COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – USA Hockey announced Tuesday morning that Viking hockey head coach Garrett Raboin will lead the charge for the U.S. Under-18 Men's Select Team roster that will compete in the  2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, set for August 5-10 at Rogers Place and Downtown Community Arena in Edmonton, Alberta.

Raboin said "It's a short tournament, it's unique, it's not identical to the World Junior process, but there are some similarities. It's a great opportunity to be around a tremendous staff, learn from them, and coach high-end players."

Raboin is joined by assistant coaches Ben Gordon (International Falls, Minn./University of Minnesota), Chad Kolarik (Abington, Pa./USA Hockey), and Nick Oliver (Wannaska, Minn./University of Wisconsin). General manager Marc Boxer (Colorado Springs, Colo./USA Hockey) is joined by player personnel staff Rod Braceful (Detroit, Mich./USA Hockey) and Tony Gasparini (Lakeville, Minn./Sioux Falls Stampede). PD Melgoza (Torrance, Calif./University of Alaska Fairbanks) is the team's video and goalie coach, with athletic trainer Nick Hart (Omaha, Neb./Omaha Lancers) and team physician Jack Nickless (Chicago, Ill.). 

Jason Smits (Moline, Ill./University of Nebraska Omaha) and Augustana's own Jacob Snuggerud (Chaska, Minn./Augustana University) are the team's equipment managers.

The roster spans 12 states and features 10 players who helped the U.S. to a second-place finish at the 2023 Under-17 Five Nations Tournament in Chomutov, Czechia, as members of the U.S. Under-17 Men's Select Team.

The U.S. will compete alongside Czechia, Finland, and Germany in Group B at the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup. Canada, Slovakia, Sweden, and Switzerland will compete in Group A. Team USA has finished in the top three of the Hlinka tournament 14 times since the tournament began in 1991. The U.S. won the tournament in 2003 and has finished second on nine occasions and third four times. 

Team USA's Hlinka Gretzky Cup games will be televised live on NHL Network. The U.S. opens play in the tournament on August 5 against Czechia at 4:30 p.m.