The MSU hockey team will meet the US National Under-18 Team, a team partially responsible for the development of five current Spartans, at 7:05 p.m. today at Munn Ice Arena in an exhibition contest.
Freshman forwards Bryan Lerg and Jim McKenzie are among the most recent Spartans to come out of the development program. Sophomore defenseman A.J. Thelen, junior defenseman Corey Potter and junior forward David Booth are the other alumni of the program.
Based out of Ann Arbor, the Under-18 team prides itself in developing some of the best American hockey players by training and conditioning them properly to play Division I college hockey and professional hockey.
"They helped me get to Michigan State, and that's the type of program they are," Potter said.
"They try to develop players for college hockey. That's what they do, and that's what they've been doing ever since they were around."
Thelen said that the conditioning process of the program was beneficial to him.
"The weight training there was unbelievable," Thelen said. "Just the way we worked out, how many days we worked out, the things we went through, all the running we did; there were so many things that we did."
The program faces off against many college teams throughout the course of the year and plays in international tournaments, all while keeping a commitment to the players' education.
Booth spent one year with the national team and credits them very much for his development to this date.
"They taught me the most about hockey in that one year, I don't want to say that I've ever learned, but it was the most intense schedule that I've ever had in a year," Booth said.
"I think that year is where I really took off as a hockey player."
The program has been successful thus far. The United States took home a gold medal in the 2003 World Junior Hockey Championship, a team Booth, Potter and sophomore goaltender Dominic Vicari were a part of.
Tonight's game will also feature a first look at defenseman Brandon Gentile, who has committed to play for MSU in the future. Gentile has a total of six points so far in 37 games played.
First game
MSU head coach Rick Comley is playing freshman forward Zak McClellan for the first time in his collegiate career.
"I'm really excited," McClellan said. "It's been a little bit of a wait, but hopefully it will be well worth it."
"I've been waiting for this for a long time, my whole life, to play in the CCHA, and especially here, and now tomorrow is my huge chance."
