The biggest favorite for gold in the form of the United States of America has to cut stars from its roster

One of the favourites in the basic group at the upcoming junior championship will be the traditionally very strong selection of the United States of America.

According to the odds of most bookmakers, the USA hockey team is one of the biggest favourites for the gold. Will Team USA “20” – literally a team that is packed – be able to follow up their triumph at the 2021 World Junior Championship?

The Americans have been generating some very interesting talent over the last few seasons, and overall it is a great pity for them that since the new decade there has been, shall we say, a “deaf period” at the senior tournaments, when they have been sending the American under-23 team to the “Best on Best” tournaments rather than their real A-team with NHL stars.

The really big trophy was won by the US team in 1996 when it won the World Cup, and it has been waiting for another championship ever since. The quality of the American youngsters is confirmed not only at the championships in the lower age categories, but also at the senior world hockey championships. The U.S. traditionally sends very young teams to world championships and often sticks the final lineup together at the last minute. Even so, they have managed to make it through to the semifinals at all three of the last three World Championships and were just one step short of challenging for gold.

The USA’s best U18 hopes at the championships in the same age category have reached the most valuable metal. They dominated the tournament. They won all their games and also topped the Canadian scoring charts. We will also see several players from this selection at the upcoming Junior World Championship. For the time being, they are taking part in the final preparatory camp, after which the roster of almost 30 players will be reduced by a few names. However, the list of expected movers and shakers of the Americans has already been clearly outlined after the announcement of the wider nomination and can only be changed by possible injuries or other unexpected events.

Goalkeepers

Let’s start with the goalkeepers, so they will be the big weapon of the overseas team. They have a very good and balanced pair. Trey Augustine will turn nineteen in a couple of months, but he already played in the World Twenty20 Championship last year and thanks to his young age, he was able to play very well in the aforementioned “winning eighteen”.

Logically, he was also a highly sought-after commodity among goaltenders in the summer draft and Detroit reached for him early in the second round. Overall, he became the third highest goalie in this year’s draft after Slovak Gajan and Czech goalie Hrabal. With his vast experience in international hockey, he should be the number one pick for this year’s World Junior Championship playoffs.

On his heels, however, will be Jacob Fowler. Last year, he was named the best USHL junior goaltender ever, as he posted a truly excellent shot success rate of over ninety-two percent! He also showed his quality during the playoffs and Montreal reached for him early in the third round. He is currently preparing for a possible NHL career in the university league with Boston.

Somewhat surprisingly, the number three spot was filled by little-known Sam Hillebrandt, who has no major experience with the US youth national teams and also did not impress any NHL club during the draft. The team’s general manager and, incidentally, former excellent goalie John Vanbiesbrouck apparently figured that despite the Fowler-Augustine pairing, the third to the bunch would have only a minimal chance to catch. So he left more room for other quality names to play in other United States youth tournaments.

Defense

Defenseman Lane Hutson had a shot at the World Junior Championships this past season after the World Junior Championships and the Senior Championships in Riga and Tampere, and he certainly didn’t get lost among the “adults”. On the contrary. He scored several important points, had a lot of ice time against weaker opponents and gained important experience that he can now put to good use. He is currently in very good form in the university league and will be one of the mainstays of the American power play, where he will probably score several key assists and goals. His younger brother Cole, another of the world’s great defensive talents, will not get a chance at the U20 World Championship.

But the U.S. junior team can count on experienced running backs from the last championship, Ryan Chesley and Seamus Casey. The latter in particular has a great frame and looks like most of his national teammates in the college league. Zeev Buium is doing great in the same competition, and will be one of the cornerstones of the defensive line up an age group after the golden tournament in Switzerland in April.

The US nomination is not inflatable though, and several very good names didn’t make the cut. For example, the highest-ranked US back in this year’s draft, Brady Cleveland, will be watching the World Junior Championship only on TV, and the absence of Hunter Brzustewicz has sparked a lot of discussion among fans. This young back is having a fantastic season in the Canadian OHL. With Kitchener, he is dominating the league and also leading the Canadian scoring for defensemen. He’s even hitting the top of the all-time productivity charts.

He is currently in third place and is on track to hit the 100-point mark for the year, a truly exclusive feat for a defenseman. But if Hutson, Chesley, Casey are going, there is simply no room for Brzustewicz in the elite power play lines and defensively tuned defensemen were given further room when the team was assembled.

Offense

For the offensive line, U.S. U-20 National Team head coach David Carle is counting on more aces. He can build on the successful Leonard – Smith – Perrault formation. The three of them dominated the U18 World Championship. They took all three top positions in the Canadian scoring and then all three were taken by NHL clubs in the first round of the draft.

Another big star, Cutter Gauthier, will add experience. The forward, like Hutson, will make his debut wearing the USA jersey at the Senior World Championships. Before the action in Latvia and Finland, I already wrote about him as one of the potentially most interesting players, which he fulfilled to a tee. He was on a rampage in the regular season and scored seven goals in total. The top five pick in last year’s draft is still waiting for his chance in the most prestigious league in the world and he should outperform the other players in the upcoming tournament.

Brindley, Snuggerud and McGroarty, the other bronze medalists from last year’s World Junior Championships, are also in camp. The health of the latter will depend on the health of the latter. We must not forget about the highly drafted Oliver Moore and thanks to the interplay with this center, Carey Terrence has a great chance to get into the lineup. It will be interesting to see if James Haggens, the team’s Benjamite and another of April’s U18 world champions, will ask for a final nomination during the camp.

On the other hand, after confirming Cutter Gauthier’s participation, there was little room left for another quality left winger in Cole Eiserman. Poor current form then cost the spot to another high draft pick Charlie Stramel. The elite positions of the first two centers are currently available to better-playing players and the coaching staff selected other types for the other spots.

In short, with the current great possibilities, the general manager of the USA national junior team John Vanbiesbrouck had to make some difficult cuts during the roster construction. However, he was primarily trying to put together a workable team that would be balanced and have the best chance to succeed. Will he succeed, will the USA junior team in Sweden confirm its role as the biggest favourite at the championships?

Source: Team USA