Few notes from today's game…
- JT Miller (NTDP/Plymouth/NYR) had two goals today, one on the power play, both a result of hard-nosed play and attacking the net. Something he was very happy about considering his game last night. When I told him I wasn't here last night he replied, "Good, because I played awful. I'm glad you didn't see that. The coaches called us out last night saying that we were playing to survive and not to win and I definitely think I fell into that category. Tonight was a different story."
- Last year, I was surprised TJ Tynan (Notre Dame/CBJ)wasn't invited to USA's selection camp in Troy considering his fast start with Notre Dame, so I'm happy to not only see him here, but to see him taking advantage of the opportunity. He is so crafty with the puck and it just comes to naturally to him. It's also great to see him proving himself physically. He's not looking to take on the world, but he's willing to stand his ground and win one-on-one battles along the boards to maintain puck possession. He's definitely getting after it and was rewarded tonight with a beautiful move to fake out the goalie and fire it past him.
- Jarred Knight (London/BOS), who would like everyone to
follow him on twitter was paying the physical price every way possible. He was blocking shots and smashing people into the boards with gusto. When I asked him about it, he said he'd do anything that needed doing to make this team. So far, he's getting an A for effort from me.
- Tyler Biggs (NTDP/Miami/TOR) came out hot from the drop of the puck. Apparently, his line was less than spectacular yesterday and as he explained, "Sometimes it takes playing with a physical edge to get your game back on track and start generating offensive opportunities. That's what I was trying to do." No points for his line tonight, but he was definitely putting it all on the line.
- It's not often Team USA is in a position where it is able to return both goaltenders in this tournament, but that's exactly where they find themselves this year with Jack Campbell and Andy Iles both eligible and guys like John Gibson breathing down their neck. Barring injury, this will be a hotly contested race come December.
- Guest coach Dan Bylsma (PIT) was playing to win today. With his team down by three, he pulled the goalie with 6 seconds left in the second and then again, when down by one, with 90 seconds left in the 3rd. A scout commented it was the difference between a college coach and an NHL coach. I thought it was more like having dinner on the line, but what do I know.
- Kevin Gravel (SCSU/LAK) is a BAMF. Hope to see more of that tomorrow.
- I was skeptical, but Seth Jones (NTDP/DE2013) has a legit shot at making this team and it's all because of his size. Despite being just 16 (17 in October), he's 6'3, 200 and doesn't shy away from using it. I was happy to see him get in on the scoring during the power play as Miller tipped in one of his slapshots from the point. Very eager to see him again tomorrow.
- In all, I'm most surprised at how invisible the returning 6 skaters (Jason Zucker sat out tonight's festivities after getting hit in the foot with a puck) were compared to the guys looking to unseat them. The boys are bringing it! Knight commented at how intense these scrimmages were. he said that after one Grade A scoring opportunity off the rush he skated back past the bench and said the chirps were world class. Miller also commented that he felt crowded out on the ice with so many highly skilled guys there wasn't a lot of room, but that the experience makes all of them better and you just need to raise your game if you want to differentiate yourself and prove that you can still produce under those circumstances.
- Another surprising factor for the guys is that there are no workouts. All they're doing is playing hockey. This is a true evaluation camp, not a development camp. As Miller said, "They don't want to know how much we can lift. They want to see us play hockey…so, we're playing hockey." That leads to a LOT of downtime, but the guys are thankful for it. Many of them commented on how tired they were because of how competitive things were on the ice and were happy to be able to take lengthy naps because they need it.
Games get going again tomorrow at 1pm ET as Team Blue takes on Sweden while Team White will face Finland at 4pm ET. I'll be tweeting updates, if you are so inclined to
follow along….
Julie
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