HELSINKI, Finland – Four different U.S. players scored and Brandon Halverson (Traverse City, Mich./Sault Ste. Marie) made 16 saves as the U.S. National Junior Team defeated Denmark, 4-1, in its final preliminary round game at the 2016 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship in Helsinki, Finland.
With the win, Team USA secured second place in Group A and will play its quarterfinal game on Jan. 2 against the third-place team (either Czech Republic or Finland) in Group B.
“It wasn’t the start we wanted, but I’m happy with the way we turned things around,” said Ron Wilson, head coach of the 2016 U.S. National Junior Team. “Our players should feel good about leaving this group with three wins. We’ll enjoy this tonight and then turn out attention to the quarterfinal.”
For complete recap, stat leaders, highlights, post-game comments and more, click here.
NOTES: Brandon Carlo (Colorado Springs, Colo./Tri-City) was named the U.S. Player of the Game … Team USA outshot Denmark, 44-17 … Team USA improved to 13-1-1-9-1 (W-OTW-OTL-L-T) in New Year’s Eve contests and have outscored opponents 101-81 during that span … The U.S. is 3-0-0-1 (W-OTW-OTL-L) at the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championship … Auston Matthews (Scottsdale, Ariz./Zurich) leads the tournament in goals (4) and ranks second in points (8) … For more information on the 2016 U.S. National Junior Team, including a full roster, click here … Use the hashtag #USAWJC on Twitter to join the conversation about the U.S. National Junior Team … The U.S. is competing in Group A with Canada, Denmark, Sweden and Switzerland … All U.S. games will be broadcast live on NHL Network.
