Lehigh Valley, PA – The Lehigh Valley Phantoms have signed goaltender Parker Gahagen to one-year AHL contracts for the 2023-24 season.
Gahagen, 30, backstopped the Jacksonville Icemen of the ECHL last year with a record of 18-8-3 to go along with a 2.66 GAA and .912 save percentage. The former Army goaltender has played in 12 career games in the AHL going 5-4-0, 3.34, .885 during quick stops with Colorado, Milwaukee, Toronto and San Jose. Last year, he was also on Hartford’s roster for a stretch but did not appear in any games.
Gahagen has 100 career games in five seasons in the ECHL going 58-26-5, 2.30, .920. He is a Kelly Cup winner with the Florida Everblades in the 2021-22 season when he went 20-10-3, 2.32, .916.
In his four seasons at West Point, he was twice named AHL Second Team All-Conference. He sported a career mark of 41-49-16, 2.40, .926 for the Black Knights. The Amherst, NY native played his high school hockey at nearby Williamsville in suburban Buffalo.
CHOMUTOV, Czechia – Cooper Simpson (Shakopee, Minn) netted four goals and picked up two assists to help the U.S. Under-17 Men’s Select Team claim second place in the 2023 Five Nations Tournament with a 14-3 win over Germany at Rocknet Arena on Tuesday.
The U.S. found the back of the net just 20 seconds into the first period when Travis Hayes (Westland, Mich.) buried rebound off a shot from Jackson Crowder (Allen, Texas).
Masun Fleece (Rolling Hills Estates, Calif.) scored less than a minute later with helpers fromSam Spehar (Chaska, Minn.) and Simpson to put the U.S. ahead 2-0
Simpson netted a goal at the halfway mark of the first, assisted by Fleece and Chase Reid (Chesterfield, Mich.).
Hayes, Nicolas Whitehead (Stamford, Conn.), and Jacob Rombach(Blaine, Minn.) added to the tally to give Team USA a 6-0 lead heading into the second period.
Germany got on the board at the 4:40 mark of the middle frame.
Jesse Orlowsky (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and Simpson responded for Team USA midway through the second period to go ahead 7-1.
Germany added a pair of goals, and the U.S. found the back of the net three more times in the middle stanza to take an 11-3 lead after two periods.
Simpson completed a hat trick, and then added a fourth goal in the third period. Crowder also recorded a goal to bring the final score to 14-3.
Notes: Ben Kevan (Fairfield, Calif.) was named Team USA’s Player of the Game… USA outshot Germany 47-20… The U.S. finished the tournament with a 3-0-0-1 (W-OTW-OTL-L) record.
CHOMUTOV, Czechia – The U.S. Under-17 Men’s Select Team fell to Czechia, 7-4, in its third game of the 2023 Five Nations Tournament at Rocknet Arena on Monday.
“Obviously not the result that we wanted,” said Scott Paluch(Bowling Green, Ohio), head coach of the U.S Under-17 Men’s Select Team. “We got off to another really good start. Unfortunately, we gave up too many chances to a really good hockey team. We found ourselves down heading into the second half of the game and couldn’t make enough plays to get ourselves back.”
Two minutes into the first period, Cooper Simpson (Shakopee, Minn.) led a rush into the offensive zone. He threaded a pass across the middle for Masun Fleece (Rolling Hills Estates, Calif.) who found Sam Spehar (Chaska, Minn.) on his wing for a one-timer goal to give Team USA a 1-0 lead.
The U.S. took a 2-0 lead a minute later when Nicolas Whitehead (Stamford, Conn.) chipped in the puck from the edge of the crease, assisted by Ben Kevan (Fairfield, Calif.).
Czechia scored back-to-back goals in the first to even the score heading into the second period. Šimon Fasner got his team on the board at 13:57 in the first period, followed by a goal from Matej Pekar at 15:23.
The U.S. reclaimed the lead at the start of the middle frame after Travis Hayes (Westland, Mich.) tipped home a shot from Jackson Crowder (Allen, Texas), assisted by Blake Fiddler (Frisco, Texas).
Czechia’s Vít Macík found the back of the net at 2:41 in the second period to tie the score at three apiece. Dominik Pavlík scored minutes later to give Czechia the lead. František Netušilthen added to the Czech tally to go ahead 5-3.
With 50 seconds remaining in the second stanza, Team USA pulled within one goal of the lead on the power play. Cooper Dennis (Ithaca, N.Y.) sent a pass to Kevan, who threaded the puck to Carter Murphy (Woodlands, Texas) out in front. Murphy wristed a shot over the pad of the Czech goaltender to make it a 5-4 game.
