COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Taylor Lipsett (Mesquite, Texas) and Andy Yohe (Bettendorf, Iowa), gold medalists from the 2014 U.S. Paralympic Sled Hockey Team, have retired from international competition, USA Hockey annouced today.
“It’s bittersweet to see Taylor and Andy move on, but I’m also extremely happy to have the ability to thank them for the tremendous contributions they have made to our team, USA Hockey, the U.S. Olympic Committee and their country,” said Dan Brennan, general manager of the 2014 U.S. Paralympic Sled Hockey Team and USA Hockey’s director of sled and inline national teams. “We've enjoyed great success together, and they have Paralympic gold medals and world championship gold as well and they should be extremely proud of that.”
Lipsett, a forward, spent more than a decade as a member of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team, making his debut in 2003-04 as a 16 year old. At his first Paralympic Winter Games in 2006, he helped Team USA collect a bronze medal. In 2009, Lipsett and the U.S. won their first International Paralympic Committee Ice Sledge Hockey World Championship in Ostrava, Czech Republic. At the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver, B.C., Lipsett won a gold medal while leading Team USA with five goals. En route to the gold medal at the 2012 IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championship, he spearheaded the U.S. offense with six goals and eight points. Lastly, Lipsett competed in the 2014 Paralympic Winter Games, helping Team USA win gold in Sochi, Russia.
Yohe’s rookie season with Team USA culminated in a bronze medal at the 2006 Paralympic Winter Games in Torino, Italy. After a year off in 2007-08, he returned to the squad to help it capture the gold medal at the 2009 IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championship. He switched from forward to defense during the 2009-10 season and captained Team USA to gold at the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver, B.C. After sitting out three years for family reasons, Yohe reclaimed the captaincy in 2013-14 and helped guide Team USA to the gold medal once again at the 2014 Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.
NOTES: Taylor Chace (Hampton Falls, N.H.), Rico Roman (Portland, Ore.) and Greg Shaw (Merritt Island, Fla.) have elected to take the year off and will not participate with the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team during the 2014-15 season...Tryouts for the 2014-15 U.S. National Sled Hockey Team are set for Sat.-Sun. (July 12-13) at The Northtown Center at Amherst in Williamsville, New York. The roster will be announced the week of July 21.