Sun ValleyÂ’s Knight Makes U.S. National Team
USA Hockey on Monday announced the 25-player roster for the U.S. Women’s National Team that will train together and participate in various competitions in the build-up to the 2014 Olympic Winter Games at Sochi, Russia.
Among the forwards is Sun Valley’s Hilary Knight, 23, the 5-11, 172-pounder who is the most physically imposing of all the Team USA candidates. She is now a candidate for her second Winter Olympics.
The announcement was the culmination of a seven-day selection camp that began on June 17 in Lake Placid, N.Y. and included 41 players. The complete roster featured 13 forwards, nine defensemen and three goaltenders.
“We had a tremendous camp with our country’s best players and faced some very difficult decisions,” said Reagan Carey, director of women’s hockey for USA Hockey. “We thank everyone for their dedication and congratulate those that made the team.”
Of the 25 players, 12 have previously represented the U.S. in the Olympic Winter Games, including three-time Olympian Julie Chu, 31, of Fairfield, Ct.) and Knight, a two-time NCAA Division 1 winner at the University of Wisconsin.
Katey Stone, head coach of the women’s ice hockey team at Harvard University will be the head coach of the U.S. Women’s National Team and will also serve as the head coach of the 2014 U.S. Olympic Women’s Ice Hockey Team.
Members of the team range in age from 16-31, with Jincy Dunne, 16, of O’Fallon, Mo. the youngest player and Chu the oldest. Rostered players have represented the U.S. in 1,384 games in international competitions between 1999-2013.
Ten members of Team USA played NCAA Division 1 women’s ice hockey during the 2012-13 season, with eight participating in the 2013 NCAA tournament. Four of those eight players advanced to the Women’s Frozen Four and three captured the national title as part of the University of Minnesota champions.
Nine players including Knight competed in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League (CWHL) with eight winning the Clarkson Cup with the Boston Blades (22-4-1). Knight, the Blades top scorer, was voted the Most Valuable Player of the sixth-year league.
The U.S. Women’s National Team will enter a residency program in early September and will primarily train at The Edge Sports Center in Bedford, Mass. They will then undertake the “Bring on the World Tour” featuring games against the Canadian National Team.
The final 2014 U.S. Olympic Women’s Ice Hockey Team, which will include 18 forwards/defensemen and three goaltenders, will be announced in late December by USA Hockey. Olympic competition begins in Feb. 2014 in Russia.
This past winter, Knight led the Boston Blades (22-4-1, 82-44 goals-against) with 17 goals and 15 assists for 32 points during the 24-game season, then added a tournament-best 1 goal and 4 assists for 5 points in the four-team Clarkson Cup tourney.
Not only did record-setting University of Wisconsin goal scorer Knight (143 goals in 161 career Badger games) lead all U.S.-born players in CWHL scoring, she finished second in rookie scoring and third in the individual scoring race for the Angela James Bowl trophy.
In April, Knight was a member of the U.S. team that won the gold medal in the 2013 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Women’s world Championship with a come-from-behind 3-2 triumph over Team Canada, before 13,776 spectators at Ottawa, Canada.
Wisconsin native Amanda Kessel of the Univ. of Minnesota was not only the Patty Kazmeier Award winner as the nation’s top college hockey player last winter, but Kessel scored the third-period game-winning goal as the American women won their fourth gold medal in the last five world championship meets.
Kessel, 21, and Knight, who will be 24 July 12, lead the American forwards. Here is the roster announced Monday.
Goaltenders
· Brianne McLaughlin, 26, of Sheffield Village, Ohio, Robert Morris University and CWHL Burlington Barracudas.
· Molly Schaus, 24, of Natick, Mass., Boston College and the CWHL Boston Blades.
· Jessie Vetter, 27, of Cottage Grove, Wisc., University of Wisconsin and GLHL Oregon Outlaws.
Defensemen
· Kacey Bellamy, 26, Westfield, Mass., University of New Hampshire and CWHL Boston Blades.
· Megan Bozek, 22, Buffalo Grove, Ill. and University of Minnesota.
· Lisa Chesson, 26, Plainfield, Ill. and Ohio State University.
· Jincy Dunne, 16, O’Fallon, Mo. and 19-U St. Louis Lady Blues.
· Gigi Marvin, 26, Warroad, Minn., University of Minnesota and CWHL Boston Blades.
· Michelle Picard, 20, Taunton, Mass. and Harvard University.
· Josephine Pucci, 22, Pearl River, N.Y. and Harvard University.
· Anne Schleper, 23, St. Cloud, Minn., University of Minnesota and CWHL Boston Blades,
· Lee Stecklein, 19, Roseville, Minn. and University of Minnesota.
Forwards
· Kate Buesser, 24, Wolfeboro, N.H., Harvard University and CWHL Boston Blades.
· Alex Carpenter, 19, North Reading, Mass. and Boston College.
· Kendall Coyne, 21, Palos Heights, Ill. and Northeastern University.
· Julie Chu, 31, Fairfield, Conn., Harvard University and CWHL Montreal Stars.
· Brianna Decker, 22, Dousman, Wisc. and University of Wisconsin.
· Meghan Duggan, 25, Danvers, Mass., University of Wisconsin and CWHL Boston Blades.
· Lyndsey Fry, 20, Chandler, Ariz. and Harvard University.
· Amanda Kessel, 21, Madison, Wisc. and University of Minnesota.
· Hilary Knight, 23, Sun Valley, University of Wisconsin and CWHL Boston Blades.
· Jocelyn Lamoureux, 23, Grand Forks, N.D. and University of North Dakota.
· Monique Lamoureux, 23, Grand Forks, N.D. and University of North Dakota.
· Anne Pankowski, 18, Laguna Hills, Ca. and North American Hockey Academy.
· Kelli Stack, 25, Brooklyn Heights, Ohio, Boston College and CWHL Boston Blades.
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Source: Idaho Mountain Express