Subject: USA U-18 Team

By the way Cap, if you want you can use my arena for games because I have it maxed out, including maxing out the ice quality, scoreboard, that kind of stuff.

hockey.powerplaymanager.c...

Thanks, I think I am in fact going to switch to your stadium.

The United States beat Brazil, a top division team, 6-4 last week. Brazil outshot the United States 38-30, largely due to a horrible lack of discipline by the United States. Luckily, the penalty was perfect and the power play chipped in 1 goal in 2 chances. The United States plays Hungary next week.

In group 1, it looks like Slovenia is the favorite while Belgium might be fighting to avoid relegation. Lithuania, Italy, and Switzerland all look comparable to the United States.

The United States has the second best goaltending after Slovenia. The offense is tied with Slovenia for first, though Slovenia and Italy have better shooting overall. The defense is competitive with the other teams ofter Slovenia and Switzerland.

The first line offense is by far the best in the group, while the first line defense should at least be competitive with the other teams. Louie Lance has 108 more OR than the second best player in the group.

The United States lost to Spain, one of the stronger top division teams last week. The week before, the United States lost inexplicably badly to Hungary, another top division national team.

The United States was playing without a few key players who were in camp or injured the last 2 weeks. They will be back to solidify the bottom lines next week. The defense in particular should improve, though it is still the weak point of the team. The offense is promising; the the first line still looks like one of the better ones. The United States may even have one of the best goaltenders in the division.

Next week the United States will play Germany, another top division opponent.

The United States played two close games against Germany, one of the best teams, and Sweden, a division 1 team from the other group. Instead of reporting the games like I have done in the past or comparing the comparative progress of the teams in the same group as the United States, I though I would try something new and introduce the roster in this post. The lines are still subject to change.

Goaltending:
G1) Willard Butler (Westchester Red Wings): Butler will be a 1,000+ OR goaltender among the better U18 goaltenders if not necessarily elite. Even so, Butler will be at least as good if not better than any goaltender that has played for the United States in the last few years.
G2) Jarrod Carlson (Wookies): Though he didn't start the season in the best condition, Carlson will turn out to be excellent backup, beating out a few other very talented alternatives. Carlson had been slotted to be the starter this year until Butler's surprising emergence.

Line 1:


LW) Lewis Jackson (KOMARNO PENGUINS - Slovakia IV.41/formerly the Sparhawks): Left wing is the weakest forward position. There are 4 very good LW's on the team, but none of them are quite elite. Jackson might be the most unlikely player on the team. He is the last legacy of the former manager of the national team and has a few very bad qualities. Even so, his EQ is ultimately respectable, and he will be a 1,000+ OR player by time the World Championships come around. He also has nearly twice the experience of any other player on the team at 47. Depending on how well the various LW's train, he may or may not stay on the first line, but he is there now for his OR and exp. Jackson is avilable for $30,000,000 if anyone is interested.

C) Louie Lance (MHC Torpedo Martin-Slovakia IV.24/Irresistible Force): Lance is the star player of the team, among the best U18 players from any nation, and easily the best player in the history of the U18 team. He's been on the team since he was 15. Leggman let me know about him when he was pulled shortly after I started with the U18 team. He had nearly 500 OR, very good EQ, good CL, and was pulled very early in the season. He will have 1,300+ OR and has amazing shooting for a center while still being an elite center. He even has respectable experience and is currently the league leader in his Slovakian league.

RW) Wes Austin (Tigers FF-Sweden I.1/Wookies): though not as good as Lance, Austin is an elite RW with great shooting and the second best player on the team. The Wookies sold him for a king's ransom a few seasons ago to a good team where he has thrived. He has perfect qualities for 3 of 4 attributes. Austin complete the first line offense which will provide the primary hope for the United States in the upcoming World Championshisp.

LD) Alexander Chisholm (Boilermakers): defense is the biggest weakness this season. All of the defense are about average with a significant dropoff after the top 8. Chisholm is the lone exception. He won't provide much shooting, but he will anchor the defense.

RD) Darrick Witherspoon (H.C. PITTSBURGH PENGUINS-Latvia IV.28/Irresistible Force): There is even less depth at RD than at LD. Witherspoon is an above average RD and the best on the team, despite having a few questionable attributes. He has good experience and will continue to get more. He also has respectable shooting for a defenseman. Unfortunately, he was recently sold to a team with weaker facilities. He will continue to be a good defenseman for this year and might even hold onto the first line, but his future with the other national teams is questionable.

Line 2:


LW) Ramond Napier (HC Maestros - Czech Republic III.3/Irresistible Force): Napier is another former member of the Irresistible Force. This might be the last season with a significant contribution from the Force Napier has average EQ (at least for an U18 caliber player), but has better shooting (but only by a little bit) than the other LW's. He might even take over on the first line if Jackson doesn't work a bit more on agressiveness and shooting. Napier is also useful as a universal player. He also has good experience.

C) Sheldon Dupuis (Psychos): Though he is under the shadow of Lance, Dupuis might be one of the most promising players in the history of the U18 team after this year's captain and will lead next year's team. As a 17 year old on the second line, Dupuis is just about as good as any other center on the team, but with better shooting.