The Czechs scored twice in the third period for a final score of 7-4.
GAME PHOTOS
Goaltender Anthony Alessi (Lockport, N.Y.) made 15 saves.
Notes: Carter Murphy was named Team USA’s Player of the Game… Czechia outshot USA 32-22… Team USA will face Germany in their final tournament contest on Tuesday, Aug. 8, at 7:00 a.m. ET.
TRENČÍN, Slovakia – Trevor Connelly (Tustin, Calif.) and Will Zellers(Maple Grove, Minn.) each tallied a pair of points to help the U.S Under-18 Men’s Select Team defeat Finland, 5-3, to claim third place at the 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup on Saturday at Pavol Demitra Ice Hockey Stadium.
“We are proud to bring the bronze medal home for our country,” said Luke Strand (Eau Claire, Wis.), head coach of the 2023 U.S. Under-18 Men’s Select Team. “Proud of our young players who will have successful journeys ahead of them, hopefully with some learning experiences provided with this event. We are grateful for USA Hockey extending this opportunity for the players, staff and families.”
Team USA’s third-place finish marks its highest finish at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup since 2016, when it placed second.
Just 13 seconds into the opening period, Mac Swanson (Anchorage, Alaska) gave the U.S. a 1-0 lead. Tory Pitner(El Cerrito, Calif.) fired a shot through traffic from the top of the circle. The Finnish goaltender made the initial save, but Swanson was able to sweep the rebound over the goal line.
William Felicio (Holden, Mass.) added to the U.S. lead with a power-play goal at the two-minute mark. He lined up a wrist shot and fired the puck into the top corner of the net off a cross from Connelly and Zellers.
Team USA then took a 3-0 lead after Connelly weaved through Finnish defensemen on a hard drive to the net and flipped the puck past the goaltender.
Finland got on the board at 4:24 in the second period with a shorthanded goal from Heikki Ruohonen. They got within one goal of the U.S. lead minutes later off a shot from Roope Vesterinen.
The U.S responded with a shorthanded goal of their own at the 18-minute mark of the second period. JJ Monteiro (Hudson, Mass.) poked the puck away from a Finish defenseman on the blueline and shot up the ice on a two-on-one with Chase Stefanek (Yorba Linda, Calif.) on his wing. He threaded a pass across the slot to Stefanek who slipped the puck in the net on his backhand to give Team USA a 4-2 lead heading into the final third.
Team USA restored its three-goal lead on the power play at 8:11 in the third period. Aidan Park(Playa Vista, Calif.) walked the puck in off that half wall and fired a shot from the top of the circle, assisted by Zellers and Alex Bales (East Amherst, N.Y.)
With a final score of 5-3, Team USA claimed third place in the 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup Tournament.
NOTES: Trevor Connelly (Tustin, Calif.) was named Team USA’s player of the game.
Sweden scored just :17 into the contest when Filip Bystedt found a loose puck in the crease and put it in. USA Blue tied the game just 1:20 later when Rutger McGroarty took a cross-ice feed from Will Smith and converted at the left side of the goal. The visitors scored three times in a minute in the early stages of the second half of the period, including two more from Bystedt and one from Hannes Hellberg, to take a 4-1 lead after 20 minutes.
The U.S. closed the gap in the middle frame, scoring the only two goals, both on the power play. Lane Hutson wristed one from the center point that got through traffic and found the back of the net at 3:52 to make it 4-2 with Ryan Leonard and Smith drawing assists. Then at 7:51, Gavin Hayes scored from out in front with Brindley and Quentin Musty earning assists.
Team USA completed the comeback in the third with Frank Nazar tying the game with 6:48 to play before Musty tallied the game-winner with just 1.8 seconds to play, finding a puck that bounded off his skate from just in front of the crease and banging it in after an initial shot off the stick of Ryan Chesley from the right point.
Tyler Muszelik play the first half of the game and had 13 saves, while Jacob Fowler finished the contest and made eight stops.The U.S. had a 40-25 shots on goal advantage in the contest.
GAME PHOTOS
Finland 4, USA White 3
Oliver Moore staked USA White to a 1-0 lead just 1:49 into the contest. Tyler Duke aired a long up-ice pass out of his own end that Moore caught on his blade at the Finland blueline and proceeded to skate in alone to beat Niklas Kokko stick side. Jani Nyman evened the game at 6:51 on Finland’s first shot on goal of the game and then Joona Vaisanen walked down the right side with the teams skating four-on-four and beat Hampton Slukynsky at 15:38.
