Cyclone Hockey players named to USA roster

Luke Manderfeld

The USA Hockey Association announced its men’s hockey roster on Dec. 8 for the 2015 World University Winter Games in Granada, Spain, and it included two players from the Cyclone Hockey team.

Cyclone forward J.P. Kascsak and goaltender Matt Cooper will be among the 22 American Collegiate Hockey Association players participating in the competition.

The 2015 World University Winter Games will be Cooper’s second time competing in the event. He was part of the USA team in 2013 that just missed a medal after falling 6-2 to Russia in the bronze medal game. It was also the highest rank for a USA hockey team in the history of the games.

Cooper is enjoying a good season for the Cyclones so far, owning a .938 save percentage and a 1.94 GAA. He is also one of two members of the USA squad that were named First Team All-Americans in the ACHA a season ago.

The competition will be Kascsak’s first time donning the red, white and blue jersey.

He started the season slow for the Cyclones, only scoring two goals in his first five ACHA games. But he turned it around in a big way on Oct. 5 against Indiana Tech with three goals on the night. Since then, he has scored five goals.

He is currently second for the Cyclones in scoring with seven goals and fourth on the team in total points with 14.

The tournament spans from Feb. 5 to Feb. 12. Team USA will start off by playing Japan at 8:30 p.m. on Dec. 5 in Granada, Spain.