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U17s Fall to Czech Republic in World U17 Challenge

By USAHockeyNTDP.com, 11/09/18, 1:15PM EST

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QUISPAMSIS, N.B. -- Matthew Beniers (Hingham, Mass.) scored and Team USA outshot the Czech Republic 39-26 but the U.S. National Under-17 Team ultimately fell, 2-1, in its final game of the 2018 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge in New Brunswick.

Team USA goaltender Drew Commesso (Norwell, Mass.) stood tall throughout the first two periods, stopping all 19 shots faced. Neither team could find a goal, however, after two periods of play, despite Team USA outshooting the Czechs by a margin of three.

After Team USA successfully killed-off two penalties in the second period, the Czech Republic capitalized on the power play 3:50 into the third stanza, before they tallied again with 4:21 remaining in the game.

Beniers cut the lead in half on the power play at the 1:04 mark when he tipped in a Jake Sanderson (Whitefish, Mont.) shot from the point. Team USA pulled Commesso for an extra attacker in the final minute but was unable to tie the game, accounting for the 2-1 final.

Commesso stopped 24 of 26 shots faced.

Team USA will return to USA Hockey Arena on Nov. 16 against the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders. Tickets are available for all NTDP games are available at the USA Hockey Arena box office, by calling 734-453-8400 or by visiting USAHockeyNTDP.com/tix.

NOTES: Jake Sanderson was named U.S. Player of the Game ... Team USA went 0-for-4 on the power play and 2-for-3 on the penalty kill … the official tournament website found here … The Team USA homepage for the 2018 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge can be found here … The 2018 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge includes two groups of four teams. Group A features Canada Black, Canada White, the Czech Republic, and the United States, while Group B includes Canada Red, Finland, Russia, and Sweden ... Follow @USAHockeyNTDP on Twitter for tournament updates and join the conversation on social media by using #WorldU17 … Seth Appert (Cottage Grove, Minn.) will lead the U.S. National Under-17 Team along with associate coach Nick Fohr (Grand Forks, N.D.), intern assistant coach Jared Nightingale (Jackson, Mich.) and goaltending coach Thomas Speer (Janesville, Wis.). 

DATE OPPONENT RESULT U.S. PLAYER OF THE GAME
Thursday, Nov. 1 Canada Red
Pre-Tournament
L, 5-2 Jake Sanderson
Sunday, Nov. 4 Czech Republic
Preliminary
W, 5-1 Matthew Beniers
Monday, Nov. 5 Canada White
Preliminary
L, 5-2 Ty Smilanic
Tuesday, Nov. 6 Canada Black
Preliminary
L, 5-4 Brock Faber
Thursday, Nov. 8 Canada Red
Quarterfinals
L, 2-1 (OT) Drew Commesso
Friday, Nov. 9 Czech Republic
Placement
L, 2-1 Jake Sanderson

2018 Roster

Tournament History

Tournament Website

World Under-17 Hockey Challenge News