off a one-timer from the slot, cutting the U.S. lead to one and Ryabkin scored again during 6-on-5 action near the end of regulation to push the game to extra time.

After neither team could end the matchup in the overtime period, Team USA used goals from Schock and Cole McKinney (Lake Forest, Ill.) in the shootout to earn the extra point. 

Boettiger finished with 26 saves on the night, plus two more in the shootout, to earn his fourth win of the season.

While the Under-17 Team travels to Muskegon for the second part of the USHL doubleheader tomorrow night, the U18s will take the short trip to Big Rapids, Mich., to take on the Ferris State Bulldogs in NCAA action. Puck drop is set for 6:07 p.m. ET from the R.L. Ewigleben Sports Complex. 

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