Housley to coach U.S. junior national team

Phil Housley will coach the U.S. junior national team at the World Championships from Dec. 26-Jan. 5 in Ufa, Russia.

Housley, coach of the Stillwater High School boys team for the past eight seasons, was a seven-time NHL All-Star defenseman.

USA Hockey made the announcement this afternoon.

Housley, 48, played for eight teams in the NHL as a defenseman and had 1,232 points, a record for an American-born player until Mike Modano broke it in 2007. Housley, who jumped from South St. Paul High School right to the NHL, played in nearly 1,500 NHL games.

The 46 players who are top candidates for the U.S. junior national team were announced earlier today. Those players will be in an evaluation camp in Lake Placid in August.

Housley's assistant coaches will be Gophers assistant Grant Potulny and Ohio State coach Mark Osiecki. Gophers coach Don Lucia will be on the evaluation staff in Lake Placid.

The USA Hockey news release on Housley:

"We're extremely pleased to have Phil coach our National Junior Team," said Jim Johannson, assistant executive director for hockey operations at USA Hockey, who will also serve as general manager of the 2013 U.S. National Junior Team. "Having both played and coached internationally, Phil understands what it takes to be successful in a short tournament. He's also used to relating to players of this age group, which will certainly be beneficial."

"I'm honored to be asked to coach this team and look forward to the challenge," said Housley. "The depth of our player pool is as good as it has ever been and I'm sure it will be a challenge to settle on which players will represent our country in Ufa."

The U.S. National Junior Team will take part in the 2013 IIHF World Junior Championship Dec. 26, 2012 - Jan. 5, 2013 in Ufa, Russia. The U.S. is seeking its third medal in four years, having won the gold medal in 2010 and the bronze medal in 2011.

In 2011-12 Housley completed his eighth season as the head coach of the Stillwater (Minn.) High School boys' ice hockey team.

As a player, Housley had a remarkable career with Team USA, representing his country at 11 international tournaments. He was inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in 2004 and the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame in 2012. In 2000 he was honored with USA Hockey's Bob Johnson Award for excellence in international competition. Following his USA Hockey debut as a member of the 1982 U.S. Junior National Team, Housley went on to play for seven U.S. Men's National Teams (1982, 1986, 1989, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2003). In 2002 he received a silver medal with the U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team at the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City, Utah. Additionally, he won gold with Team USA at the 1996 World Cup of Hockey.