The U.S. got the lone goal of the middle stanza. Danny Nelson weaved through traffic from his own end to below the Finland goal line and fed Moore at the right of the net, who scored his second of the game at 12:02.
Cutter Gauthier scored on the power play from the right of the net just 1:01 into the third period to give the U.S. to a 3-2 lead with Seamus Casey and James Hagens drawing assists. Finland, however, got goals from Kasper Lundell at 11:04 and Samu Bau at 12:48 to earn the victory. The U.S. pulled netminder Trey Augustine for the final 2:56, but could not get the equalizer.
Slukynsky started in goal for the U.S. and had nine stops in 31:33 of action, while Augustine played 25:31 and made five saves.
What’s Next U.S. general manager John Vanbiesbrouck and his staff, including head coach David Carle, will continue the player evaluation process in the Fall and invite a select group of athletes to a final selection camp for the 2024 U.S. National Junior Team that is expected to begin on Dec. 13 at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, Michigan. The 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship will take place Dec. 26, 2023-Jan. 5, 2024 in Gothenburg, Sweden. NHL Network will televise all U.S. games in the tournament.
TRENČÍN, Slovakia – The U.S Under-18 Men’s Select Team fell to Canada, 7-2, in the 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup semifinals on Friday at Pavol Demitra Ice Hockey Stadium.
“Credit to Canada for capitalizing on our undisciplined play,” said Luke Strand (Eau Claire, Wis.) head coach of the U.S Under-18 Men’s Select Team. “They are a tough team to chase the game against. We need to be ready to play for our country tomorrow.”
Midway through the first period, Canada skated into the U.S. zone on a two-on-one, but Caleb Heil (Victoria, Minn.) made a lunging save to keep the game scoreless.
The U.S. took a 1-0 lead with a power play goal from Will Zellers (Maple Grove, Minn.) at 8:13 in the first period. Canada dumped the puck in behind the U.S. net, where it was collected by Heil before he fired a stretch pass to Zellers on the far blue line, who lined up a shot while skating in on goal to beat the goaltender five-hole.
Canada evened the score on the power play minutes later off a Maxim Massé one-timer from the slot.
GAME PHOTOS
Trevor Connelly (Tustin, Calif.) responded with a power-play goal at 13:54 in the first period. Mac Swanson (Anchorage, Alaska) gathered the puck along the boards in the offensive zone and sent a pass to Eero Butella (Chicago, Ill.) on the goal line. He found Connelly at the top of the far circle where he lined up a wrist shot and picked the top corner to give Team USA a 2-1 lead.
At 3:37 in the second period, Canada tied the score at 2-2 after Malcom Spence tipped a shot in from the net front.
Canada took its first lead of the game just past the seven-minute mark in the second period when Berkly Catton scored on a 5-on-3 power play. Porter Martone added to Canada’s tally minutes later to go up 4-2.
Canada added three goals in the third period for a final score of 7-2.
NOTES: Tory Pitner(El Cerrito, Calif.) was named Team USA’s Player of the Game… Team USA will face Finland in the third-place game on Saturday, Aug. 5. Puck drop is set for 11:00 a.m. ET on NHL Network.
CHOMUTOV, Czechia –Sam Spehar (Chaska, Minn.) tallied a pair of goals and added an assist to help lift the U.S Under-17 Men’s Select Team to a 5-3 win over Slovakia in the opening contest of the 2023 Five Nations Tournament at Rocknet Arena on Friday.
“I think it’s a really good start for our team,” said Scott Paluch (Chicago, Ill.), head coach of the U.S Under-17 Men’s Select Team. “We got out of the gate really quickly; our quickness and pursuit of the puck was fantastic. We were able to score to four goals to get the lead then were able to settle in. Anthony Alessi (Lockport, N.Y.) was terrific in goal.”
Blake Fiddler (Frisco, Texas) opened the scoring with a wrist shot from the slot 1:29 into the game. Less than a minute later, Spehar added a goal from the edge of the crease with an assist from Cooper Simpson (Shakopee, Minn.). Minutes later, Chase Jette (Lake Forest, Ill.) added to the tally on a hard drive to the net to give Team USA a three-goal lead.
Spehar netted his second goal of the game on the power play at 12:37 in the first period, giving the U.S. a 4-0 lead. Danny Klaers (Mount, Minn.) and Cooper Dennis (Ithaca, N.Y.) assisted on the play.
GAME PHOTOS
Slovakia got on the board at 7:03 in the second period with a power-play goal from Lukáš Tomka. At the midway mark of the period, Vladimír Dravecká made it a 4-2 game, scoring on a shot from the blue line.
