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Team USA tops Italy, 9-1, at 2017 Sled Worlds

By USAHockey.com, 04/13/17, 4:15PM EDT

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Team USA Farmer tallies three goals; U.S. faces Germany tomorrow 2 a.m. ET

Declan Farmer (Tampa, Fla.) scored three goals for the second straight game and 10 other players registered at least a point as the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team topped Italy, 9-1, in its second game of the 2017 Para Ice Hockey World Championship here in Gangneung, South Korea.

"I liked the way we started each period and how that carried us throughout the game," said Guy Gosselin, head coach of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team. "We were able to roll our lines and really give players a chance to shine. We'll rest tonight, take care of ourselves and be ready to go tomorrow against Germany."

Team USA (2-0-0-0/W-OTW-OTL-L) will face Germany tomorrow before enjoying a tournament rest day on Sunday (April 16). Puck drop is set for 3 p.m. local (2 a.m. ET) at Gangneung Hockey Centre and can be seen live on Gangneung2017.com.

Full release after the jump


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A three-goal first period started a minute into the game when Farmer collected a pass from Kevin McKee (Chicago, Ill.) at the hashmarks and fired a wrist shot into the top corner. Just :22 later, Josh Pauls (Green Brook, N.J.) beat Italian goaltender Gabriele Araudo with a wrist shot from the top left circle for his first goal of the tournament. Brody Roybal (Northlake, Ill.) then made it 3-0 at the 5:22 mark by tapping in a rebound off an initial shot from Farmer.

The U.S. then opened the second stanza with four goals in the first three minutes to extend its lead to 7-0. Billy Hanning (Festus, Mo.) started the scoring with a long-distance wrist shot from the left circle 1:01 into the frame before Adam Page (Lancaster, N.Y.) beat Araudo :30 later with a low blocker-side shot. 

At the 2:01 mark, Farmer tallied Team USA’s first power play goal of the tournament when he won the face-off to the left of circle and tucked a shot between Araudo and the post. Less than a minute later, Landeros’ wrist shot from the top of the slot sailed into the top of the goal to account for the 7-0 lead.

Italy’s Sandro Kalegaris scored at the 3:54 mark of the period to make it 7-1 when his wrist shot beat goaltender Steve Cash (Overland, Mo.).

Farmer completed his second hat trick in as many games just :14 into the final frame when he tapped home a pass from Roybal. Landeros then tallied his second goal of the game with 2:24 remaining to account for the 9-1 final.

NOTES: Declan Farmer (Tampa, Fla.) was named the U.S. Player of the Game ... The U.S. outshot Italy, 26-12, went 1-for-3 on the power play and 4-for-5 on the penalty kill. For complete statistics, click here ... Farmer set a new U.S. record for career points in world championship play with 24 (16-8), surpassing teammate Adam Page (10-12--22) ... Labatt USA is a proud sponsor of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team ... The 2017 IPC Sled Hockey World Championship is doubling as a test event for the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games and the top five teams will automatically qualify for the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games. ... Team USA, the tournament's defending champion, seeks back-to-back gold medals in the event for the second time (2009, 2012) ... Among the 17 players representing Team USA, 12 were members of the 2015 U.S. National Sled Hockey Team that won the 2015 IPC Sled Hockey World Championship. For the complete 2016-17 U.S. National Sled Hockey Team roster, click here ... Dan Brennan (Colorado Springs, Colo.), director of inline and sled hockey national teams for USA Hockey, is the general manager of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team. Joining national team head coach Guy Gosselin (Grafton, Wis.) behind the bench is assistant coach David Hoff (Bottineau, N.D.). Additional team staff members include athletic trainer Mike Cortese (Boynton Beach, Fla.), assistant coach Mike Sertich (Duluth, Minn.), equipment manager Joel Isaacson (Houghton, Mich.), and team physician Mike Uihlein (Grafton, Wis.). Cortese, Isaacson, and Uihlein have been staff members for the past four seasons.

U.S. Schedule

Date (U.S) Opponent Result U.S. Player of Game
April 12 Sweden W, 7-0 Brody Roybal
April 13 Italy W, 9-1 Declan Farmer
April 15 Germany W, 9-0 Josh Pauls
April 17 Canada W, 2-1 Kevin McKee
April 17 Norway W, 6-0 Tyler Carron
April 19 Korea W, 5-0 Jack Wallace
April 20 Canada
Gold-Medal Game
L, 1-4 Andy Yohe

TODAY’S GAME
Team USA faces off with Italy in its second game of the  2017 Para Sled Hockey World Championship here today in Gangneung, South Korea. Today’s game will be live streamed at Gangneung2017.com with live tweets available through @usahockey using the hashtag #SledWorlds.

USA VS. ITALY
The United States and Italy are meeting for the fifth time, with the U.S. claiming all four previous matchups. Most recently, the two teams met at the 2015 IPC Sled Hockey World Championship in Buffalo, New York, where Team USA shutout Italy, 7-0. Five different players scored, including current U.S. players Kevin McKee (Chicago, Ill.), Adam Page (Lancaster, N.Y.), Josh Pauls (Green Brook, N.J.) and Paul Schaus (Buffalo, N.Y.).

LAST GAME: USA 7, SWEDEN 0
Declan Farmer
(Tampa, Fla.), Kevin McKee (Chicago, Ill.) and Brody Roybal (Northlake, Ill.) each registered four points to lead Team USA past Sweden, 7-0. Goaltenders Steve Cash (Overland, Mo.) and Bo Reichenbach (Billings, Mont.) shared the shutout victory. 
    “The guys have been looking really well in practice and that showed here tonight,” said Guy Gosselin, head coach of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team. “There were a lot of positives, but we can always improve and that’s what we’ll look to do tomorrow against Italy."

SHATTERING RECORDS
With just one game played in the 2017 Para Sled Hockey World Championship, numerous records were broken while others are now being threatened. 
    Among world championship career recordsDeclan Farmer (Tampa, Fla.) now holds the record for most career goals by a U.S. player in world championship play after scoring three times yesterday. His 19 career world championship points also rank second all-time behind Adam Page (Lancaster, N.Y.), who holds the record with 20. In the assists category, Page is second all-time with 11, but Kevin McKee (Chicago, Ill.) and Brody Roybal (Northlake, Ill.) now sit in third with 10 while Josh Pauls (Green Brook, N.J.) is fifth with seven assists.
    Regarding regular-season records, Farmer’s 21 points sit tied for first with himself (2014-15; 2015-16) and Alexi Salamone (2009-10). Meanwhile, McKee and Roybal share fifth place for assists with 11 apiece and Farmer’s 11 goals are tied for second, threatening his own record of 13 in a single season.

PLAYER’S THOUGHTS
Throughout the tournament, various members of Team USA will be featured in a ‘Daily Notebook’ highlighting their thoughts about their time here in Korea. Items addressed have included ‘shinny hockey’ struggles, Guy ‘Goose’ Gosselin returning to Team USA and team chemistry.

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