BONNYVILLE, Alta. – The United States Junior Select Team begins its quest for a World Junior A Challenge title Sunday (Dec. 9) in Bonnyville, Alberta, when it faces Canada West at R.J. Lalonde Arena at 7 p.m. MT.
The World Junior A Challenge is an annual best-on-best tournament held in December showcasing international Junior A talent. Team USA’s roster is comprised of 22 players that play in the United States Hockey League, the lone Tier I junior league in the U.S.
The five-team tournament — which along with the U.S. and Canada West includes Canada East, the Czech Republic and Russia — runs through Dec. 16.
Team USA will play a pre-tournament game on Friday (Dec. 7) against Canada East in preparation for the competition.
Team USA has won the World Junior A Challenge seven times in 12 appearances (2008-10, 2012-14, 2016) and finished among the top two in five of the past six years.
For complete 2018 World Junior A Challenge coverage from USA Hockey, click here.
Notes: Anthony Noreen (Kearney, Neb.) is the head coach of the U.S. Junior Select Team. Noreen is head coach of the USHL’s Tri-City Storm. Mark Abalan (Sioux City, Iowa/Sioux City Musketeers), Shane Fukushima (Waterloo, Iowa/Waterloo Black Hawks) and David Wilkie (Omaha, Neb./Omaha Lancers) are serving as assistant coaches … USA Hockey’s director of junior hockey Marc Boxer (Colorado Springs, Colo.) is serving as general manager … The 2018 field includes Canada East, Canada West, the Czech Republic, Russia and the United States … HockeyTV is the streaming home of the World Junior A Challenge.