The U.S took a 5-2 lead on the power play when Ben Kevan (Fairfield, Calif.) redirected a shot from Carter Murphy (Woodlands, Texas) at 5:05 in the final frame with a helper from Spehar.
Two minutes later, Slovakia scored to make it a 5-3 game, in what would prove to be the final tally of the contest.
NOTES: Chase Jette (Lake Forest, Ill.) was named Team USA’s player of the game… Slovakia outshot Team USA 33-27… Netminder Anthony Alessi (Lockport, N.Y.) made 24 saves in the win… Team USA will take on Switzerland on Sunday, August 6. Puck drop is set for 9:00 a.m. ET.
(Here is my first look at the upcoming hockey season at the women’s collegiate level. This article focuses on WNY but I will be posting other sections in the upcoming days.)
Women’s ice hockey became the 21st sport in the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) beginning with the upcoming season.
SUNYAC absorbed the Northeast Women’s Ice Hockey League which has operated as a single-sport NCAA DIII conference since 2017-18. The league evolved from the former ECAC West conference.
There are five core members of SUNYAC including Buffalo State, Cortland, Oswego, Plattsburgh and Potsdam. Canton and Morrisville will be associate members of SUNYAC. The schedule, which was set by the NEWHL, will remain as planned through 2027.
The NEWHL ceased operations on June 30 and SUNYAC took over July 1.
Now a look at women’s collegiate hockey in New York State at this point of the year.
Buffalo State
2021 SABRES PROSPECTS
Rachel Grampp served last season as interim coach, one season as assistant and on April 27 was named Head Coach of the Bengals. She led the team to a six-game improvement in her first full season at the helm. Prior to coming to Buffalo she was an assistant coach at Canton. Grampp was known to us in WNY as a Williamsville native and an outstanding player for Elmira College, where she earned United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC) Defensive Player of the Year and American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA) Academic All-American honors as a senior. During her time, the Soaring Eagles earned national runner-up finishes twice, and reached the NCAA Championships in all four seasons.
The Bengals are looking to improve their 7-18-0 overall record.
Rochester Institute of Technology
Celeste Brown returns for her fourth season as Head Coach to the CHA RIT Tigers. While last season was not a winning season, 21 players were named to the 2022-23 CHA All Academic Team, including Clarence native and Monsignor Martin (WNYGVIH) player Camryn Brownschidle( above as a member of MMAA); Plattsburg’s Ella Fesette from Northwood Prep and Williamsville’s Emma Roland who also played in the WNYGVIH with Williamsville.
RIT opens their 2023-24 season Saturday and Sunday, September 23and 24 with non-league games against RPI in Troy, NY. After playing one more weekend on the road, they will return to face Minnesota at home on Friday and Saturday, October 6 and 7.
The Tigers are coming off a 4-26-2 overall record.
Tickets for both men’s and women’s hockey are on sale now at www.rittickets.com or by calling the RIT Ticket Office at 585-475-2516.
Nazareth College
Head Coach Chris Baudo returns for his fifth season with the Golden Flyers. He as named 2023 Rochester Area Coach of the Year by the Rochester Press Club after posting a 22-6-1 overall record.
Nazareth lost 3-1 to Hamilton College in the first round of the NCAA tournament. However, the Golden Flyers brought home honors for their season including:
Defenseman Julia Holmes being named a second team CCM/AHCA Division III All-American and the first-ever Nazareth women’s hockey player to earn an All-American award in the five-year history of the program.
Holmes was then named United States College Hockey Online (USCHO) Division III Women’s Hockey All-America team as a second team selection.
That was followed by The United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC)naming its 2022-23 Women’s All-Academic Team and the Nazareth University Women’s Hockey team received a conference-high 23 selections to the squad. The honorees included Delaney Carle, Kate Cascio, Gabriella DeMeo, Audrey Donahue, Zoe Dupuis, Abby Flanagan, Ali Fujiyoshi, Sydney Gurlea, Emili Haratani, McKinley Hoff, Julia Holmes, Alexis Jone, Morgan Leuenberger, Abbey Luth, Ivey Lyden, Sophia Nortz, Maïka Paquin, Maggie Pfalzgraf, Corsica Skibinski, Sydney Swanson, Nikolle Van Stralen, Ally Watrous and Makenna Wiljanen.
In addition Nikolle Van Stralen, was named the 2022-23 Empire 8 Conference Co-Woman of the Year. This award honors a senior female student-athlete who has distinguished herself throughout her collegiate career in the areas of academic achievement, athletics excellence, service and leadership.
