(LEFT: Curtis Hall. Photo: Boston Bruins. RIGHT: John Beecher. Photo: Rena Laverty / USA Hockey.)
By: Patrick Donnelly | Follow me on Twitter @PatDonn12
Wednesday morning, USA Hockey named the 26-player preliminary roster for the 2020 World Junior Championship, which will be held in the Czech Republic. Among the skaters named to the roster were Bruins prospects John Beecher and Curtis Hall.
Beecher was selected by the Bruins with the 30th-overall pick in the first round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft in Vancouver last June. This season as a freshman at the University of Michigan (Big Ten), the Elmira, N.Y., native is the team-leader in points and goals with 5-4-9 totals through 16 games.
Beecher won a bronze medal with the United States at the 2019 Under-18 World Championship, posting three goals and an assist in seven games. During the 2018-19 campaign, the 18-year-old notched 15-28-43 numbers in 63 games with USA Hockey’s U-18 National Team Development Program.
Boston selected Hall 119th-overall in the fourth round of the 2018 Draft in Dallas. The 19-year-old is in the midst of his sophomore season with the Yale Bulldogs (ECAC), posting six goals and an assist for seven points in nine games. Last season as a freshman, the Chagrin Falls, Ohio, native recording 5-6-11 numbers through 24 games.
The WJC will mark just the third time Hall has skated with the U.S. on the national stage, highlighted by a second place finish at the 2017 World Junior A Challenge, where he registered a goal and an assist in five games. Hall also finished second in team scoring at the 2017 Hlinka Gretzky Cup with 3-1-4 in four games. In 113 games over four seasons with the Youngstown Phantoms of the United States Hockey League (USHL), Hall had 20-32-52 totals.
The tournament will be held from Dec. 26 through Jan. 5. Team USA will begin play on Thursday Dec. 26, squaring off against Canada at Ostravar Arena at 1:00 p.m. ET.
Check out the new Black N’ Gold Hockey Podcast episode 158 that we recorded below! You can find our show on many worldwide platforms such as Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Spotify, SoundCloud, and Stitcher.
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