The U.S. Under-18 Men's Select Team continues preliminary play with a test against tournament co-host Slovakia today at Easton Arena. Puck drop is slated for 1 p.m. ET.
Today's Opponent: Slovakia
Team USA is 5-0 (W-L) in its last five meetings with Slovakia at the Hlinka Tournament. Most recently, the U.S. defeated Slovakia, 10-4, in a pre-tournament exhibition during last year's event. In 2015, the U.S. topped Slovakia, 7-3, featuring a three-point performance from Casey Mittelstadt (Eden Prairie, Minn.), who will begin his second full season as a forward for the Buffalo Sabres of the NHL this year.
During the 2013 tournament, the U.S. closed out preliminary play with a 5-2 win over Slovakia to earn a semifinal berth against the Czech Republic. Team USA went on to face Canada in the championship, falling 4-0 to finish second. Nick Schmaltz (Verona, Wis.) notched two goals and an assist to lead the U.S. in scoring.
In the last five meetings, Team USA has outscored Slovakia 38-13.
Game 1 Recap:
The U.S. Under-18 Men’s Select Team fell, 6-2, to Russia in its tournament-opening game Monday evening at Easton Arena.
Team USA took a 2-0 lead heading into the first intermission thanks to goals from Jake Ratzlaff (Rosemount, Minn.) and Blake Biondi (Edina, Minn.), but a four-goal surge in the middle frame gave Russia a 4-2 lead at the end of the second period.
Despite outshooting Russia 15-6 in the final frame, Russia added two more goals to earn a 6-2 win over the U.S. Louden Hogg (Edina, Minn.) made 21 saves in goal for Team USA.
The U.S. outshot Russia 33-27, while holding their opponent scoreless in five power-play attempts.
Date | Opponent | Round | Time (Local/ET)/Result | Location | Streaming | Statistics | U.S. Player of Game |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Thurs., Aug. 1 | Hungary (Under-20) | Exhibition | W, 6-4 | Budapest, Hungary | Live Stream |
Box Score | Alex Gaffney |
Sat., Aug. 3 | Czech Republic | Exhibition | L, 1-3 | Břeclav, Czech Republic | Requires VPN with Czech IP Address | Box Score | Louden Hogg |
Mon., Aug. 5 | Russia | Preliminary | L, 2-6 |
Piešťany, Slovakia | Requires VPN with Slovakia IP Address |
Box Score | Jake Ratzlaff |
Tues., Aug. 6 | Slovakia | Preliminary | W, 4-3 (OT) |
Piešťany, Slovakia | Requires VPN with Slovakia IP Address |
Box Score | Ryan Beck |
Wed., Aug. 7 | Sweden | Preliminary | L, 4-5 (SOL) |
Piešťany, Slovakia | Requires VPN with Slovakia IP Address |
Box Score | Ryan Kirwan |
Fri., Aug. 9 | Czech Republic | Fifth-Place Game | L, 3-4 (OT) |
Břeclav, Czech Republic | Requires VPN with Czech IP Address |
Box Score | Wyatt Kaiser |