Nazareth will open their season with an exhibition game against William Smith at the Iceplex in Rochester on Saturday, October 21 at 2 p.m. Their regular season will open October 31 against Cortland at the Iceplex.
Hilbert
Last season was the Inaugural Year for Hilbert as they posted a 0-18-0 record and playing as an independent.
They have most recently announced that Earl Utter will serve as the new Head Coach. Utter has had experience in starting a pair of first year DIII programs. A native of Rochester, Utter most recently served as the Wilkes University women’s head coach, where he began building his roster in 2017 in anticipation of their first season of NCAA competition in 2018-19. The Colonels went 5-17-1 in 2019-20, his second season before Covid-19 interrupted his program’s progression the following year. Utter coached four All-MAC (Middle Atlantic Conference) selections and 19 UCHC All-Academic honorees during his four seasons behind the Colonels bench.
Courtney Weselowski
Prior to Wilkes he was the women’s head coach at Cortland State for nine seasons prior and guided them to two straight ECAC West playoff appearances in 2014-15 and 2015-16.
The Women’s Ice Hockey season was filled with many challenges for a first-year program, however the group, under Former Coach Cole Klubeck ‘s leadership was able to lay a strong foundation for the future of the Hawks program. The group battled against established hockey programs, and all of their contests were played on back-to-back days with limited recovery in between. The Hawks understand the grind and they will be ready for what the future holds, as they presented their 2022-23 awards.
Coaches Award: Jewely Monford. Jewely is a quality human being who wants the best for everyone around her. During the season, she gave it her all in net for the Hawks, starting five of the 13 games she played between the pipes. She was also involved on campus with work study job in the Admissions Office.
Most Improved Player Award: Mia Bouchard. Mia’s improvement as a student-athlete from the fall semester to now, both on and off the ice, helped establish a strong standard for all players in the program moving forward. She appeared in 16 games and was credited with one assist as a forward.
Most Valuable Player Award: Abby MacNeil. Abby’s speed, hands and hockey IQ quickly made her a target for opponents whenever she stepped on the ice. Abby goes down in the record book as scoring the first Hilbert NCAA goal in program history against Alvernia, October 28th. The center is primed for a break-out sophomore campaign with more help arriving for the team next season.
University of Buffalo
UB went 8-7-2 in the ACHA D2 conference. Sierra Dominick led the scoring with 18 goals and 11 assists for 29 points and Annika Balk had 13 goals and 7 assists.
In goal is a familiar name to WNYGVIH, Isabella Battaglia who played in 10 games with a 4-4-2 record. Backing her up was Cassandra Vaccaro playing in 7 games and posting a 4-3 record.
Niagara University
NU came up a winner taking the their first national championship at the ACHA College Hockey East Championship at the D2 level. They posted a 14-3-2 record under Head Coach Anna Quattro
In 2023-24 Niagara will be fielding both an ACHA D1 women’s team, as well as an ACHA D2 team. Quattro will be coaching the D1 team and Morgan Haettich will be coaching the D2 team.
“We have players joining us from all over North America for this (D1) team including British Columbia, Alberta, Nova Scotia, Ontario (NY) and Virginia. We look to have another successful season with them,” said Coach Quattro.
“We are also fielding a second team, an ACHA D2 women’s team. This team is also comprised of recruited players from North America, including British Columbia,” continued Quattro.
The D1 team will open with a exhibition game against the Barrie Jr. Sharks on September 23. They will then open their season on the road at Miami Ohio on September 30. Their first home game will be October 20 against the Indiana Tech Warriors at 8 p.m.
The D2 program will open at Cortland’s ACHA team on October 1 and their home opener will be against Robert Morris (ACHA D2) on October 13 at 7:30 p.m.
Attention Coaches/Managers and SID’s: Please make sure to include [email protected] on your email list so we receive your press releases. Also share our website www.nyhockeyonline.com and our Facebook and Twitter accounts under NY Hockey Online with your players/families as we cover all hockey in New York State; especially WNY at all levels.
The 2023 USA Hockey Women’s National Festival opens in Lake Placid, NY on Monday, August 7 and runs through August 19.
This is an evaluation camp for Team USA and is divided into two groups. First, the Collegiate Select Team which has 77 invitees including 10 New Yorkers.