RW) Michael Strawberry (HC Pumpa Tapesovo-Slovakia II.2/Slatington Serpents): Strawberry has been a prospect on the team since he was 16 years old. Credit goes to Ziggy00 for finding this player as a 16 year old. His OR wasn't very good at the time, but he has great EQ, including 3 of 4 perfect qualities. Strawberry is now the third best player on the team, though his offense could stand to be improved for him to reach his potential. Strawberry rounds out a solid if not elite second line offense with great shooting. He might hit 1,100 OR by the end of the season. He also has decent experience.

LD) John Brewer (Salt Lake Karma Police): Brewer is the first of quite a few players from the Salt Lake Karma Police. Brewer is probably the second best defenseman on the team. There might even be an argument that is he the best depending on how much you value shooting with his shooting at 145 and other important attributes at least as good as the attributes of any other defenseman. Brewer is another player with good experience that continues to improve. His technique (his only attribute without a very good quality) is slightly low, but he is otherwise too talented to worry too much about it. In the long run he might turn out to be the best defenseman of this age group.

RD) Jordy Knapp (Psychos): Knapp is second elite caliber 17 year old starting for the United States on the second line. He is starting due to a combination of his promise and also the disappointing depth at RD. Knapp headlines a group of extremely promising 17 year old defensemen including Richard Jacob, Woody Pierre, and Major Baron (who is not on the team this year). Defense (at least the LD) should turn from a weakness into a strength next season. Knapp is a universal defenseman, though the need for him at RD is probably greater than the need to replace any LD that might get injured.

I will continue with the third line, fourth line, bench, and perhaps the "fifth line" and "sixth line" on another day.

Love the dedication. Thanks for all of your work.

Thanks! I really hope this year's team will be able to capitalize on its assets and promote to the top division, though the competition still won't be easy.

It seems that the High Hitterz recently went defunct. Three players from the U18 team are now available:

1) Lyndon Bealieu (backup center): Lyndon Beaulieu

2) Bradley Castillo (4th line defenseman): Bradley Castillo

3) Wilber Barker (future starting defenseman):
Wilber Barker

Only three days left to bid on former members of the High Hitterz!

A little over a day left, and all three are still relatively cheap.

Continuing from before:

Line 3:

LW) Marley Berrios (Salt Lake Karma Police): another experienced member of the Salt Lake Karma Police's strong class. While not an elite forward like Lance or Austin, he is great as a depth forward (perhaps the second) line. While not as promising as his teammate Prado, he has somehow put in the work to be the better player this year.

C) Sydney Workman (Salt Lake Karma Police): the third experienced member of the Salt Lake Karma Police, Workman is a great depth player. Workman lacks Dupuis' offensive ability, though he is otherwise just as talented if not a tad better. He will be counted on for his workmanlike efforts on the third line alongside his teammate Berrios.

RW) Charlie Denny (TJ Sokol Hostalkova - Czech Republic III.7/Irresistible Force): Denny is the third best RW on the team but also the fourth best player. He is another one of the last contributions from the Irresistible Force sports academy. He might approach 1,100 by the end of the season. Denny adds to the great offensive depth the United States has to offer this year. He has worked hard to get in shape for the World Championships at the end of the year, passing by Gregg on the depth chart.

LD) Nicholas Tripp (Montana Miners): Tripp is a very good LD with some offensive flair. He is stuck behind Chisholm and Brewer on the LD depth chart, though he is about as good as any other defenseman on the team. While defense isn't an area of strength for the United States relative to the other teams in the division, the defense is still solid and competitive. On the other hand, the offensive ability of the defense is much better this year with players like Witherspoon, Brewer, Knapp, Tripp, and Castillo.

RD) Mitchell Francis (Goldfish): he started the season out of shape but with a lot of potential and was lucky to make the fourth line, even with the weak depth at RD. He is now on the third line and might be able to move up 1 or 2 lines by the end of the season. It is very lucky that he worked out since the depth at RD was particularly weak after him.

Line 4:

It is usually best to use three lines for the world championships except when it is possible to save energy when playing against a much weaker team. Since the last 3 lines are so interchangeable this year, the fourth line will be active this year and help with giving the higher lines some rest.

LW) Junior Prado (Salt Lake Karma Police): the fourth experienced member of the Salt Lake Karma Police season 16 prospect class. He is the fourth best LW by a little but, but will probably turn out to be the best LW from this year in the long run. Even the fourth line will be solid this year with players like Prado available.

C) Julius Bonner (Westchester Red Wings): Bonner is about as good as Dupuis with less offensive potential and slightly weaker than Workman with more offensive potential. The depth at center is always very strong, and he beat out quite a few great centers to make the team.

RW) Gus Gregg (dtvils - Russia I.1/DHC Corsairs): Gregg was saved from the DHC Corsairs when they went defunct. He has improved a lot with his new team. While stuck behind great depth at RW, Gregg would be a solid player even on the second line and has great potential.

LD) Bradley Castillo (High Hitterz (t)/?): much the same could be said about Castillo as any of the other defenseman on the team. He will be a solid contributor to the fourth line and is available for anyone who wants to train a member of the national team. With the weak depth after the top 4 LD's and RD's, it is likely that he will continue to start in the future for the U20 team.

RD) Randall Calo (Boilermakers): similar to the other defensemen. Without Calo, the defense could have been in trouble since Francis started the season out of shape, Knapp was only 17 and a universal player, and the other RD candidates were a bit less impressive.