Little Caesars goalie Natalia Dilbone is coming home to South Lyon with a gold medal.
Dilbone, the youngest goalie at age 15 to be selected by Team USA for the women’s U18 world championship, was part of the U.S. team which beat Czechia, 5-1, in the final of the 2024 event on Sunday in Zug, Switzerland.
Kassidy Carmichael scored two goals, Margaret Scannell, Haley Box and Ava Thomas added goals and goalie Layla Hemp made 11 saves for the Americans, who reached the final for the 15th time in 16 years with nine gold medals and six silver medals.
Dilbone celebrated her 16th birthday last week in Switzerland and was in goal for Thursday’s 4-0 shutout win over Germany in the quarterfinals. She was the backup goalie in Sunday’s gold-medal victory.
In the bronze-medal game, Canada beat Finland, 8-1. Tournament scoring leader Chloe Primerano set records with two goals and an assist. With 16 points (eight goals, eights assists), Primerano established a new single-tournament points record.
In addition, the 17-year-old prodigy from North Vancouver, British Columbia, surpassed the U.S.’s Kendall Coyne Schofield (15 points in 2009) and Canada’s Jessica Campbell (15 points, 2010) for the second-highest total in U18 worlds history. The U.S.’s Amanda Kessel (19 points, 2009) is tops all-time.
Israel may be banned over safety concerns
The International Ice Hockey Federation said it could allow Israel to play in some upcoming world championship tournaments after earlier indicating that Israeli teams would be barred over concerns about security at the events.
The IIHF said that “Israel will not participate in IIHF Competitions for the time being,” but in a further statement Friday clarified that this decision so far only applies to a men’s under-20 tournament in Bulgaria starting Jan. 22.
No decision has yet been taken concerning the women’s and men’s world championship tournaments that Israel is due to play in March and April respectively, the IIHF added. Further IIHF council meetings are planned to discuss the issue in February and March before deciding.
“The IIHF completely understands that this is a difficult decision and is being made to prioritize security and safety of all involved parties first,” the IIHF said. “The IIHF hopes to find a way as soon as possible to bring back the Israeli National team in our championship program.”
Neither of the IIHF’s statements on Israel this week made any mention of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
Nylander voted into NHL All-Star Game
William Nylander, Mitch Marner and Morgan Rielly from the Toronto Maple Leafs were selected for the NHL All-Star Game through the results of a fan vote.
The Vancouver Canucks had four players voted into the Feb. 3 game in Toronto: goaltender Thatcher Demko, and forwards Elias Pettersson, J.T. Miller and Brock Boeser. Demko received the most votes with 1,398,699, followed by Nylander (1,393,578), Colorado defenseman Cale Makar (1,065,367) and Pettersson (976,716). Alex DeBrincat will represent the Red Wings at the game.
Edmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl, Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky, Avalanche goaltender Alexandar Georgiev and Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman also made it into the showcase event through the fan vote.
The NHL said more than 36 million votes were cast over eight days, setting a record.
Michigan-area hockey this week
Sunday
▶ Red Wings at Toronto, 7:30 (BSD/97.1)
Saturday
▶ Red Wings 5, Kings 3
▶ Rockford 3, Grand Rapids 2 (OT)
▶ University of Michigan 7, Stonehill 1
▶ Michigan State 7, Penn State 3
▶ Dubuque 4, NTDP U17s 2
▶ Miami (Ohio) 4, Western Michigan 3
▶ St. Thomas 3, Michigan Tech 1
▶ Lake Superior State 5, Northern Michigan 2
▶ Minnesota State 4, Ferris State 0
Friday
▶ Rockford 2, Grand Rapids 0
▶ University of Michigan 12, Stonehill 4
▶ Michigan State 5, Penn State 0
▶ NTDP U18s 8, Sioux Falls 5
▶ Dubuque 6, NTDP U17s 1
▶ Western Michigan 4, Miami (Ohio) 1
▶ Lake Superior State 5, Northern Michigan 1
▶ Minnesota State 4, Ferris State 2
Thursday
▶ Edmonton 3, Red Wings 2 (OT)
▶ Sioux Falls 7, NTDP U18s 4
▶ St. Thomas 4, Michigan Tech 3
Wednesday
▶ Milwaukee 3, Grand Rapids 2
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