FRISCO, Texas – The United States Under-17 Select Team improved to 3-0-0-0 (W-OTW-OTL-L) with a 6-1 victory over the Czech Republic here tonight at the Dr Pepper StarCenter. With the win, the U.S. clinched first place at the 2016 Under-17 Five Nations Tournament, regardless of the outcome of its final game in the event tomorrow (Aug. 13) against Germany.
“I’m really proud of this team,” said Cory Laylin (St. Michael, Minn.), head coach of the 2016 U.S. Under-17 Select Team. “We worked really hard as a group. Our goaltending was great. We made great plays defensively. I was really happy with our team’s effort across the board tonight.”
Devlin McCabe (North Oaks, Mich.) gave the U.S. a 1-0 lead 1:25 into the game when his shot found its way through a pair of Czech defenders and past goaltender Lukas Dostal. The Czechs responded with a goal from Adam Gajarsky at 13:07 of the frame to tie the game, 1-1, after one period.
The U.S. took control of the game with three second-period goals, beginning when Matt Gould (Weymouth, Mass.) collected the rebound from Jack Randl’s (Carpentersville, Ill.) shot and fired the puck past Dostal to make it 2-1 6:54 into the frame. Ryan Savage (Scottsdale, Ariz.) added a power-play goal at 15:23 of the period on a nice passing play from TJ Walsh (Shrewsbury, Mass.) and Jacob Semik (Canton, Mich.) and just :28 later, Stanislav Demin (Cypress, Calif.) increased the U.S. advantage to 4-1 heading into the second intermission.
Gavin Hain (Grand Rapids, Minn.) and Blake McLaughlin (Grand Rapids, Minn.) added third-period markers to account for the 6-1 final. McLaughlin leads the tournament with five goals.
John Malone (Madison, N.J.), Jace Foskey (Southlake, Texas) and McCabe also added assists for Team USA.
Drew DeRidder (Fenton, Mich) finished with 25 stops for the U.S. in the victory. He leads the tournament with a .940 save percentage.
The U.S. will play its final game in the 2016 Under-17 Four Nations Tournament tomorrow (Aug. 13) against Germany at 8:15 p.m. ET. All games of the event can be seen live on FASTHockey.com.
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RECAP: Switzerland 5, Germany 3
Switzerland topped Germany, 5-3, to open day four action in the 2016 Under-17 Five Nations Tournament at the Dr Pepper StarCenter in Frisco, Texas.
Erik Betzold gave the Germans an early 1-0 lead with a goal 2:56 into the game. Mika Kiener tied the game, 1-1, for the Swiss on a breakaway goal late in the period.
Stephane Patry and Tim Bernie netted goals for Switzerland at 3:38 and 12:48 of the second period, but then German forward Dominik Bokk scored late in the frame to cut Germany’s deficit to 3-2 after two periods.
Jeremi Gerber extended the Swiss lead to 4-2 just 3:30 into the final period before Edwin Schitz scored at 9:30 to bring Germany back within one, 4-3. However, Gian-Marco Wetter sealed the victory for Switzerland with an empty-net goal with just 6 seconds remaining.
Swiss goaltender Akira Schmid stopped 12 of 15 shots in the victory. Hendrik Hane made 38 saves for Germany.
Both teams finish play tomorrow (Aug. 13) as Switzerland takes on Slovakia at 4:30 p.m. ET and Germany faces the United States at 8:15 p.m. ET.
NOTES: For the fifth year in a row, Team USA placed among the top two teams at the Under-17 Five Nations Tournament … The U.S. outshot the Czech Republic 45-26 in the contest … In addition to the United States, the 2016 Under-17 Five Nations Tournament will also include teams from Switzerland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Germany … For complete Under-17 Five Nations tournament coverage, click here. … Ann Arbor, Michigan, was the last U.S. city to host the Under-17 Five Nations Tournament (2011) … The Dr Pepper StarCenter Arena, host site for the 2016 Under-17 Five Nations Tournament, serves as the practice facility for the National Hockey League’s Dallas Stars.
