Oettinger, Middelstadt invited to USA NJEC

Aaron Vickers2017 Draft Center, NCAA, Tournaments & Events, USHL

Goaltender Jake Oettinger of the National Team Development Program and center Casey Middelstadt of Eden Prairie are two of four 2017 NHL Draft eligible players invited to participate in the 2016 USA Hockey National Junior Evaluation Camp.

The camp will be held at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, MI., from July 30-August. 7, and will feature exhibition games against Finland, Sweden and Canada.

Oettinger is the top-ranked goaltender in Future Considerations’ preliminary ranking for the 2017 draft. He posted a 2.24 goals against average and .919 save percentage in 15 USHL games, and a 2.38 goals against average and .908 save percentage in 37 games for the United States. He’s won gold (2015) and bronze (2016) over the past two years at the World Under-18 Championship, and silver at the 2014 IIHF World Under-17 Challenge with the Americans.

Middelstadt, the top-ranked American-born player in the ranking, had 22 goals and 59 points in 25 games with Eden Prairie, and 14 goals and 41 points in 19 games with Team Southeast in 2015-16. He also spent part of his year playing for the United States Under-18 team, recording seven goals and 13 points in 13 games, and had four goals and nine points in seven games  at the World Under-18’s.

Kailer Yamamoto of the Spokane Chiefs was also invited. Yamamoto, ranked 11th, had 19 goals and 71 points in 57 games with Spokane in his second season in the Western Hockey League. He scored seven goals and 13 points in seven games at the World Under-18’s.

Luke Martin of the NTDP was also invited to the camp.

The full list of invites can be found HERE.