BONNYVILLE, Alta. – Nine different players netted goals to lead the U.S. Junior Select Team to a 9-0 victory over Switzerland tonight in the quarterfinals of the World Junior A Challenge in Bonnyville, Alberta.
“It was a total team effort in all three facets of the game,” said Jay Varady, head coach of the 2016 U.S. Junior Select Team. “I liked our energy from the moment the puck dropped. This team is peaking at the right time heading into tomorrow’s semifinal matchup.”
Team USA (2-0-0-1, W-OTW-OTL-L) advances to the semifinal round tomorrow (Dec. 15), where it will face Russia at 5:30 p.m. ET. The game will be streamed live on HockeyTV.com, with live updates on Twitter @USAHockeyScores.
The U.S. took control early, scoring four times in the first period while piling up an 18-2 edge in shots. Clayton Phillips (Edina, Minn.) opened the scoring for Team USA with a slap shot from the point at 2:41. Zach Solow (Naples, Fla.) doubled the U.S. lead with a shot from the top of the right circle at 7:28 of the frame.
Just over five minutes after Solow’s tally, Hank Crone (Cedar Hill, Texas) staked the U.S. to a 3-0 advantage when he collected a loose puck from the side of the net and beat Swiss netminder Beat Trudel from an odd-angle.
Brannon McManus (Huntington Beach, Calif.) one-timed a feed from Solow into the back of the net with 3:38 left in the stanza to give Team USA a 4-0 lead entering the first intermission.
Alex Green (Chicago, Ill.) netted a breakaway goal :54 into the second period, and Ethen Frank (Papillion, Neb.) and Tarek Baker (Verona, Wis.) tallied 3:50 apart in the middle of the frame to give the U.S. a 7-0 lead after 40 minutes.
Alex Limoges (Winchester, Va.) and Mick Messner (Madison, Wis.) added third-period markers to account for the 9-0 final.
Cayden Primeau (Voorhees, N.J.) finished with 15 saves to earn the shutout victory for the U.S.
2016 World Junior A Challenge • Team USA Schedule
Dec. 11-17 – Bonnyville, Alberta – R.J. Lalonde Arena
Date Opponent Time (ET)/Result
Broadcast Info
Mon., Dec. 12 Czech Republic L, 0-1 HockeyTV
Tues., Dec. 13 Canada East W, 3-1 HockeyTV
Wed., Dec. 14 Switzerland (Quarterfinals) W, 9-0 HockeyTV
Thurs., Dec. 15 Russia (Semifinals) 5:30 p.m. HockeyTV
Sat., Dec. 17 Championship Game 7:00 p.m. TBD
NOTES: Zach Solow was named U.S. Player of the Game … The U.S. outshot Switzerland 35-15, finished 2-for-2 on the power play and 4-for-4 on the penalty kill … For complete game stats, click here … The World Junior A Challenge is in its eleventh year, and the U.S. is competing for the tenth time … All U.S. players currently play in the United States Hockey League, the lone Tier I junior hockey league in the United States. For the full U.S. roster, click here … For complete coverage of Team USA at the World Junior A Challenge, click here … The 2016 field includes Canada East, Canada West, Czech Republic, Russia, Switzerland and the United States … Team USA has captured the World Junior A Challenge title six times (2008-10, 2012-14).
