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Notebook (Sept. 15) - NTDP Squads Hit Road for Early-Season Action

By Becky Olsen, 09/15/14, 5:15PM EDT

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The U.S. National Under-17 and Under-18 Teams will both play road games this week. The U18s head to Green Bay, Wisconsin, for the United States Hockey League Fall Classic East edition, while the U17s play a single contest in Orchard Lake, Michigan.

FALL CLASSIC: The U18s will face the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders at 5 p.m. ET on Tuesday before playing the Youngstown Phantoms at 11 a.m on Wednesday in the USHL Fall Classic.

“We will continue to work on different areas of our game,” said head coach Don Granato, whose squad carries a 3-0 mark into the event. “It’s always good to get road games early in the season. The coaching staff is looking for that continued growth and improvement from the team this week against two tough USHL squads.”

Goalie Luke Opilka (St. Louis, Mo.) kicked out 11 shuts to earn his first career shutout en route to a 7-0 blanking of the Michigan Warriors on Saturday. Christian Fischer (Wayne, Ill.) paced the offensive attack with two goals. Troy Terry (Highlands Ranch, Colo.), Tage Thompson (Oyster Bay, N.Y.), Jordan Greenway (Potsdam, N.Y.), Matthew Tkachuk (St. Louis, Mo.) and Auston Matthews (Scottsdale, Ariz.) also added goals.

NEUTRAL-SITE CONTEST: The U17s will head out on the road for a neutral-site game against the LaSalle Vipers at the St. Mary’s Athletic Complex on Saturday. Face-off is set for 7:15 p.m. ET. The Vipers play in the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League.

“We are heading into our fourth week of practice,” head coach Danton Cole said. “The hockey instincts are there and we will find success on the ice, but it takes time. So much of what we teach, we can see the guys doing it. It might not be perfect, but the concept is there. The size and skill they have and the component of some coachability, it makes me feel pretty good about this team going forward.”

In the U17s lone game last week, they dropped a 1-0 decision to Muskegon on Friday. Joseph Woll (Dardenne Prairie, Mo.) stopped 32 of 33 shots in net.

Notebook

  • Jordan and James Greenway are the sixth brother combination to play for the National Team Development Program. Jordan is a 6-5, 222-pound forward for the U18 Team while James is a 6-4, 204-pound blue liner for the U17s. The brothers, who hail from Potsdam, New York, both played for Shattuck - St. Mary’s (Minn.) before coming to Ann Arbor.

  • Other brother combinations include: Seth (2010-12) and Caleb Jones (2012-present); Chad (2003-05) and Jeremy Morin (2007-09); Bryan (2008-10) and Matt Rust (2005-07); Drew (2007-09), Nick (2008-10) and Quentin Shore (2010-12); and Chris (2004-06) and Patrick Summers (2008-09).

  • NHL.com ranked the top 60 NHL prospects for 2014-15. The only rule the voters were given was the players have to enter the 2014-15 season with Calder Trophy eligibility. Several former NTDP players made the list. They are:

2. John Gibson (Pittsburgh, Pa. / 2009-11 / Anaheim)
41. Dylan Larkin (Waterford, Mich. / 2012-14 / Detroit)
42. Sonny Milano (Massapequa, N.Y. / 2012-14 / Columbus)
48. Riley Barber (Livonia, Mich. / 2011-12 / Washington)
52. Alex Tuch (Baldwinsville, N.Y. / 2012-14 / Minnesota)
56. Adam Clendening (Niagara Falls, N.Y. / 2008-10 / Chicago)

  • Twelve former players received votes but did not make the final list, including: Henrik Samuelsson (Scottsdale, Ariz./2010-11/Arizona), Nicolas Kerdiles (Irvine, Calif./2010-12/Anaheim); Jake McCabe (Eau Claire, Wis./2009-11/Buffalo), Hudson Fasching (Burnsville, Minn./2011-13/Buffalo); Stefan Matteau (Chicago, Ill./2010-12/New Jersey), Reid Boucher (Grand Ledge, Mich./2009-11/New Jersey); J.T. Compher (Northbrook, Ill./2011-13/Buffalo), Brady Skjei (Lakeville, Minn./2010-12/N.Y. Rangers); Derek Forbort (Duluth, Minn./2009-10/Los Angeles); Jack Cambell (Port Huron, Mich./2008-10/Dallas); Rocco Grimaldi (Rossmoor, Calif./2009-11/Florida); and Thatcher Demko (San Diego, Calif./2012-13/Vancouver).

  • Christian Fischer (2-2), Jeremy Bracco (Freeport, N.Y./2-2) and Auston Matthews (1-3) sit atop the U18 leader board with four points each. Luke Kunin (Chesterfield, Mo./2-1), Matthew Tkachuk (2-1), Brendan Warren (Carleton, Mich./2-1), Colin White (Hanover, Mass./1-2), Michael Floodstand (Hinsdale, Ill./0-3) and Steven Ruggiero (King Park, N.Y./0-3) are tied for fourth with three points each.

  • In goal, Michael Lackey (Washington, D.C.) and Luke Opilka have split time for the U18s. Lackey is 1-0 with a 1.00 goals-against average and a .960 save percentage. Opilka is 2-0 with a 0.50 GAA and a .974 save percentage.

  • Six U17 players have one point each, including Clayton Keller (Swansea, Ill./1-0), Graham McPhee (Bethesda, Md./0-1), Michael Campoli (Ann Arbor/0-1), Adam Fox (Jericho, N.Y./0-1), Keeghan Howdeshell (Brighton, Mich./0-1) and Trent Frederic (St. Louis, Mo./0-1).

  • In goal for the U17s, Jake Oettinger (Lakeville, Minn.) and Joseph Woll have split time. Woll is 0-1 with a 1.36 GAA and a .956 save percentage while Oettinger is 0-1 with an 8.00 GAA and a .750 save percentage.

Story from Red Line Editorial, Inc.

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