Tuesday, December 4, 2012

U.S. Names Preliminary Roster

Fifteen current college players among those contending for U.S. National Junior Team spots.

U.S. Names Preliminary Roster
Union sophomore Shane Gostisbehere is one of nine defensemen invited to the camp.

Fifteen current college players and one former college player are among the 27 named to the preliminary roster for the 2013 U.S. National Junior Team, USA Hockey announced today. The 27 players will attend training camp Dec. 16-18 at the New York Rangers’ Madison Square Garden Training Center in Tarrytown, N.Y. An additional camp will follow in Helsinki, Finland, with the final 23-man roster announcement scheduled for Dec. 23.

USA Hockey Release | Complete Roster

Thirteen colleges are represented on the roster, with Miami and Minnesota each sending two current players. A former Miami player also was invited.

Other schools represented are Boston College, Boston University, Cornell, Harvard, Michigan, Michigan Tech, North Dakota, Notre Dame, Providence, Union and Wisconsin.

“The NCAA programs are an unbelievable feeder program, not only for us but for the National Hockey League,” said general manager Jim Johansson, a former Wisconsin star. “They give players structure, good training and good competition. From our standpoint it works very well for their development.

“The facilities and operations at the NCAA level continue to improve and grow and it raises the level of competition across the board.”

Improved facilities, increased exposure

Johansson – who has traveled the country assessing players for this team the last two months – also noted the increased exposure college hockey has received.

“Being around a lot of them, it’s exciting to see the new facilities in college hockey, and the continued growth of the game,” he said. “The more and more exposure we’re seeing on TV for college hockey is wonderful for the game.”

Phil Housley is the head coach of the U.S. team, and will be assisted by three current college coaches: Mark Osiecki (head coach at Ohio State), Grant Potulny (assistant coach at Minnesota) and David Lassonde (assistant coach at Denver). Legendary Yale coach Tim Taylor assists Johansson as the team’s director of player personnel.