The 19th season of USA Hockey's National Team Development Program kicks off this fall with new beginnings. After 18 seasons based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, the NTDP will now play at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, Michigan. In the meantime, both NTDP teams are on the road for preseason action.

U18 PRESEASON: The U18s play the Muskegon Lumberjacks Friday and the Youngstown Phantoms Saturday in the United States Hockey League preseason. Both games will be played at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania.

The U18s posted victories over Bloomington (4-1 on Sept. 12) and Muskegon (3-2 on Sept. 13) in USHL preseason action at the Brown County Arena in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

In the win over Bloomington, Will Lockwood (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.) tallied a pair of goals while Kieffer Bellows (Edina, Minn.) and Trent Frederic (St. Louis, Mo.) had single tallies. Jake Oettinger (Lakeville, Minn.) kicked out 29-of-30 shots to earn the win.

Joey Anderson (Roseville, Minn.) tallied the game winner with nine seconds remaining in the win over Muskegon. Graham McPhee (Bethesda, Md.) and Bellows tallied the goals. Oettinger earned the win, finishing with 17 saves.

“It was definitely good to get back into game action,” U18 coach Danton Cole said. “We were able to pick up two wins against quality opponents and start getting a measure of where we are currently at as a team. We want to build on this weekend as we get ready for our USHL opener and our first college game in the next few weeks.”

U17 PRESEASON: The U17s also head to the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania, for exhibition contests against Youngstown on Friday and Muskegon on Saturday.

The U17s split a pair of games over the weekend, dropping a 5-4 overtime decision to Muskegon on Sept. 12 before rebounding with a 5-4 shootout victory over Madison on Sept. 13.

Against Muskegon, Jacob Tortora (Victor, N.Y.), Josh Norris (Oxford, Mich.), Logan Cockerill (Brighton, Mich.) and Joey Cassetti (Pleasanton, Calif.) scored the goals. Dylan St. Cyr (Northville, Mich.) earned the starting nod, finishing with 30 saves.

Evan Barratt (Bristol, Pa.), Cassetti, Norris and Randy Hernandez (Miami, Fla.) posted goals in the victory over Madison, with Norris and Cassetti each connecting in the shootout. Adam Scheel (Lakewood, Ohio) earned the win between the pipes with 52 saves.

“It was a good test for our team to get out on the ice after a week and half of practice,” U17 coach Don Granato said. “It was definitely a good challenge for us and it was good for the coaches to see the players in a game, rather than just in practice.”

• As in years past, the NTDP squads will count jointly as one team in the USHL standings as a member of the Eastern Conference. Should the NTDP qualify for the Clark Cup Playoffs, the U17s will compete.
• Former NTDP player and assistant coach John Wroblewski (Neenah, Wis./1997-99) enters his first season behind the Youngstown bench. Wroblewski spent the past two seasons as an assistant coach with the Rochester Americans of the American Hockey League.

U18 Notebook

• Twenty-one players return for their second season with the NTDP, including two goaltenders, eight defensemen and 11 forwards.
• The U18s have one new face on this year’s squad in forward Kieffer Bellows. Bellows won 2014-15 USHL Rookie of the Year honors as a member of the Sioux Falls Stampede.
• Danton Cole (Pontiac, Mich.) begins his sixth season at the NTDP and will serve as U18 head coach. Chris Luongo (Fraser, Mich.) will enter his first season as an assistant to Cole, while Tyler Walsh (East Lansing, Mich.) will serve as intern assistant coach for a second straight year. Kevin Reiter (Pittsburgh, Pa.) begins his third season as the goaltending coach and will serve both the U17s and U18s.
• The U18 schedule is comprised of games against the USHL and NCAA Division I and III schools, in addition to two international competitions. The U18s will play the first game at USA Hockey Arena against the Chicago Steel on Oct. 9 followed by a home contest against the University of Notre Dame on Oct. 11. In addition, the U18s will compete in the 2015 Four Nations Tournament and the 2016 Five Nations Tournament.

U17 Notebook

• The 22-player U17 roster is comprised of some of the top American-born players in the 1999 birth year.  
• Fifth-year NTDP coach Don Granato (Downers Grove, Ill.) will guide the U17 team in 2015-16. Nick Fohr (Grand Forks, N.D.) will enter his fifth season as an assistant to Granato.
• In addition, former NTDP player Greg Moore (Lisbon, Maine/2000-02) enters his first season as the intern assistant coach. Moore spent the last 10 years playing professionally, including the 2014-15 season with the Deutsche Eishockey Liga’s Augsburg Panthers.
  Moore helped Team USA to a gold medal at the 2002 IIHF U18 Men's World Championship. In addition, he was a member of the first U.S. National Junior Team to earn gold in the IIHF World Junior Championship in 2004.
• The U17s will compete as a member of the USHL and also against teams from the Minnesota Elite League and North American Hockey League, in addition to participating in three international competitions during the course of the season. Team USA will begin its 35-game USHL regular-season schedule on the road at the Chicago Steel on Sept. 26 and make its USA Hockey Arena debut against Madison on Oct. 16.
  The U17s will compete internationally at the 2015 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, the 2015 Four Nations Tournament and the 2016 Five Nations Tournament.

Story from Red Line Editorial, Inc.