New York Rangers: Six Blueshirts in IIHF World Championships

USA

The IIHF World Championships have not been kind to Team USA. They haven’t appeared in a final since 1950 and last won gold in 1933, with a team of college players. More recently the Americans have won bronze five times since 1996, the last time was 2018.

Brady Skjei hasn’t played for the United States since the 2014 World Junior Championships. In his only other international tournament, he won a gold medal in the 2012 U-18 Championships. This time he’ll be counted on to be one of the defensive leaders.

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The past two years have been disappointing for both Skjei and the New York Rangers faithful. He burst on to the scene as a rookie in 2016-17 when he scored 39 points in 80 games. Skjei finished 10th in Calder Trophy voting (Rookie-of-the-Year). He has scored 25 points in each of the last two seasons for New York.

The newest New York Rangers player, Adam Fox makes his debut with the USA senior team. He previously played in the WJC twice, winning gold in 2017 and bronze in 2019. The former Harvard defenseman has nine total points combined (1 goal, 7 assists) in 14 games.

A tournament on international ice is tailor-made for Fox. He is a fantastic skater and puck handler. The larger European rinks will allow him more room to operate. Additionally, the United States has several NHL veterans on their roster. Fox will get to learn from players such as Ryan Suter and Alec Martinez.

Last but certainly not least is forward Chris Kreider. Where a larger rink benefits a player like Fox, Kreider will have to make a few adjustments. He’s known for playing a physical game but has the offensive skills to excel in this format. Last year, Kreider participated in the tournament and scored 10 points in 10 games.

Team USA has plenty of offensive firepower with Johnny Gaudreau, Patrick Kane, Jack Eichel, and Alex DeBrincat, etc. on the roster. It will be interesting to see how head coach Jeff Blashill uses Kreider the lineup.

There is one other thing New York Rangers fans should watch for. Both of their options in next month’s entry draft Jack Hughes and Kaapo Kakko will be playing.