Those invitees include New Hartford native Sydney Bard, who played for Colgate University; Aerin Frankel of Chappaqua who most recently played with the PWHPA with Team Adidas; Katy Knoll, Buffalo, coming from Northeastern University; Abbey Levy, Congers and Boston College; Tory Mariano, Buffalo/Northeastern University; Maureen Murphy, Buffalo/Northeastern University; Hayley Scamurra of Buffalo who comes from Team Harvey of the PWHPA and was a former Buffalo Beaut; Emma Seitz, New York City, last playing for Harvard University; Haley Winn, Rochester and Clarkson University and Kiara Zanon, Fairport who played recently for Ohio State University.
The second group is the U18 Select Team with two New Yorkers being invited including Bella Fanale and Maggie Scannell. Fanale played her most recently hockey wit Bishop Kearney Selects in Rochester and she was also a member of Team USA U18 team;. She played 5 games with Team USA and posted an goal and assist.
Scannell comes from Shattuck St. Mary’s and she has played for Team USA u18 for two years posting a 6-5 record in ten games. She has made a commitment to play for the University of Wisconsin in 2024-25.
Others invited with a New York connection are Elyssa Biderman, Colgate University; Lily Delianedis, Grace Dwyer, and Rory Guilday, of Cornell University; and Ally Simpson, Colgate.
Bishop Kearney’s Shayla Beaudette and Rose Dwyer were also invited to the U18 camp.
John Wroblewski (Neenah, Wis.) will serve as the head coach of the 2023-24 U.S. Women’s National Team. Josh Sciba (Westland, Mich.), head women’s ice hockey coach at Union College, Shari Dickerman (Richmond, Minn.), assistant women’s hockey coach at Minnesota State and Brent Hill (Hamden, Conn.), assistant women’s hockey coach at Quinnipiac, will serve as assistant coaches, while Alli Altmann (Eagan, Minn.) will be the goaltending coach
Chelsea Walkland (Rochester, N.Y.), assistant women’s hockey coach at Colgate University, will serve as the head coach of the U.S. Collegiate Select Team, with Lindsey Berman (Odenton, Md.), assistant women’s hockey coach at Northeastern University, and Holley Tyng (North Yarmouth, Mass,), head women’s hockey coach at Colby College, serving as assistant coaches, and Yale University volunteer women’s ice hockey coach Mackenzie Bruch (Powder Springs, Ga.) as the goaltending coach.
Liz Keady Norton (Boston, Mass.), head women’s hockey coach at Dartmouth College, will be the head coach of the U.S. Under-18 Select Team. Brianna Decker (Dousman, Wis.) girls prep associate head coach at Shattuck-St. Mary’s, Meredith Roth (Dubuque, Iowa) assistant women’s hockey coach at Holy Cross and Zoe Hickel (Anchorage, Alaska) U.S. Women’s National Team alumni and ZoPro founder, will be assistant coaches, with Aurora University assistant women’s hockey coach Sanya Sandahl (Duluth, Minn.) serving as the goaltending coach.
Following the camp the Teams will be selected on August 13 with each team playing a three-game series with their Canadian counterparts.
The USA Collegiate Selects will play on August 16 at 6 p.m., August 17, 3 p.m. and August 19 at 6 p,m.
The USA U18 Selects will play August 16 at 3 p.m., August 17, 6 p.m. and August 19 at 3 p.m.
All games will be played in the Olympic Center in Lake Placid.
Tickets are available for games and can be purchased by going to https://lakeplacidolympiccenter.com/todo/usa-hockey-womens-national-camp
All Series games will be streamed on USAHockeyTV.com.
PLYMOUTH, Mich. – Day three of games from the 2023 World Junior Summer Showcase took place here this afternoon at USA Hockey Arena with Sweden getting by arch-rival Finland, 3-2, in the first contest and Team White gaining a 7-3 victory over Team Blue in game two.
The event serves as an evaluation for athletes seeking to make their respective national teams for the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship, set for Dec. 26, 2023 – Jan. 5, 2024, in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Below are brief recaps from today’s games.
Sweden 3, Finland 2
Finland led 1-0 after the opening period, despite getting outshot by a 17-4 count. The Finland goal came from Samu Bau who tipped in a shot from the left point from Topi Vuori with 3:11 left to play in the stanza.
Sweden’s Anton Wahlberg scored the only goal of the middle frame at 5:48 from the right circle off a feed from Otto Stenberg. Finland killed off a full two-minute five-on-three power play late in the period to preserve the 1-1 tie headed into the third.
Sweden scored goals 1:02 apart in the first five minutes of the third period to take a 3-1 lead. Isac Born tallied the first at 3:26 from between the circles before Alex Sandin Pellikka sailed up the left side and put one home at 4:28 off a long cross-ice feed from Anton Johansson. Finland got to within a goal at 10:08 when Jani Nyman scored from the right circle on a 5-on-3 power play, but could get no closer.
