COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Twenty-one players who participated at the USA Hockey Boys Select 17 Player Development Camp have been chosen for the 2016 U.S. Under-18 Select Team that will compete Aug. 8-13 at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament in Breclav, Czech Republic, and Bratislava, Slovakia.
The week-long Boys Select 17 Player Development Camp concluded today at the Northtown Center in Williamsville, New York, with its annual all-star game and Hlinka Tournament roster selection.
The 2016 U.S. Under-18 Select Team features 10 players who helped the U.S. Under-17 Select Team win the 2015 Under-17 Five Nations Tournament, held last summer in Arosa, Switzerland. They include Sasha Chmelevski (Northville, Mich.), Joey Keane (Homer Glen, Ill.), Ivan Lodnia (Novi, Mich.), Brannon McManus (Newport Beach, Calif.), Mick Messner (Madison, Wisc.), Tommy Miller (West Bloomfield, Mich.), Ben Mirageas (Newburyport, Mass.), Clayton Phillips (Edina, Minn.), Cayden Primeau (Voorhees, N.J.) and Reilly Walsh (Andover, N.H.).
Clark Donatelli (Providence, R.I.) will serve as head coach of the 2016 U.S. Under-18 Select Team. His assistant coaches will be Pat Boller (Queens, N.Y.), Dave Lassonde (Rochester, N.H.) and Phil Osaer (Livonia, Mich.).
The Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup is an annual event held each August for national under-18 teams from around the world. Named for one of the first Czech hockey stars, the tournament began in 1991 as a three-team showcase. Between 1997 and 2002, the format shifted to the current eight-team tournament. It was then named after Hlinka in 2007, three years after his passing.
NOTES: The 2016 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup will include teams from Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, Russia, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States … Team USA has finished in the top three of the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup 12 times since the tournament began in 1991. The U.S. earned first place in 2003, second on eight occasions (1993, 1994, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2006, 2010, 2013) and third three times (1991, 1995, 2014) … The 21 players on the roster represent 11 different states. Michigan leads the pack with five representatives, Minnesota has four, Illinois and Massachusetts have two each … The annual USA Hockey Boys Select 17 Player Development Camp provides top young players with on- and off-ice training and instruction as well as the opportunity to compete at the national level against other top players from their age group.
