Chetwynd, British Columbia – Led by a pair of multi-point efforts from Brendan Brisson (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Ryder Rolston (Birmingham, Mich.), the U.S. Junior Select Team defeated Canada East, 6-0, in a pre-tournament tune up ahead of the World Junior A Challenge Thursday night at Chetwynd Rec Centre.
The U.S. opens 2019 World Junior A Challenge play Saturday against Canada West. Puck drop is slated for a 9 p.m. ET start and the game can be streamed live here.
“I think the first period was eye-opening, just seeing how high the level of competition is,” said head coach Anthony Noreen. “We played our best period of the night in the third, which was encouraging and was what we wanted to see. Really the key was a bunch of guys coming from being the best players on their teams and having to accept new rules and challenges and I think they did a good job with that.”
After a quiet first period, the U.S. took a 1-0 lead two minutes into the middle frame when Brisson slotted a feed from Michael Koster (Chaska, Minn.) and Rolston past Canada East goaltender Devon Levi on a Team USA power play.
Gunnarwolfe Fontaine (East Greenwich, R.I.) doubled Team USA’s lead with 1:52 remaining in the second period, netting a pass from Brisson past Owen Say, who replaced Levi in net for Canada East.
Grant Silianoff (Edina, Minn.) scored an unassisted goal on the power play to extend the U.S. lead to 3-0 at the 5:05 minute mark of the final period. Just over five minutes later, at the 10:08 mark, Connor Caponi (Brookfield, Wis.) fired home a feed from Alex Laferriere (Chatham, N.J.) to put the U.S. up by four.
Team USA added two more goals off the sticks of Rolston and Kuntar in the final moments of the third period to secure a 6-0 victory over Canada East.
Ethan Haider (Maple Grove, Minn.) and Logan Stein (Suwanee, Ga.) each saw time in goal for the U.S., combining for 24 saves in the victory.
U.S. Schedule
| Date | Opponent/Round | Result | Location | Broadcast/Streaming | U.S. Player of the Game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thur., Dec. 5 | Canada East Pre-Tournament |
W, 6-0 |
Chetwynd Rec Centre Chetwynd, B.C. |
Live Stream |
|
| Sat., Dec. 7 | Canada West Preliminary |
W, 3-2 |
Encana Events Centre Dawson Creek, B.C. |
Live Stream |
Brendan Brisson |
| Mon., Dec. 9 | Czech Republic Preliminary |
OTW, 5-4 |
Encana Events Centre Dawson Creek, B.C. |
Live Stream |
Gunnarwolfe Fontaine |
| Wed., Dec. 11 | Canada East Preliminary |
W, 7-3 | North Peace Arena Fort St. John, B.C. |
No Stream | Brendan Brisson |
| Fri., Dec. 13 | Russia Preliminary |
W, 7-2 | Encana Events Centre Dawson Creek, B.C. |
Live Stream |
Josh Lopina |
| Sat., Dec. 14 | Canada East Semifinals |
SOL, 1-2 |
Encana Events Centre Dawson Creek, B.C. |
Live Stream |
Logan Stein |
| Sun., Dec. 15 | Czech Republic Third-Place Game |
OTW, 2-1 |
Encana Events Centre Dawson Creek, B.C. |
TSN | Ethan Haider |
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