Jr. Evaluation Camp goalies named

Press Release

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - USA Hockey today announced the four goaltenders invited to take part in its National Junior Evaluation Camp this August in Lake Placid, N.Y. The players will join the 40 skaters already invited to the camp in auditioning for a spot on the U.S. National Junior Team that will take part in the 2012 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship, Dec. 26, 2011-Jan. 5, 2012, in Calgary and Edmonton, Alta.

Among the invitees are Jack Campbell (Port Huron, Mich.) and Andy Iles (Ithaca, N.Y.), who represented bronze medal-winning Team USA at the 2011 IIHF World Junior Championship in Buffalo, N.Y. Campbell was also a member of the U.S. National Junior Team that won the gold medal at the 2010 IIHF World Junior Championship in Regina and Saskatoon, Sask., and most recently joined the U.S. Men's National Team at the 2011 IIHF World Men's Championship in Kosice and Bratislava, Slovakia.

Also attending the camp will be John Gibson (Pittsburgh, Pa.), who was named the top goaltender of the 2011 IIHF World Men's U18 Championship last April in Crimmitschau and Dresden, Germany, after leading Team USA to its third straight gold medal. Finally, Mac Carruth (Shorewood, Minn.) will be attempting to make his first U.S. national team.

For the full list of players invited to the 2011 USA Hockey National Junior Evaluation Camp, click here.

The camp, which will take place at Lake Placid's Olympic Center from Aug. 6-13, includes practices, intrasquad scrimmages and international games featuring Finland, Sweden and the United States.

NOTES: Jack Campbell, the only male goaltender in Team USA history to hold three gold medals (2009 and 2010 IIHF World Men's U18 Championships, 2010 IIHF World Junior Championship), is the only player invited to the 2011 USA Hockey National Junior Evaluation Camp who is making his third appearance at the event (2009, 2010). Campbell was named by the IIHF directorate as the top goaltender of last year's IIHF World Junior Championship ... John Gibson was named USA Hockey's Dave Peterson Goalie of the Year for the 2010-11 season earlier this month ... Campbell, Gibson and Andy Iles were all members of USA Hockey's National Team Development Program ... The 2012 U.S. National Junior Team will be selected in late December following a pre-tournament camp to be held in Alberta, Canada ... Dean Blais, head men's ice hockey coach at the University of Nebraska Omaha, will serve as head coach of the 2012 U.S. National Junior Team. He will be assisted by Scott Sandelin, head men's ice hockey coach at the University of Minnesota Duluth; Tom Ward, head ice hockey coach of the Shattuck-St. Mary's School's boys' prep team; and Joe Exter, goaltender coach at USA Hockey's National Team Development Program ... Dan Bylsma, head coach of the National Hockey League's Pittsburgh Penguins, and Mike Sullivan, assistant coach of the NHL's New York Rangers, will also participate in Lake Placid as camp coaches ... Jim Johannson, USA Hockey's assistant executive director of hockey operations, is serving as the general manager of Team USA for the third consecutive year. Tim Taylor (Guilford, Conn.), former U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team head coach and longtime Yale University men's ice hockey team head coach, is also serving his third straight year as Team USA's director of player personnel.

(Nathan can be reached at fourniern@students.nescom.edu)