IIHF World Junior Championships Under Way For UMass' Locmelis ...
AMHERST, Mass. - University of Massachusetts freshman forward Dans Locmelis and freshman goaltender Michael Hrabal have both been selected to represent their respective nations of Latvia and Czechia at the 2024 World Junior Championship, which is under way in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Group play runs from December 26 to December 31 with the quarterfinal round set for January 2 and seminfinals scheduled for January 4 before the tournament culminates with the Medal Round on January 5.
Latvia is in Group A with Canada, Sweden, Finland and Germany. Czechia is in group B with the United States, Slovakia, Switzerland and Norway.
Locmelis has five points through the first 12 games of his UMass career on four goals and an assist and posted his first multi-goal game this past weekend against Alaska Anchorage. The Jelgava native previously represented Lativa at both the 2022 and 2023 World Junior Championships and registered four goals and an assist for five points over 11 games over the two tournaments. He was honored as one of Latvia's Top 3 players of the tournament in 2023. Locmelis also played in the senior World Championship with Latvia this past Summer and had three points on two goals and an assist over nine games.
Hrabal, a two-time Hockey East Rookie of the week thus far this season, has appeared in 12 games in his first semester of collegiate hockey, posting a 2.67 goals against average and a .905 save percentage over 673 minutes with a record of 7-3-1. The Prague native posted his first collegiate shutout on Oct. 21 at Minnesota State, stopping all 32 shots he faced.
In previous international competition for Czechia, Hrabal registered a 3.11 GAA and a .920 save percentage at the 2023 U-18 World Hockey Championship and was named one of Czechia's top-3 players of the tournament. At the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in 2022 he logged a 2.73 GAA and a .917 save percentage over four contests.
Massachusetts hockey has been represented well at World Juniors during Greg Carvel's tenure at UMass with Minutemen earning roster spots at five of the past six IIHF World Junior Championships. Most recently, current sophomore Kenny Connors and current junior Ryan Ufko earned Bronze with the U.S. National Junior Team at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship.
Current junior Scott Morrow was named to the U.S. National Junior Team for the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship prior to its postponement. Zac Jones made the U.S. squad in 2020, goaltender Filip Lindberg earned a Gold medal at the 2019 tournament with Finland and Cale Makar won Gold with Canada at the 2018 World Junior Championship. Other past WJC participants from UMass include William Lagesson (2016, Sweden) and Stephen Werner (2004, USA). Werner was a Gold medal winner, as well. Director of Equipment Operations Josh Penn earned a Bronze medal on staff with Team USA in 2018.
