BUFFALO, N.Y. – Declan Farmer (Tampa, Fla.) collected four points and Bo Reichenbach (Billings, Mont.) stopped all five shots he faced as the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team blanked Team Pan-Pacific, 8-0, here tonight at the 2016 IPC Sled Hockey Pan-Pacific Championship.
“We didn’t get off to the start we wanted, but I was pleased with the way we responded,” said Jeff Sauer, head coach of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team. “We’ll focus on the positives as we turn our attention to tomorrow’s game against Canada.”
The U.S. opened the scoring just 2:57 into the game when Josh Sweeney (Portland, Ore.) connected on the power play. After a flurry of chances went wide, Josh Pauls (Green Brook, N.J.) one-timed a loose puck between the hash marks that Sweeney redirected past Team Pan-Pacific goaltender Kyle Huckaby.
Nikko Landeros (Johnstown, Colo.) doubled Team USA’s lead with :14 remaining in the opening period when he beat Huckaby to a loose puck at the top of the circle and tapped the puck into the open net.
Less than a minute into the second stanza, Roybal tallied to give the U.S. a 3-0 lead. The play started when Kevin McKee (Chicago, Ill.) picked up the puck from Farmer, drove to the slot and sent a behind-the-sled pass to Roybal at the left post for a tap-in goal.
With 2:20 left in the period, Farmer collected a pass from McKee at the hash marks and tucked a wrist shot under the crossbar to make it 4-0. Just :40 later, Adam Page (Lancaster, N.Y.) gave the U.S. a 5-0 lead with Sweeney and Pauls earning the assists.
Farmer collected his second of the night three minutes into the final frame when he took a pass from Roybal, entered the zone and fired a shot from below the left face-off dot that beat Team Pan-Pacific goaltender Shinobu Fukushima. Roybal and Page each tallied their second goals of the night in the final two minutes of play to account for the 8-0 final.
Reichenbach, making his first start for the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team, earned his first win and shutout in the victory.
The U.S. National Sled Hockey Team returns to action tomorrow (March 30) to face Canada at 7p.m. ET at HARBORCENTER. Tickets are $5 and available either at the door or online here.
NOTES: Declan Farmer (Tampa, Fla.) was name the U.S. Player of the Game … Team USA outshot Team Pan-Pacific, 19-5. The U.S. was 1-for-3 on the power-play and 1-for-1 on the penalty kill. For complete game stats, click here … The tournament is being streamed live at Paralympic.org/Buffalo-2016 … For more tournament information, including live stats and photos, click here … Bo Reichenbach (Billings, Mont.) has yet to allow a goal in over 67 minutes of play this season … To get additional information on the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team, click here … Follow all U.S. games during the IPC Sled Hockey Pan-Pacific Championship via Twitter by using @USAHockey and @USAHockeyScores, and join the conversation by using the hashtag #Buffalo2016 … Dan Brennan (Colorado Springs, Colo.), director of sled and inline national teams for USA Hockey, is serving as the general manager of the 2016 U.S. National Sled Hockey Team … Jeff Sauer (Madison, Wis.), former men’s ice hockey head coach at the University of Wisconsin, is in his fifth season as head coach of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team. Additional staff members include team physician Mike Uihlein (Grafton, Wis.), athletic trainer Mike Cortese (Boynton Beach, Fla.) and equipment manager Joel Isaacson (Houghton, Mich.).
2016 IPC Sled Hockey Pan-Pacific Championship • Team USA Schedule
March 29-April 2 • Buffalo, New York • HARBORCENTER
Date Opponent Time/Result
Tue., Mar. 29 Team Pan-Pacific W,8-0
Wed., Mar. 30 Canada 7:00 p.m.
Fri., Apr. 1 Korea 7:00 p.m.
Sat., Apr. 2 Third-Place Game 11:00 a.m.
Sat., Apr. 2 Championship Game 5:00 p.m.
