Team USA ‘hungry’ following back-to-back gold medals at World Juniors

DULUTH – The past few days have been a little weird for Adam Kleber, who is spending his days at Amsoil Arena — normal for the Minnesota Duluth defenseman — but now looks across a weight room to see opponents-turned-teammates using the Bulldogs’ equipment.

He might bump into his college coach Scott Sandelin in a hallway at the rink, but Kleber is wearing red, white and blue right now. He has a home here in Duluth, but he is living in a hotel alongside other contenders for the U.S. national junior team.

“Last night we went to Bentleyville,” he said Thursday, a reference to an annual tour of lights at Bayfront Festival Park that attracts thousands of visitors to the city during the holiday season. “It was good; I haven’t been there and I’ve actually lived here for years.”

The International Ice Hockey Federation’s World Juniors Tournament starts Friday in the Twin Cities.

The United States, in Group A, will face Germany at 6 p.m. Friday at Grand Casino Arena; those teams also played an exhibition Sunday at Amsoil, with the Americans getting two goals each from Will Horcoff and Will Zellers in an 8-0 victory.

There are Group B games for teams like Canada at 3M Arena at Mariucci. There will be more than two dozen games between the two arenas by the time the tournament ends Jan. 5.

Team USA is led by Gophers coach Bob Motzko, whose 2017 team won a gold medal in this tournament.

Team USA has won the past two years and this year’s lineup includes nine returning players from the 4-3 overtime victory over Finland in the gold medal game in Ottawa, including Kleber, a 6-5 sophomore from Chaska.

But that was the past.

“We’ve got a lot of guys that are wanting to write their own story,” Kleber said. “We’re really not just focused on the past two years and the successes those teams have had, we’re really focused on putting that behind us, learning from it, and just trying to write our own story.”

The defining characteristic of Team USA: “I would just say hungry,” Kleber said.

Players on the preliminary roster come from 10 states, but Minnesota led with eight players — including a speedy UMD forward who has shifted to center this week. Max Plante of Hermantown was a late-add to Team USA’s roster last season after sitting out some college games because of a wrist injury.

This year has already been different. Plante came into camp riding a strong start for the Bulldogs and he knows that work he put in this past summer is already proven fruitful. He is faster and stronger than last year, which has brought more confidence. He leads Division I players in scoring with 30 points (16 goals, 14 assists).

His role on this team, he said, is an energy guy.

“I’m just going to try and move my feet and steal pucks,” Plante said.

Plante said he’s spending these days with a fun-loving crew that isn’t afraid to compete hard against each other at practice, then resume as best friends — goofing around in the locker room afterward.

Among the 10 teams that are part of the tournament, the United States, Finland and Germany moved into Amsoil Arena last Monday. National flags are draped on walls outside the locker rooms, a backdrop for extra tape, sticks and skate sharpeners.