Team DC 2017 Roster Announced
The Team DC roster for the 2017 USA Hockey America's Hockey Showcase has been announced by General Manager Tony MacAulay and Head Coach Rob Trantin. Team DC, a high school all-star team featuring top juniors and seniors from the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia, will compete against similar teams from all over the country April 20-24 in Pittsburgh at the Robert Morris University Island Sports Center.
Team DC's 2017 roster features 15 seniors, including seven veterans from last year's team that went 1-2-1 at the showcase, and five juniors. Included among the 20 players on the team are nine players who played Tier 1 (AAA ) club hockey and eight who were on local AA-level rosters as well as an array of all-conference, all-metro and all-state high school players.
"We are excited about the prospects of this year's team," Trantin said. "We feel like it is the deepest group that we've had in some time and has the ability to advance out of pool play and into the playoff round. But the better news is that we have a high number of players who want to keep playing beyond high school and who will catch the eye of the many junior and college hockey scouts who attend the tournament."
Returning from last year's team are forwards Devin Lowe (Dulaney/Team Maryland 18U AAA), a wing who tied for the Team DC scoring lead with five points in four games a year ago; Ty Brandt (DeMatha/Team Maryland 18U AAA), who notched a goal in last year's tournament; John Cardellicchio (Gonzaga/Reston Raiders 18U AA), who contributed one assist a year ago, Jacob Kaplan (DeMatha/Tri-City Eagles 18U AA); and Denis Kuzminov (St. Mary's Ryken/Team Maryland 18U AAA). Defensemen returning are Jackson Harnois (Quince Orchard/Tri-CIty 18U AA), who recorded one goal last year; and Josh Keller (Urbana/Team Maryland 18U AAA), who picked up an assist.
Lowe and Keller were both all-state high school selections by the Maryland Student Hockey League (MSHL). As team captain Lowe led Team Maryland 18U in overall scoring with 30 goals and 45 assists and also was the scoring champion at the 18U level in the Tier 1 Atlantic Youth Hockey League (AYHL) as well as the second player drafted for the East Coast Elite League (ECEL) All-Star game. Keller, who was named to the MSHL Hall of Fame, was a top-paring blue-liner for Team Maryland 18U and recorded 14 points in 54 AAA contests.
Brandt, a second-team All-Mid-Atlantic Prep Hockey League (MAPHL), Washington Post All-Met and All-WCAC selection, captained the DeMatha Catholic High School team, finishing with 23 goals and 26 assists in 38 games, while Cardellicchio captained a Gonzaga team that won the MAPHL AA championship, recording nine goals and nine assists in 28 contests en route to Washington Post All-Met and All-WCAC honorable mention recognition. Kaplan and Kuzminov both were first-team All-MAPHL and All-WCAC picks, with Kaplan notching 33 goals and 22 assists for DeMatha in 37 schoolboy games and Kuzminov, also a first-team Washington Post All-Met selection, picking up 22 goals and 25 assists in 20 contests for St. Mary's Ryken. Kaplan also had 42 points in 35 club AA contests for the Tri-CIty Eagles 18U team, with Kuzminov notching 35 points in 42 AAA contests for Team Maryland 18U. Harnois had 22 points in 15 high school tilts for Quince Orchard and 31 points in 40 AA club games.
Tier 1-level forwards joining the Team DC Roster for the first time this year include Griffin Long (St. John's/Washington Little Caps 18U AAA), Evan Yamaguchi (Frederick County/Team Maryland 18U AAA) and Liam Eden (Arbishop Spalding/Washington Little Caps 16U AAA). They will be joined by AAA-level goalie Ben Calaman (St. John's/Team Maryland 18U AAA) and defenseman Wyatt Hinkson (DeMatha/Team Maryland 16U AAA).
Long was a first-team All-MAPHL and All-WCAC and honorable mention Washington Post All-Met selection while serving as team captain for St. John's and an AYHL all-star playing for the Little Caps. He had 10 points in 10 high school outings and 23 points in 22 AYHL contests for his club team. Yamaguchi was Team Maryland's second-leading scorer with 45 points in 53 AAA games. Eden was the cornerstone of Archbishop Spalding's offense and notched 45 points in 60 games for the 16U Little Caps. Calaman stole games in net for both St. John's and Team Maryland 18U, earning ECEL all-star honors for his club team and honorable mention All-WCAC accolades for St. John's. Hinkson, another DeMatha standout, notched 12 points in 36 contests from the blue line for the Stags and another 11 in 36 contests for Team Maryland 16U.
Other newcomers to Team DC at forward include the versatile Nathan Dailey (Mount St. Joseph's/Howard Huskies 18U AA), Evan Bergquist (Fallston/York Devils 16U AA), Brener Granston (Blair/Tri-City 18U AA) and Colin Cunningham (Battlefield/Piedmont Predators 18U).
Dailey was the hero of the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) championship game, netting the game-winner in overtime against Team DC goalie Matt Schaab (Calvert Hall). The All-MIAA selection also played for a Howard Huskies team that advanced to USA Hockey Tier 2 Nationals. He recorded 17 points in 20 high school games and 16 points in 55 contests for his club team, including a goal at Nationals. Bergquist notched 17 points in eight high school outings and 32 points in 43 appearances for his AA team in York, Pa. Granston was an offensive catalyst for both his school (31 points in 18 games) and Tri-City 18U club team, and Cunningham scored at a two-points-per-game clip for Battlefield High in Virginia and averaged better than a point per game for the Piedmont Predators.
Rounding out the newcomers on defense, in addition to goaltender Schaab, are Tiger Bjornlund (Whitman/Montgomery Blue Devils 16U AA), John Henrici (DeMatha) and Andrew Williams (St. Mary's Ryken/Tri-City Eagles 18U AA).
Schaab, an All-MIAA and All-MAPHL selection between the pipes, backstopped Calvert Hall to both the MIAA and MAPHL championship games, while Bjornlund anchored the blue line for his school and club teams with 26 points in 17 high school games and 32 points in 35 AA club contests for the Montgomery Blue Devils 16U team that advanced to Nationals. Henrici was a stalwart on the blue line for DeMatha, appearing in 38 games and notching 10 points to earn honorable mention All-WCAC recognition, while Williams paired with Harnois to anchor the Tri-CIty 18U AA defensive corps while serving as a top defenseman for St. Mary's Ryken. He finished with five points in 13 high school outings.
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