COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — USA Hockey crowned its first national champions of 2017 today, as Bayard Rustin High School (West Chester, Pennsylvania) and Frisco (Frisco, Texas) both won championship games to earn top honors at the USA Hockey High School National Championships in suburban Cleveland, Ohio.
Pure Division Recap:
In the Pure Division championship game, Bayard Rustin survived a late charge from California’s Santa Margarita Catholic High School to earn a 4-3 victory. Four different goal-scorers help pace the Knights, including Penney Cade, who also added two assists. Goaltender Jason Grande made 37 saves to earn his fourth victory of the tournament.
Bayard Rustin’s victory avenged an earlier 3-0 pool-play loss to Santa Margarita and produced the 13th USA Hockey national championship overall for a Pennsylvania-based team, the most recent coming last season when the Pittsburgh Pens Elite won USA Hockey’s Youth Tier I 18U title.
Bayard Rustin is the second Pennsylvania-based team to win USA Hockey’s High School national championship, following Bethel Park, which won the title in 2014.
The High School Pure Division is comprised of teams that draw their players from a single school.
Combined Division Recap:
Frisco completed an undefeated 6-0 run through the tournament to claim the Combined Division championship, topping Missoula (Montana) 5-0 in the finale. Frisco’s Jacob Plattner finished as the tournament’s third-leading scorer (5G, 4A in 6 GP) and goaltender James Gillilan turned in a 27-save shutout in the championship game to earn his tournament-leading fifth win.
Frisco’s victory produced the 11th USA Hockey national championship overall for a Texas-based team and the first for a Texas-based youth team since 2012 when the Dallas Oilers claimed USA Hockey’s Youth Tier II 18U 3A title.
The High School Combined Division is for teams comprised of players from two or more schools.
Nationals Overview:
In all, some 4,000 players will compete for American hockey top honors in the sled, youth, girls, high school, adult and women’s levels at 11 host sites across the United States between now and late April. Up next, the youth, girls and women’s, and sled USA Hockey National Championships begin Thursday.
USA Hockey, in conjunction with HockeyTV, will stream all the action online. Games are available live and on-demand by visiting USAHockey.HockeyTV.com, creating an account and purchasing a subscription.
Also of note for tournament coverage is the USA Hockey National Championships app. Available for both Apple and Android devices, the app provides access to news, scores and schedules, as well as photos and videos from fellow participants in the app social stream.
In addition to streaming and mobile coverage, USA Hockey will provide stories, scoring, stats, standings and photos from each of the games on Nationals.USAHockey.com. Fans can follow all of the action from each tournament on Twitter (@USAHockey), Facebook (facebook.com/USAHockey) and Instagram (@usahockey) with the #USAHNationals hashtag.
Notes: The 2017 USA Hockey Adult National Championships, sponsored by Labatt Blue, begin in late April for men and women. A USA Hockey Adult Hockey app, powered by Labatt Blue, is available for download on Apple and Android devices, providing news, scores and schedules, as well as photos and videos from fellow participants in the app social stream.
For more information, contact Jayson Hron ([email protected] / 719.538.1159)
2017 USA Hockey National Championships
Date Classification
Host Site
March 30-April 3 High School Cleveland, Ohio
April 6-10 Youth Tier I 14U Scottsdale, Arizona
April 6-10 Youth Tier I 15-year-olds Scottsdale, Arizona
April 6-10 Youth Tier I 16U, 18U
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
April 6-10 Girls Tier I Rochester/Macomb, Michigan
April 6-9 Women’s B and C Rochester/Macomb, Michigan
April 6-10 Girls Tier II Troy, Michigan
April 6-10 Youth Tier II 14U Coral Springs, Florida
April 6-10 Youth Tier II 16U Frisco, Texas
April 6-10 Youth Tier II 18U Lansing, Michigan
April 6-9 Sled San Jose, California
2017 USA Hockey Adult National Championships, Sponsored by Labatt Blue
Date Classification Host Site
April 20-23 Adult Rec Men* Wesley Chapel, Florida
April 27-30 Adult Rec Women* Ellenton, Florida
* No streaming available
