Players Mentioned
SCSU's Ahcan makes final roster for 2017 World Junior Championships
12/24/2016 8:21:00 AM | Men's Hockey
USA Hockey today announced the final 23-player roster for the 2017 U.S. National Junior Team that will compete in the 2017 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship in Montreal and Toronto, Canada, from Dec. 26, 2016 through Jan. 5, 2017. This roster includes St. Cloud State University freshman defenseman Jack Ahcan.
"We're excited about this group of players and the way in which they will maximize the style of hockey that head coach Bob Motzko wants the team to play," said Jim Johannson, general manager of the 2017 U.S. National Junior Team and assistant executive director of hockey operations for USA Hockey. "The talent level in the United States is among the best in the world and the difficulty we had identifying this year's roster speaks to that. These players earned their way on to this roster and we're looking forward to the tournament getting underway."
Ahcan is the ninth SCSU player to gain a spot on Team USA for play at the World Junior championships since 1991. SCSU players in recent seasons to make the Team USA roster at the World Juniors include Will Borgen in 2016, Kevin Gravel in 2012 and Mike Lee in 2010. Current SCSU defenseman Mika Ilvonen also competed at the 2015 World Junior tournament for Team Finland.
Ahcan has played in 15 games this season for SCSU and he is tied for the team lead in 2016-17 with 10 assists. He also has three goals and 13 points for SCSU this winter. Ahcan is a resident of Savage and a grad of Burnsville H.S.
SCSU head coach Bob Motzko will serve as the head coach for Team USA at the 2017 World Junior Championships, while SCSU hockey operations and video coordinator Matt Chapmam will serve as Team USA's video coach at the World Junior Championships this year.
The final roster, which can be found here, features three goaltenders, seven defensemen and 13 forwards. Of the 23 players named to the roster, 15 have previously represented the United States in IIHF tournament play, including two who skated for the bronze medal-winning 2016 U.S. National Junior Team last year. Additionally, 11 players helped the U.S. earn a gold medal as a member of the 2015 U.S. Men's National Under-18 Team while seven players skated for the 2016 U.S. Men's National Under-18 Team that earned a bronze medal last year.
Team USA will begin play in the 2017 IIHF World Junior Championship next Monday, Dec. 26, against Latvia. Puck drop is set for 3:30 p.m. ET and can be seen live on NHL Network.
NOTES: Use the hashtag #USAWJC on Twitter to join the conversation about the 2017 U.S. National Junior Team ... At the 2017 IIHF World Junior Championship, the U.S. will compete in a group with Canada, Latvia, Russia and Slovakia. All U.S. games will be broadcast live on NHL Network. For more information about the tournament, please click here.
