Braden Horton scored two power-play goals in the second period, and the U.S. National Under-18 Team beat Czechia 4-1 on Thursday at SWISS Arena in Kloten, Switzerland. The Plymouth-based National Team Development Program squad improved to 2-0-0-0 at the U18 Five Nations Tournament, a day after opening with a 3-1 win over Sweden.
Cannon Thibodeau opened the scoring at 13:56 of the first period. Freddie Schneider got him the puck along the boards in the defensive zone, and Thibodeau carried it the length of the ice, split the Czech defense, and slid it past starting goaltender Simon Pesout.
Horton made it 2-0 on the power play at 9:47 of the second, finishing at the goal line after Diego Gutierrez found Nolan Fitzhenry driving to the crease. Czechia answered 64 seconds later to cut the lead to 2-1, but the U.S. power play struck again at 16:16. Gutierrez fired from the blue line, the puck ticked off Fitzhenry, and Horton tipped it past Pesout for what stood as the winner.
Ryland Rooney added insurance at 3:12 of the third period, his first goal of the tournament, when a Christian Semetsis shot deflected in off him. Nate Chizik stopped all but one shot in goal for the U.S. The NTDP did not publish shot totals or full power-play results in its game story.
Fitzhenry and Gutierrez have now been involved in scoring plays in both games in Kloten. The U.S. faces Finland on Friday at 9:30 a.m. ET. After the tournament, the U18s return to USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth to host the Chicago Steel in a USHL series on Nov. 13 and 14.
The tournament opener: NTDP U18 Game Recap: vs. Sweden (Nov. 4).
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