Photo by Michael Caples/MiHockey

Team USA beats Switzerland to secure spot in U17 Four Nations championship game (with photos)

 

By @MichaelCaples –

So nice, they’re going to do this twice.

With Team USA beating Switzerland 3-1 Wednesday evening at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, the U.S. has secured a spot in the 2018 Under-17 Four Nations Cup championship game (slated for Saturday night at 7 p.m.).

The Americans know who their foe will be in that final game, too. It’s the team they’re playing Friday to conclude the preliminary round.

With both teams posting 2-0 records to start the tournament – Team USA beat Slovakia on Tuesday – the Friday night showdown now becomes a preview of a championship game Saturday.

“Russia won the World Under-17 Challenge and at this point, they’ve proven they’re the best team in the world at this age level,” said U.S. National Under-17 Team head coach Seth Appert. “This is a great opportunity and we’re excited for it. What a great challenge for us to play the best team in the world, one of our arch-rivals, on back-to-back nights in our building. It’s going to be outstanding.”

Team USA secured their two-night affair with Russia thanks to the aforementioned victory over the Swiss. Fort Gratiot native Jacob Truscott scored the goal that broke a 1-1 tie; Daniyal Dzhaniyev (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and Thomas Bordeleau (Houston, Texas) added the other goals for USA.

It was a rather dominating effort on the defensive side for the Americans; Drew Commesso (Norwell, Mass.) only faced 12 shots.

Photos from the game: