Dec. 5, 2001
Notre Dame, Ind. – Two University of Notre Dame hockey players have been selected by USA Hockey to play on the United States National Junior Hockey team that will compete in the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Junior Championship. The tournament, featuring the world’s top players under 20 years of age, will be held Dec. 25, 2001 through Jan. 4, 2002 in Pardubice and Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic. This marks the sixth consecutive season that Notre Dame players have been chosen to the prestigious 22-player team.
Notre Dame’s invitees include sophomore center Rob Globke (West Bloomfield, Mich.) and sophomore defenseman Brett Lebda (Buffalo Grove, Ill.). This will be Globke’s second appearance on the team that is comprised of the top players in the United States. Both players have come through the USA National Under-18 Developmental Program.
Globke is tied for fourth in scoring for the Irish with 5-4-9 in 13 games. Last season, he tied for third on the Notre Dame scoring sheet with a team-best 17 goals and nine assists for 26 points. With the U.S. team in Moscow last year, Globke scored two goals to help the U.S. to a 5-2-0 record and a fifth-place finish.
“It’s a great honor to be selected for the National Junior team,” says Globke.
“I’m glad that I’ll be going with a player like Brett Lebda. I learned a lot last season and that will help me a great deal, especially off the ice. I think that I’m a better player than I was last year, skill-wise.”
Lebda, a CCHA all-rookie team selection a year ago as a freshman, leads all Notre Dame defensemen this season with three goals on the year and five points (3-2-5) in 14 games. In his rookie season at Notre Dame, Lebda led all CCHA freshmen defensemen with seven goals and 19 assists for 26 points. That tied him for third in scoring for the Irish.
“It feels great to be named to this team. It’s been a long time in coming and to finally be named feels great,” says Lebda.
“It’s an honor to be playing for your country and there is no better feeling than putting on that USA jersey.”
Notre Dame will play four regular season games and one exhibition game without the services of Globke and Lebda. The exhibition game comes on Dec. 21 at the Joyce Center vs. the USA Under-18 Developmental Team. On Dec. 28-29, the Irish travel to Princeton for a pair of non-league games. They then return to CCHA action at home on Jan. 4-5 versus the University of Michigan. The Wolverines will have three players playing in the World Junior tournament, two for the U.S. team – Mike Komisarek and Dwight Helminen – and Mike Cammalleri for the Canadian team.
In naming the team, head coach Keith Allain said, “This team will possess skill, intelligence and grit. Our success will be determined on how quickly we can bring all of these qualities together to become a team. I am very excited about this team and have high expectations.”
The U.S. team will assemble in Ann Arbor, Mich., on Dec. 16 in preparation for the tournament. The squad then travels to Switzerland for exhibition games versus Switzerland (Dec. 21) and Sweden (Dec. 22). Tournament competition begins on Christmas Day versus the Czech Republic.
NATIONAL JUNIOR NOTES:
* The CCHA placed eight players on the U.S. National Junior Team while HOCKEY EAST had three, the ECAC two and the WCHA one for a total of 14 college players. The remainder of the team is made up of six players from the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and two from the Western Hockey League (WHL). In addition to the two Notre Dame players, the other CCHA players include Michigan defenseman Mike Komisarek, Michigan forward Dwight Helminen, Michigan State forward Jim Slater, Nebraska-Omaha defenseman Bryce Lampman and Ohio State forwards Dave Steckel and R.J. Umberger. Globke, Komisarek, Umberger and Steckel are making their second appearances while Helminen, Lampman, Lebda and Slater are making their first appearances.
* The U.S. roster features five returning players (Globke, Komisarek, Umberger, Steckel and Kris Venarsky) from the 2000-01 U.S. National Junior Team that finished 5-2-0 at the World Championship in Moscow, Russia.
* The roster features 11 National Hockey League draftees, including four picked in the first round of the 2001 NHL Entry Draft (defenseman Mike Komisarek, 7th overall by Montreal, forward R.J. Umberger, 16th overall by Vancouver, goaltender Jason Bacashihua, 26th overall by Dallas and forward Dave Steckel, 30th overall by Los Angeles).
