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USA Adds Three to Preliminary Roster + WJC Questions Answered + Sweet Goal

December 10, 2013, 2:26 PM ET [15 Comments]
Julie Robenhymer
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USA Hockey added three players to their National Junior Team preliminary roster today...Vince Hinostroza, Zach Stepan and Jacob Slavin.

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I answered some questions about USA Hockey's National Junior Team heading to the World Junior Championship in Malmo for my friends at hockeysverige.se and thought I'd share them with you as well....

Q: After last year's success, the U.S. will have to do without three of their top players this year (Trouba, Jones and Galchenyuk). Do you feel that the team have enough fire power to be a contender even without these stars? If so, why?

A: While Team USA would certainly be a better team with Seth Jones, Jacob Trouba and Alex Galchenyuk, who are currently playing in the NHL - and don't forget Pat Sieloff, who was the odds on favorite to captain this team but hasn't played since he broke his jaw in October and has been dealing with an infection the past two months - Team USA still boasts a lot of depth and versatility, which were two very big ingredients to last year's gold medal team. Having this depth and versatility is a big advantage in a two-week tournament such as the World Junior Championship because it allows you to easily shake things up if you need a spark and fill holes in case there's an injury. USA Hockey never likes to label their lines because they prefer a balanced, consistent offensive threat with speed, skill, size and sandpaper on every line including the blue line and this year's team is built with that blueprint as well.

Q: After last year's success, the U.S. will have to do without three of their top players this year (Trouba, Jones and Galchenyuk). Do you feel that the team have enough fire power to be a contender even without these stars? If so, why?

A: Team USA's scoring will be done by committee yet again this year with Riley Barber hopefully leading the way. For the most part USA's offense won't be off the rush, their goals will be scored between the dots and below the hashmarks. This will be a team that goes to the dirty areas, wins puck battles and earns every inch of ice. They'll need contributions from everyone but look for Ryan Hartman, Nic Kerdiles, Ryan Fitzgerald and Jack Eichel (if he makes the team as the only underage player) to be the driving force up front. On the back end Matt Grzelcyk, who was the last cut from last year's team, Will Butcher and Anthony DeAngelo (assuming both make the team) will run the transition game and provide some offense from the blue line.

Q: John Gibson was tremendous between the pipes last year. Who will fill the void this year, and how has he been this season?

A: Although unconfirmed, I'll be surprised if Jon Gillies isn't the main man between the pipes for Team USA in Malmo. They're bringing three goalies - just like they did last year - and I expect Thatcher Demko to serve as back up to prepare him for the starting role next year with Anthony Stolarz as the emergency back up and carrying a large role during practices. Gillies played 35 games for Providence College last season with a 2.08 GAA and 0.931 save percentage and has improved on those numbers this year with a 1.88 GAA and 0.941 save percentage in 15 games so far with a 10-1-3 record. He's big (6'5, 215), athletic and loves playing under pressure. Goaltending should not be a problem for Team USA.

Q: A lot of Swedes are obviously curious about Henrik Samuelsson due to his Swedish background. What's his role on the team going to be?

A: Henrik Samuelsson has been at the evaluation camp in Lake Placid the past two summers and didn't really separate himself from the pack either time, but he's found a lot of success with the Edmonton Oil Kings as a set-up man earning more than a point per game over the past two years and there is no doubt that he wants to be on this team. I fully expect him to fill any role he's given during the training camp that starts this weekend in Minneapolis. Block shots on the penalty kill, screen the goalie and tip pucks in on the power play, wear down opponents with physical play along the boards...he will do anything head coach Don Lucia asks of him to be on this team. Anything. His versatility will definitely work in his favor.

Q: Finally, what does your gut tell you about this year's edition of the U.S. team?

A: My gut says that this will once again be a hard working team built from the goal line out that forces you to play a physically demanding game. Like we saw last year, in Team USA's preliminary round losses to Canada and Russia, you might beat them, but it won't be easy. Lucia demands a lot from his players and I fully expect this group of players to rise to the challenge. Winning this tournament is often a matter of chance, but Team USA is capable of pulling off a repeat. I fully expect them to come home with a medal. Color to be determined.

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Watch this slick goal by RPI senior Brock Higgs who goes all Pavel Datsyuk on us against Princeton this past weekend...picks someone's pocket, dekes through the defense and goes five-hole to give the Engineers a 5-2 lead in the 2nd period.




Julie
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