The National Team Development Program squads are both on the road this week for United States Hockey League play, with the U.S. National Under-17 Team playing two games in Illinois and the Under-18 Team playing two in Nebraska.
TO TRI-CITY: The U18s face the Tri-City Storm on Friday and Saturday at the Viaero Event Center in Kearney, Nebraska. They are coming off two losses over the weekend weekend against the Bloomington Thunder.
On Friday, Trent Frederic (St. Louis, Mo.) tallied the lone goal in a 5-1 loss while goalie Joseph Woll (St. Louis, Mo.) had 22 saves. James Sanchez (Northbrook, Ill.) potted the lone goal in a 5-1 loss on Saturday while goalie Jake Oettinger (Lakeville, Minn.) stopped 14 shots.
TO CHICAGO: Coming off consecutive losses at Cedar Rapids over the weekend, the U17s face off against the Chicago Steel on Friday and Saturday at the Fox Valley Ice Arena.
In a 4-2 loss on Friday, Graham Slaggert (South Bend, Ind.) and Josh Maniscalco (Perkiomenville, Pa.) tallied the goals while goalie Adam Scheel (Lakewood, Ohio) kicked out 39 of 42 shots. Cedar Rapids shut out the U17s 3-0 on Saturday as goalie Dylan St. Cyr (Northville, Mich.) made 26 saves.
“We have had some success the last few weeks, and I really thought our team played hard this past weekend,” U17 coach Don Granato said. “We will continue to work on all facets of our game as we prepare for two road games this weekend. We have made tremendous strides this season, and we will continue to work hard, both on and off the ice to improve our game.”
Upcoming Games
Notebook
- Anaheim’s Ryan Kesler (Livonia, Mich./2000-02) played in his 800th NHL game on Saturday, tallying a goal in a 3-2 win over the LA Kings. Kesler played 10 years for the Vancouver Canucks and is now in his second year with the Ducks.
- Minnesota defenseman Ryan Suter (Madison, Wis./2001-03) tied the Wild’s single-season record for assists by a defenseman when he notched No. 37 on Saturday. He shares the record with Marek Zidlicky, who set the original record in 2010-11.
- Pittsburgh Penguins forward Phil Kessel (Madison, Wis./2003-05) reached the 20-goal mark for an eighth consecutive season. He had a career-high 37 goals in 2011-12 and 2013-14 while with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
- Forward Riley Barber (Livonia, Mich./2011-12), who plays for the Hershey Bears, was named the American Hockey League Rookie of the Month for February. He totaled eight goals and 10 assists for a league-high 18 points along with a plus-8 rating in 11 games during the month.
- Goaltender Andy Iles (Ithaca, N.Y./2009-10) of the Cincinnati Cyclones was named the ECHL Goaltender of the Month for February. He posted an 8-3-1 (W-L-OTL) record, along with two shutouts, a 2.12 goals-against average and a .927 save percentage in 12 appearances during the month.
- Northeastern University forward Nolan Stevens (Manhattan Beach, Calif./2012-14) was named the Hockey East Player of the Month for February. Stevens paced Hockey East and finished second in the NCAA with 14 points on six goals and eight assists during the month.
- UConn defenseman Joe Masonius (Spring Lake, N.J./2013-15) was named the Hockey East Rookie of the Week on Feb. 29. Masonius recorded one goal and four points in UConn’s sweep of the University of New Hampshire.
- Former NTDP defenseman Trevor Hamilton (Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich./2011-13) plays for the Chicago Steel.
- With 82 points, Clayton Keller (Swansea, Ill.) is tied for 10th on the NTDP single-season points list. Keller, who also tallied 82 points last season, is tied with Phil Kessel (2003-04).
- With 39 goals so far this season, Kieffer Bellows (Edina, Minn.) is tied for seventh with Rocco Grimaldi (Rossmoor, Calif./2010-11) and Andy Hilbert (Howell, Mich./1998-99) on the NTDP single-season goals list. Adam Hall (Kalamazoo, Mich./1997-98) is sixth with 43 goals.
- The U18s carry a 34-11-4-1 (W-L-OTL-T) record into this weekend’s series.
- Clayton Keller (28-54) leads the U18s with 82 points while Kieffer Bellows (39-25) ranks second with 64 points. Adam Fox (Jericho, N.Y./8-37) is third with 44 points. Rounding out the top five are Joey Anderson (Roseville, Minn./18-22) and Trent Frederic (16-15), with 40 and 31 points, respectively.
- Goalies Jake Oettinger and Joseph Woll split time for the U18s. Oettinger is 19-7-1-0 with a 2.54 GAA and a .904 save percentage. Woll is 15-4-3-1 with a 2.26 GAA and a .915 save percentage.
- The U17s have a 17-25-7 (W-L-OTL) overall record.
- Scott Reedy (Prior Lake, Minn./19-31) leads the U17s with 50 points, while Grant Mismash (Edina, Minn./20-20) is second with 40 points. Evan Barratt (Bristol, Pa./14-23) is third with 37 points. Sean Dhooghe (Aurora, Ill./21-9) and Jacob Tortora (Victor, N.Y./15-15) are tied for fourth place with 30 points each.
- Goalies Dylan St. Cyr and Adam Scheel split time for the U17s. St. Cyr is 12-13-3 with a 3.40 GAA and an .883 save percentage. Scheel is 5-12-4 with a 4.24 GAA and an .882 save percentage.
NTDP in the News
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Did you know that no one is safe from Anaheim prankster Ryan Kesler?
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Red Wings goalie Jimmy Howard (Ogdensburg, N.Y./2001-02) is gaining consistency.
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Auston Matthews (Scottsdale, Ariz./2013-15) is a long shot to make the North America roster for 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
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Jack Eichel (North Chelmsford, Mass./2012-14) is ready to host Connor McDavid in their first NHL match up.
Story from Red Line Editorial, Inc.