* Notre Dame along with Boston College and Minnesota are the three schools that have placed players on the U.S. National Junior Team in each of the past six years.
* Current Irish seniors David Inman (Toronto, Ont.) and Brett Henning (Jr., Huntington, N.Y.) were members of the 1999-2000 U.S. National Junior Team. Connor Dunlop (Jr., St. Louis, Mo.) was a member of the ’99-’00 team and served as captain of the 2000-01 team last year.
* Notre Dame and Boston College lead the way with a total of 11 selections to the U.S. National Junior Team during the past six years, followed by Minnesota (10) and Michigan State (7).
* Eight different Notre Dame players have been named to the U.S. National Junior Team during the last six years, second only to Boston College’s eight.
United States National Junior Team 2001-2002 World Junior Championship Roster
No. Name Pos. Ht./Wt. D.O.B. S/C Hometown/2001-02 Team NHL Rights
GOALTENDERS (2)
29 Jason Bacashihua G 6-1/165 9/20/82 R Dearborn Hts., MI/Plymouth (OHL) Dallas
1 Dwight LaBrosse G 6-1/170 10/6/83 L McMurray, PA/Guelph (OHL) 2002
DEFENSEMEN (8)
2 Keith Ballard D 5-11/200 11/26/82 L Baudette, MN/Minnesota (WCHA) 2002
31 Joey Hope D 6-0/174 1/1/82 R Anchorage, AK Portland (WHL) 2002
8 Mike Komisarek D 6-4/230 1/19/82 R Islip Terrace, NY/Michigan (CCHA) Montreal
26 Bryce Lampman D 6-1/193 8/31/82 L Rochester, MN/Neb.-Omaha (CCHA) N.Y. Rangers
13 Brett Lebda D 5-10/195 1/15/82 L Buffalo Grove, IL/Notre Dame (CCHA) 2002
5 Erik Reitz D 6-0/192 7/29/82 R Plymouth, MI/Barrie (OHL) Minnesota
6 Noah Welch D 6-3/212 8/26/82 L Brighton, MA/Harvard (ECAC) Pittsburgh
3 Ryan Whitney D 6-4/192 2/19/83 L Scituate, MA/Boston University (HE) 2002
FORWARDS (12)
23 Dustin Brown F 6-1/203 11/4/84 R Ithaca, NY/Guelph (OHL) 2003
9 Ben Eaves F 5-8/176 3/7/82 R Faribault, MN/Boston College (HE) Pittsburgh
18 Rob Globke F 6-3/214 10/24/82 R W. Bloomfield, MI/Notre Dame (CCHA) 2002
24 Dwight Helminen F 5-10/184 6/22/83 L Brighton, MI/Michigan (CCHA) 2002
21 Chris Higgins F 5-9/190 6/2/83 L Smithtown, NY/Yale (ECAC) 2002
11 Ryan Hollweg F 5-11/185 4/23/83 L Downey, CA /Medicine Hat (WHL) N.Y. Rangers
16 Gregg Johnson F 5-11/183 6/18/82 L Windsor, CT/Boston University (HE) Ottawa
10 Chad LaRose F 5-10/170 3/27/82 R Fraser, MI/Plymouth (OHL) 2002
19 Jim Slater F 5-11/165 12/9/82 L Detroit, MI/Michigan St. (CCHA) 2002
14 David Steckel F 6-4/200 3/15/82 L West Bend, WI/Ohio State (CCHA) Los Angeles
22 R.J. Umberger F 6-2/200 5/3/82 L Pittsburgh, PA/Ohio State (CCHA) Vancouver
12 Kris Vernarsky F 6-2/195 4/5/82 L Warren, MI/Plymouth (OHL) Toronto
Head Coach: Keith Allain (Centerville, MA)
Assistant Coach: Red Gendron (Berlin, NH)
Assistant Coach: Jim Johnson (Phoenix, AZ)
Assistant Coach: John Hynes (Warwick, RI)
Team Manager: Jim Johannson (Colorado Springs, CO)
Athletic Trainer: Jason Hodges (Ann Arbor, MI)
Equipment Manager: James Dunn (Minneapolis, MN)