Friday, December 7, 2018
WJAC Showcases Future Stars
Tournament showcases top USHL, CJHL talent.
Dozens of the top players in the USHL and CJHL have gathered in Bonnyville, Alta., where the World Junior A Challenge (WJAC) will take place Dec. 9-16.
Among the participants are 52 NCAA Division I commits headed to 32 schools, meaning that more than half of all Division I teams have a recruit participating in the WJAC. Connecticut freshman goaltender Tomas Vomacka is also on the Czech Republic roster.
Tournament Web Site | USA Hockey Coverage
The five-team event includes entries from the United States, the Czech Republic, Russia and two teams from Canada (East and West). The teams play a round-robin, followed by semifinals and medal games.
The U.S. roster is comprised of 22 USHL players. Team USA has won the WJAC seven times in 12 appearances, including four of the last six years. Tri-City Storm head coach Anthony Noreen is the U.S. head coach. USA Hockey’s director of junior hockey, Marc Boxer, is the U.S. general manager.
“I like that we have a lot of guys who can play anywhere in the lineup,” said Boxer. “Everybody plays on the power play [on their USHL team] and kills penalties. They’re obviously top players on their teams, so I think we have a very versatile group. I think in years past, we had some guys who were higher-end draft picks. A lot of these guys are going to emerge and surprise people in a big way.”
The Canadian rosters are made up of players from the CJHL, which includes the 10 junior A leagues across the country. The CCHL and OJHL dominate the Canada East roster, while the BCHL and AJHL are home to most of Canada West. Both rosters include a number of NCAA commits and others who may get college opportunities thanks to their performance at the WJAC.
North Dakota leads the 32 schools with recruits in the tournament with six – three on Canada West and three on the United States. Clarkson and Penn State both have four recruits taking part, while Denver has three.
All six conferences and independent Arizona State have committed recruits in the tournament.
HockeyTV will be streaming the games.
| NCAA Commits in World Junior A Challenge | |||
| Canada East | |||
| Player | Pos. | Current Team | NCAA Commitment |
| Liam Souliere | G | Brockville (CCHL) | Penn State |
| Simon Mack | D | Brockville (CCHL) | Penn State |
| Tyler McBay | D | Brockville (CCHL) | Penn State |
| Dustyn McFaul | D | Pickering (OJHL) | Clarkson |
| Cade Townend | D | Carleton Place (CCHL) | Mercyhurst |
| John Beaton | F | Kemptville (CCHL) | Rensselaer |
| Eric Ciccolini | F | Toronto Jr. Canadiens (OJHL) | Michigan |
| Ty Glover | F | Buffalo (OJHL) | Western Michigan |
| Spencer Kersten | F | Oakville (OJHL) | Princeton |
| Riley McCutcheon | F | Cobourg (OJHL) | Vermont |
| Ryland Mosley | F | Carleton Place (CCHL) | Alabama Huntsville |
Canada West |
|||
| Player | Pos. | Current Team | NCAA Commitment |
| Layton Ahac | D | Prince George (BCHL) | Ohio State |
| Luke Bast | D | Brooks (AJHL) | North Dakota |
| Carter Berger | D | Victoria (BCHL) | Connecticut |
| Jack Judson | D | Vernon (BCHL) | Arizona State |
| T.J. Lloyd | D | Spruce Grove (AJHL) | Bowling Green |
| Mason Snell | D | Penticton (BCHL) | Penn State |
| Harrison Blaisdell | F | Chilliwack (BCHL) | North Dakota |
| Alexander Campbell | F | Victoria (BCHL) | Clarkson |
| Mathieu Gosselin | F | Merritt (BCHL) | Clarkson |
| Dylan Holloway | F | Okotoks (AJHL) | Wisconsin |
| Riley Hughes | F | Victoria (BCHL) | Northeastern |
| Ethan Leyh | F | Langley (BCHL) | Wisconsin |
| Alex Newhook | F | Victoria (BCHL) | Boston College |
| Matt Osadick | F | Swan Valley (MJHL) | Maine |
| Massimo Rizzo | F | Penticton (BCHL) | North Dakota |
| David Silye | F | Penticton (BCHL) | Clarkson |
| Alex Swetlikoff | F | Vernon (BCHL) | Denver |
| Austin Wong | F | Okotoks (AJHL) | Harvard |
Czech Republic |
|||
| Player | Pos. | Current Team | NCAA Commitment |
| Matej Blumel | F | Waterloo (USHL) | Connecticut |
| Tomas Vomacka | G | Connecticut (H. East) | |
United States |
|||
| Player | Pos. | Current Team | NCAA Commitment |
| Blake Pietila | G | Cedar Rapids (USHL) | Michigan Tech |
| Isaiah Saville | G | Tri-City (USHL) | Omaha |
| Ronnie Attard | D | Tri-City (USHL) | Western Michigan |
| Ethan Frisch | D | Green Bay (USHL) | North Dakota |
| Ryan Johnson | D | Sioux Falls (USHL) | Minnesota |
| Luke Johnson | D | Sioux City (USHL) | Providence |
| Zac Jones | D | Tri-City (USHL) | Massachusetts |
| Mitchell Miller | D | Cedar Rapids (USHL) | North Dakota |
| Travis Mitchell | D | Omaha (USHL) | Cornell |
| Bobby Brink | F | Sioux City (USHL) | Denver |
| Matt Brown | F | Des Moines (USHL) | UMass Lowell |
| Connor Caponi | F | Waterloo (USHL) | Yale |
| Parker Ford | F | Sioux City (USHL) | Providence |
| Trevor Janicke | F | Central Illinois (USHL) | Notre Dame |
| Cal Kiefiuk | F | Central Illinois (USHL) | Michigan |
| Jack Malone | F | Youngstown (USHL) | Cornell |
| Robert Mastrosimone | F | Chicago (USHL) | Boston University |
| Griffin Ness | F | Waterloo (USHL) | Air Force |
| Josh Nodler | F | Fargo (USHL) | Michigan State |
| Ryan O’Reilly | F | Fargo (USHL) | Denver |
| Shane Pinto | F | Lincoln (USHL) | North Dakota |
| Grant Silianoff | F | Cedar Rapids (USHL) | Notre Dame |