University of Minnesota Athletics
USA Hockey Spotlight: Brady Skjei
5/12/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Hockey
MINNEAPOLIS (GopherSports.com) - With four Gopher Hockey alums competing with the U.S. Men's National Team at the 2016 IIHF Men's World Championship in Russia, GopherSports.com caught up with Brady Skjei, Hudson Fasching, Jordan Schroeder and assistant coach Todd Richards during their time in St. Petersburg.
Brady Skjei is the first Gopher Hockey alum to be profiled following the U.S.'s 4-0 preliminary-round victory over France on Thursday. A native of Lakeville, Minn., Skjei has played in all four preliminary games for the U.S. and scored the team's final goal in the win over France. The defenseman is making his third appearance for USA Hockey in IIHF competition. He previously helped the U.S. claim gold at the 2012 IIHF Men's Under-18 World Championship and was also a member of the 2014 U.S. National Junior Team.
GopherSports.com caught up with the former Gopher and current New York Rangers defenseman soon after the win.
GopherSports.com: First off, congratulations on the win over France and picking up a nice goal in the effort. How'd you feel about the game today?
Brady Skjei: It felt good to get the victory over France. We certainly can't underestimate anybody in this tournament…can't take anybody for granted. It took us a bit to get going, but we popped one in and that started to get things rolling for us.
GS: One thing most Gophers fans noticed right away is that you were reunited with former Maroon & Gold teammate Hudson Fasching for the tournament (the pair also skated together at the 2014 IIHF World Junior Championship for head coach Don Lucia). How's it feel to be back in the lineup with him?
BS: It's good to be back playing with Hudson. We kept in touch over the last season, but I hadn't actually seen him since last season. It's been great catching up with him and hearing how the last couple weeks have gone for him.
GS: You are also playing with former Gopher Jordan Schroeder, who came through campus a bit before you two did. What does he bring to the U.S. team?
BS: He's been a great leader for our team, and we are lucky to have him with us. He's originally from Lakeville too, and we're actually roommates together over here. It's great to have so much representation from the University of Minnesota.
GS: Speaking of that…you're all playing for Gopher alum and U.S. assistant coach Todd Richard (the school's all-time scoring leader for defensemen). Have you had much of a chance to get to know Coach Richards?
BS: Obviously as a Gopher and an NHL coach, he's someone I've respected for a long time. There hasn't been a ton of time for interaction other than purely hockey stuff, but he's been a great coach on the bench. He certainly knows his hockey, and he's done a great job running the defensemen so far. I should probably give him some credit since three of our four goals today came from defensemen.
GS: Aside from all of the Gopher ties, there are a lot of familiar names for Gopher fans on this roster and a lot of guys you are personally familiar with having gone to the U.S. National Team Development Program. How important is that familiarity?
BS: I basically know everyone on the team already either from playing with or against them, so we had good chemistry before we even played a game. It's improved even more so since then. That chemistry is important in tournaments like this where you come in and gel right away. It certainly helps that a lot of us have been familiar with each other for a long, long time.
GS: Last one for you…you guys had a couple days off before the France game. Did you have a chance to get out and explore St. Petersburg at all?
BS: Yeah, some of us just went on a tour of St. Petersburg. It's been a really cool experience to get out and see the city and learn about it.
Skjei and the U.S. Men's National Team (2-0-0-2-0, W-OTW-OTL-L-T) return to action on Friday, May 13 at 8:15 a.m. CT against Hungary in the fifth of seven preliminary-round games. The game will air on a 30-minute tape delay on NBC Sports Network and a live stream will be available on NBC Sports Live Extra.