Alexander Hellnemo picked up the win in goal for Sweden with 13 saves, while Niklas Kokko had 31 stops in the Finland net.
GAME PHOTOS
USA White 7, USA Blue 3
In the second game, USA White had a 2-1 lead after the opening period. USA Blue opened the scoring at 2:32 when Oliver Moore broke up the middle off a nice feed from Quinn Finley and beat Tyler Muszelik from out in front. USA White’s Cutter Gauthier scored off a faceoff win from Will Smith at 4:27 to tie the game before Zeev Buium slapped one home from between the circles after a nifty feed from Gabe Perreault from below the goal line. The teams combined for 33 shots on goal in the first 20 minutes, including 20 from USA White.
USA White scored the only three goals of the middle frame. Gabe Perrault drove the net and found the back of the net after a turnover at 6:20 to make it 3-1. Jimmy Snuggerud then struck at 12:26 from the side of the right circle with Will Smith and Cutter Gauthier contributing assists on the play. Cole Knuble tipped in a shot from Drew Fortescuse with 1:38 to play to make it 5-1 after 40 minutes.
Each team scored twice in the third, with Cole Eiserman and Cole Knuble tallying for USA White and Isaac Howard and Quinn Finley tallying for USA Blue. Shots on goal in the game favored USA Blue by a 38-37 count.
Tyler Muszelik of USA White made 15 saves in the first half of the game before yielding to Hampton Slukynsky who had 20 stops. Andrew Oke played the first two periods for USA Blue and had 24 saves, while Jacob Fowler played the third period and made six stops.
BŘECLAV, Czechia – Trevor Connelly (Tustin, Calif.) tallied a hat trick as the U.S. Under-18 Men’s Select Team skated past Germany, 8-1, in their final preliminary round match of the 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup at FOSFA Arena Břeclav on Wednesday.
“I thought the guys controlled the game well,” said Luke Strand (Eau Claire, Wis.), head coach of the U.S Under-18 Men’s Select Team. “It’s not an easy one when the score is out of hand. As far as Trevor, even off the score sheet he effects the game almost every shift. He complements the team very well, he gives us energy and stability.”
With the victory, Team USA improves to 2-0-0-1 (W-OTW-OTL-L) in the tournament.
Connelly gave Team USA an early lead with a power-play goal at 1:43 in the first period. Ryker Lee (Wilmette, Ill.) got possession of the puck off a neutral zone face-off and chipped it back to William Felicio(Holden, Mass.) who hit Connelly with a pass heading up the ice. Connelly sped through the offensive zone before tucking the puck past Germany’s goaltender.
Aidan Park (Playa Vista, Calif.) scored shorthanded at 11:38 in the first period to extend the U.S lead. Goaltender Caleb Heil (Victoria, Minn.) drew an assist on the play, clearing the puck from behind the net for JJ Monteiro (Hudson, Mass.). He beat a German defender to the puck and threaded a pass to Park in the slot.
GAME PHOTOS
Will Zellers (Maple Grove, Minn.) added to the tally minutes later after the picked the puck off a German defenseman behind the net and wacked it into the goal.
Team USA took a 4-0 lead in the final minutes of the first period when Felicio tipped a shot from Lee.
Zellers netted his second goal of the game at 15:22 in the second period after Colin Frank(Ladera Ranch, Calif.) stole the puck from a German skater. He fed a pass to Zellers in the slot to one-time into the net.
Alex Bales (East Amherst, N.Y.) added a goal on the power play at 17:24 in the second period, assisted by Finn McLaughlin (Arlington Heights, Ill.).
Germany got on the board with 1:26 remaining in the middle frame when Nicolas Biggins lobbed a wrist shot from the point.
Connelly scored a breakaway goal for his second tally of the game at 4:49 in the third period, assisted by Park. He completed the hat trick in the third period with a goal from the edge of the crease for a final score of 8-1.
NOTES: Trevor Connelly (Tustin, Calif.) was named Team USA’s player of the game…Team USA’s next opponent will be determined following the conclusion of preliminary round play.
Plymouth, Mich. – Day two of games from the 2023 World Junior Summer Showcase took place here tonight at USA Hockey Arena with USA Blue earning a 4-1 win over Finland and USA White completing the sweep with a 10-1 victory over Sweden.
The event serves as an evaluation for athletes seeking to make their respective national teams for the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship, set for Dec. 26, 2023 – Jan. 5, 2024, in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Below are brief recaps from today’s games.
