Musketeers Larson to Lead U.S. Team at World Junior A Challenge

Press Release

USA Hockey today announced that Brett Larson, Head Coach/GM of the Sioux City Musketeers, has been named the head coach of the U.S. Select Team that will compete in the 2012 World Junior A Challenge in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia from November 5-11.

Larson is beginning his second season in the USHL behind the bench for the Sioux City Musketeers. In his first season, he led the team to a 29-30-1 record and a berth in the Clark Cup Playoffs. Larson guided a team that had a total of 14 players with commitments to NCAA Division I hockey programs, including defenseman Cliff Watson who was selected by the San Jose Sharks in the 2012 NHL Draft.

Prior to coming to the USHL, Larson was an assistant coach at the University of Minnesota-Duluth for three seasons. He helped the Bulldogs earn their first-ever NCAA Championship in 2011 with a team that included USHL alumni Jack Connolly (Sioux Falls Stampede), J.T. Brown (Waterloo Black Hawks), and Travis Oleksuk (Sioux City Musketeers). During his three seasons coaching at his alma mater, Larson helped lead UMD to a 70-40-15 record and the 2008 WCHA Final Five championship.

The Duluth native collected 67 points (24g, 43a) in 133 games as a defenseman at UMD. He was selected by the Detroit Red Wings in the 1990 NHL Draft and went on to play 12 seasons of professional hockey both in the United States and overseas.

The United States has won the World Junior A Challenge in three of the last four years with teams that are made up almost entirely of USHL players. A USHL coach has led the U.S. Select Team in each year of the tournament since the U.S. first competed in 2007, including championships led by P.K. O’Handley (Waterloo Black Hawks) in 2010 and Mark Carlson (Cedar Rapids RoughRiders) in both 2008 and 2009.

The 2012 tournament features two teams from Canada in addition to teams from Russia, Czech Republic, and Switzerland.

World Junior A Challenge schedule:

Monday, November 5th vs. Canada East

Tuesday, November 6th vs. Switzerland

Thursday, November 8th – Quarterfinals

Friday, November 9th – Semifinals

Saturday, November 10th – Third and Fifth place games

Sunday, November 11th – Championship Game

(Nathan can be reached at nathanfournier@mainehockeyjournal.com)