At just 16 years old, Joey Cullen was by far USA’s most talented forward, even in a high-intensity semifinal matchup.
He always keeps his head up, scanning the ice for the right pass, and once he gets a good look, he has the elite hockey sense to know where everyone is and where they are going, allowing him to make plays before others can see them develop.
He recorded a secondary assist on USA’s opening power-play goal. While he did not directly create the goal, he showed good poise with the puck, waiting until the right pass opened up. Though that was his last point, it was far from the last time he contributed offensively.
Later in the game, Cullen beat one defender to the inside before taking another to the outside and ringing the puck off the post.
On another play, he set up Gunnar Conboy with a completely open net, but Conboy missed. Cullen was also trusted to be a focal point of the American power play when he was on the ice.
Another thing that impressed me was his ability to stay with plays even when they broke down. He was constantly able to recover and get to loose pucks before defenders.