USA Blue 4, Finland 1
USA Blue jumped out to a 2-0 lead after the opening period with Paul Fischer scoring from three feet above the left circle at 6:38 and Gavin Brindley banging one home from the top of the crease just 1:20 later. Jacob Fowler made eight saves in goal for the U.S., with a stop on Tommi Mannisto from the bottom of the right circle among his best.
Gabe Perreault staked the U.S. to a 3-0 advantage with a power play marker at 7:11 of the second period off a feed from Will Smith. Lenni Hameenaho got Finland on the board at 8:16 before the U.S. re-gained its three-goal advantage when Danny Nelson put one in from the goal mouth with James Hagens earning an assist on the play.
The third period included seven of the game’s 10 minor penalties, but no scoring. Fowler stopped the three shots he faced in the period and picked up the win with 17 saves in 60 minutes of action. The U.S. outshot Finland, 24-18.
GAME PHOTOS
USA White 10, Sweden 1
In the second game, USA White had a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes. Ryan Leonard and Rutger McGroarty combined on an odd-man rush at 8:22, with McGroarty showing great patience and delivering a perfect cross-ice pass from the bottom of the left circle to Leonard who put home his first goal of the Showcase. The other marker in the period came with 1:37 left when William Whitelaw wristed one home after a feed from Lane Hutson.
The U.S. put up the first four goals of the middle frame and led 6-1 after two periods. Eric Pohlkamp scored after a faceoff win by Frank Nazar at 4:58 to make it 3-0. Nazar had the puck deflect off his skate and in with the U.S. on the power play at 7:38 for the first of his four goals on the night, then took a drop pass from Isaac Howard at 11:35 and fired one into the back of the net from the left circle. Hutson came out from behind the net and put home the sixth U.S. goal while on the power play at 13:42, with Jimmy Snuggerud and McGroarty drawing assists. Anton Johansson scored from the high slot on a five-on-three power play at 17:42 for what would be Sweden’s lone goal of the contest.
Cutter Gauthier and Nazar both scored twice in the third to account for the 10-1 final. All total, 13 different players put up points in the contest for the U.S., which outshot Sweden by a 36-23 count.
Trey Augustine played the first two periods and had 13 saves in picking up the win. Hampton Slukynsky, who had an assist in the contest, stopped all nine shots he faced in the final 20 minutes.
GAME PHOTOS
Games Continue Wednesday
Game action in the World Junior Summer Showcase resumes on Wednesday (August 2) with Sweden facing Finland at 1 p.m. ET followed by the USA White vs. USA Blue matchup at 4 p.m. Tickets are available online here or at the USA Hockey Arena box office. All games from the WJSS are streamed live on USAHockeyTV.com.
BŘECLAV, Czechia – The U.S Under-18 Men’s Select Team fell 7-2 to Czechia in the opening match of the 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup at FOSFA Arena Břeclav on Monday.
Czechia got on the board first at 10:28 of the first period when Adam Titlbach fired a wrist shot past goaltender Caleb Heil (Victoria, Minn.) from the slot.
Team USA successfully killed off two penalties that resulted in a 5-on-3 advantage for Czechiain the first period.
The U.S evened the score at one with a power-play goal from Will Zellers (Maple Grove, Minn.)at 12:08 in the second period. Trevor Connelly (Tustin, Calif.) skated the puck through the top of the zone before threading a pass to Zellers on the edge of the crease to slide past Czechia’s goaltender.
Czechia responded with two quick goals after a pair of U.S penalties resulted in a 5-on-3 advantage. Theo Kiss tapped in a rebound at 12:35 in the second period. A minute later, Alex Miroslav Zalešák scored on a cross-crease pass to give Czechia a 3-1 lead.
With 20 seconds remaining in the middle frame, Eero Butella (Chicago, Ill.) fired a wrist shot from the slot and beat Czechia’s goaltender glove-side to put Team USA within one heading into the final period. Connelly and Mac Swanson (Anchorage, Alaska) drew assists on the play.
Czechia restored their two-goal lead 3:40 into the third period when Samuel Drančák scored on a two-on-one play.
Titlbach then notched his second goal of the game less than two minutes later to give Czechia a 5-2 lead.
Czechia added two more goals in the final period to bring the final score to 7-2.
NOTES: Mac Swanson (Anchorage, Alaska) was named Team USA’s player of the game… Team USA is back in action against Sweden on Tuesday, Aug. 1st, at 9:30 a.m. ET on NHL Network.
