COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – USA Hockey announced today its initial roster for the 2018 IIHF Men’s World Championship. The 23 players named to the U.S. Men’s National Team will represent the United States from May 4-20 in Copenhagen and Herning, Denmark.
Patrick Kane (Buffalo, N.Y.), a three-time Stanley Cup champion with the Chicago Blackhawks who has twice represented the U.S. in the Olympic Winter Games (2010, 2014), including helping Team USA to a silver medal in 2010, was named captain of the U.S. squad on April 9.
Joining Kane are three players who helped the U.S. to a bronze medal at the 2015 IIHF Men’s World Championship in Ostrava and Prague, Czech Republic, including forwards Dylan Larkin (Waterford, Mich./Detroit Red Wings) and Anders Lee (Edina, Minn./New York Islanders) and defenseman Connor Murphy (Dublin, Ohio/Chicago Blackhawks). The trio, along with forward Johnny Gaudreau (Salem, N.J./Calgary Flames), all skated for 2018 U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Jeff Blashill (Sault Ste. Marie/Detroit Red Wings) at last year’s IIHF Men’s World Championship in Cologne, Germany, and Paris, France.
For the completer roster, which includes three goaltenders, seven defensemen and 13 forwards, click here.
Among the 23 players named to the 2018 U.S. Men’s National Team, 14 have skated for a U.S. national team and have combined to win 24 medals in IIHF World Championship play.
The U.S. will face host Denmark on Tuesday, May 1, in its lone exhibition game prior to the 2018 IIHF Men’s World Championship. Puck drop is set for 8:30 p.m. local time (2:30 p.m. ET) at KVIK Hockey Arena in Herning, Denmark. Team USA begins tournament play on Thursday, May 4, against rival Canada at 4:15 p.m. local time (10:15 a.m. ET) at Jyske Bank Boxen in Herning. The game will be televised live on NHL Network.
Team USA Schedule
2018 IIHF Men’s World Championship
Date Opponent Round Location Time (Local/ET)
May 1 Denmark Exhibition Herning, Denmark 8:30 p.m./2:30 p.m.
May 4 Canada Preliminary Herning, Denmark 4:15 p.m./10:15 a.m.
May 5 Denmark Preliminary Herning, Denmark 8:15 p.m./2:15 p.m.
May 7 Germany Preliminary Herning, Denmark 4:15 p.m./10:15 a.m.
May 10 Latvia Preliminary Herning, Denmark 4:15 p.m./10:15 a.m.
May 11 Korea Preliminary Herning, Denmark 8:15 p.m./2:15 p.m.
May 13 Norway Preliminary Herning, Denmark 4:15 p.m./10:15 a.m.
May 15 Finland Preliminary Herning, Denmark 12:15 p.m./6:15 a.m.
May 17 TBD Quarterfinals TBD TBD
May 19 TBD Semifinals Copenhagen, Denmark 3:15 p.m./9:15 a.m.
7:15 p.m./1:15 p.m.
May 20 TBD Bronze-Medal Game Copenhagen, Denmark 3:45 p.m./9:45 a.m.
May 20 TBD Gold-Medal Game Copenhagen, Denmark 8:15 p.m./2:15 p.m.
NOTES: NHL Network is the exclusive U.S. TV home of the IIHF Men’s World Championship … A total of 12 states are represented on the 2018 U.S. Men’s National Team roster, including Michigan (4), Minnesota (4), Massachusetts (3), New York (3), Connecticut (2), Florida (1), Illinois (1), New Jersey (1), Ohio (1), Texas (1), Wisconsin (1) and Washington (1) … Eleven NCAA colleges are represented, including five players from Boston College, the most of any college … A total of 19 players have ties to USA Hockey junior leagues, including 18 who spent time in the United States Hockey League, three who skated in the North American Hockey League and one who played in the Eastern Junior Hockey League. Of those 19 players, eight were members of USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program … Each team in the IIHF Men’s World Championship may name 25 players to its official roster, leaving the U.S. two available roster spots … The staff and players of the 2018 U.S. Men’s National Team are selected by Bill Zito (Columbus Blue Jackets), general manager of the 2018 U.S. Men’s National Team along with members of the U.S. Men’s National Team Advisory Group that includes Stan Bowman (Chicago Blackhawks), David Poile (Nashville Predators), Ray Shero (New Jersey Devils), Dale Tallon (Florida Panthers), and Jeff Gorton (New York Rangers) … For complete coverage of the U.S. Men’s National Team, visit teamusa.usahockey.com/2018mensworlds … The official online home of the 2018 IIHF Men’s World Championship is 2018.IIHFWorlds.com … The U.S. has finished in the top four of the world championship in three of the last five years … USA Hockey’s international council, chaired by Gavin Regan (Potsdam, N.Y.), has oversight responsibilities for all U.S. national teams.
