USA's Hlinka Gretzky Cup title defense ended with an 8-1 championship loss to Canada, but coach Reid Cashman couldn't stop talking about the leadership that carried his Under-18 Select Team all the way to the final.
“I’m excited for this age group and what they do in the future,” Cashman said. “Just knowing the character and the personalities that were in that locker room.” He added that eight or nine more guys could have worn letters, pointing to the leadership group of Becker Wenkus, Gunnar Conboy and Colin Grubb.
“In a short tournament, the team that comes together is the team that’s going to have the best chance to succeed,” Cashman said. “We spent a lot of time as a staff trying to develop that, but ultimately it had to be organic and it’s a credit to the guys in that locker room.”
Gavin Burcar led the way with five goals and nine points, including a hat trick in the 6-4 opener against Czechia. Cashman called it the best tournament of anyone in the group, praising Burcar's power-play work, penalty-kill minutes and faceoff wins in every situation.
Nash Roed exploded for a hat trick in the 5-2 semifinal win over Slovakia. Ethan Sung and Joey Cullen scored 80 seconds apart in the third period to turn a 1-1 tie into a 3-1 lead in the 4-1 win over Finland. Cullen, the only 2010-born player on the roster, showed unbelievable maturity and compete.
Grubb and Sung set the tone with their speed and never-quit shifts. The Americans have now finished in the top three at Hlinka in three of the last four years after a five-year drought of missing the semis.
“It’s a credit to what USA Hockey is doing at the top level and filtering its way down,” Cashman said. This group has NHL fans already buzzing about the 2027 draft class.