Bronze victory caps memorable U.S. run at world championship

This past winter, Jim Johannson had fun informing players they'd been chosen to represent the United States for the men's hockey team at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics.
Johannson, USA Hockey's executive director prior to his unexpected death Jan. 21, called every player on the team, which was comprised of non-NHL players per the league's decision to not participate. Each call Johansson made was emotional, which he loved.
The emotions were on the other end of the phone when Blue Jackets assistant general manager Bill Zito made those calls this spring, while putting together a U.S. roster for the 2018 IIHF Men's World Championship in Denmark.
"It was the other way around for me," joked Zito, who was chosen to be GM for the U.S. team, which won the bronze medal Sunday with a 4-1 victory against Canada in Copenhagen. "It was me calling the guys back a few times or the guy wouldn't even take my call."

Zito was turned down plenty, but managed to assemble one of the best U.S. world-championship rosters in recent memory, headlined by Chicago Blackhawks star Patrick Kane.
It's tough to assemble a U.S. team for 'worlds,' simply because it's not the Olympics and the tournament begins shortly after the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs concludes. That means NHL veterans are often injured or simply not interested in spending three weeks overseas after completing an NHL season.
This year was a little different, though, because of Johannson's shocking death at age 53.
He was beloved in the U.S. hockey community, as proven by the number of the sport's dignitaries who attended his memorial services, flying to Colorado Springs, Colo., from alll corner of the country to pay their respects.
That included Zito, who was among a contingent of Blue Jackets personnel who broke away during a road trip to Arizona to attend. Johannson's last Olympic team didn't finish with a medal, but even if it had, there likely would've been more interest than usual for Team USA at the world championship, simply because of Johannson and the fact NHL players weren't allowed to compete in Pyeongchang.
Those were two big reasons Zito was able to assemble such a balanced, talented roster.
First to commit was New York Rangers forward Chris Kreider, followed by New York Islanders forward Anders Lee - who'd also played for the U.S. in the previous two world championships.
Zito was shooting baskets with his son, in Dublin, when he got Lee's thumbs-up.
"He was on the fence and he sent me a text: 'I'm in. Let's do this,"' said Zito, who also got a bronze in the 2015 world championship, as an advisor for the U.S. "I started jumping up and down. I was playing basketball with Billy, in the driveway. So, I sent him a text back: 'I just did a dance in front of my kid!'"
Kane also committed, as did Calgary Flames star Johnny Gaudreau.
The roster was starting to come together nicely and got even better following the conclusion of the first round of the playoffs. New Jersey Devils goalie Keith Kinkaid accepted an invite, and then two Blue Jackets joined the mix.
Following an emotionally-draining loss to the Washington Capitals in six games, forwards Cam Atkinson and Sonny Milano decided they wanted to keep playing, too.
Atkinson turned out to be a huge addition, finishing the tournament with seven goals, four assists and 11 points in 10 games. He also decided games in the preliminary round against Canada in a shootout and Latvia in overtime.
Atkinson won the game against Canada, the first of the tournament, by going 2-for-2 in shootout attempts. He then defeated Latvia with a power-play goal in OT against highly-touted Blue Jackets goaltending prospect Elvis Merzlikins.
"I just think this was a great chance for Cam to continue to play," said Zito, who lauded Atkinson's veteran leadership on the U.S. team. "He's embraced it, he's having fun, he's playing well, and I don't see this as anything out of the ordinary. Cam Atkinson's a really good hockey player."
There were a lot of those within this group of Americans, not to mention a talented coaching staff.
Jeff Blashill, the Detroit Red Wings' head coach, was the head coach for the U.S. again, after handling the same role last year. Former Pittsburgh Penguins and Buffalo Sabres head coach, Dan Bylsma, also coached for a second time in the world championship, as did the rest of the staff, which included Don Granato, Seth Appert and Adam Nightingale.
"The coaching staff is a team within a team, right?" Zito said. "You have these personalities, some of whom have worked with each other before and some who have not, who have gelled and come together as their own cohesive unit. It's a joy to spend time with them. They interact well, they debate well, they disagree well. That's great leadership from those hockey minds and I think it bodes well, because you can see [they got] results."
There's no denying that fact.
The U.S. has won six of seven preliminary-round games in back-to-back years at the world championship, with a disappointing loss to Finland in the quarterfinal round last year preventing them from playing for a medal in that one.
They weren't going to be denied this time. Despite a 6-0 loss in the semifinals Saturday to Sweden, the defending champion, Team USA rebounded strong Sunday in its second game of the tournament against rival Canada.
Kreider scored twice, including the first of the game and the second of two empty-net goals in the third. Lee scored too, sending home the first empty-net goal with 2:15 left. Then there was Nashville Predators center Nick Bonino, whose power-play goal broke a 1-1 tie with less than seven minutes left in the third.
Bonino was a late addition, after grinding through a second-round series against the Winnipeg Jets that lasted seven games. A two-time winner of the Stanley Cup with the Penguins the past two years, Bonino had every reason to decline.
"That poor guy, he just goes hard in that series and he's beat up, and they just had a kid [last year], so there's a baby in their house, and he says, 'I'm in. I'm not done playing … I want to play hockey,'" Zito said. "Wow. I can tell you, a lot of guys in our room were whooping it up when they heard that: 'I want to play hockey.' There's a reason that guy has Stanley Cups, you know?"
It's the same reason he has a bronze medal now from the 2018 world championship.
Like the rest of this U.S. team, Bonino felt the urge to be part of something special, going back to the team's stated goal of giving their all for Johannson.
They didn't get the gold, which the U.S. hasn't won since 1933 in this event, but the Americans did embody what Johannson's No.1 goal was for USA Hockey. Above all else, he wanted it to be a special feeling every time a player pulled on "USA" jersey, whether they were NHLers, college kids, teenagers, women, Paralympians … you name it.
That's how U.S. teams are put together now, including this one, which received its bronze medals from Johannson's brother, John Johannson.
Jim Johannson "J.J." was also represented, when the team posed for the official team photo with a blue "USA" jersey bearing his name positioned in the front row.
"I think that's a real common thread among a lot of guys, because otherwise they wouldn't come, right?" Zito said. "If you didn't want to come play hockey and it didn't mean something to you, you wouldn't just show up to play the game. It's neat. It's really neat."
A different word with the same meaning is how Zito sums up the world-championship experience, especially with a stake in the game.
"I think I have a pretty good vocabulary, and the best words I can come up with to describe this are just, 'Really cool,'" he said. "To be a part of this and see the pride the guys have, and to learn and interact all day long, every day, with some of the best players and coaches in the world … it's like a candy store. For a guy who was never good enough to play [in it], to be associated with it is a big deal to me on a personal level. It's so much fun. It's such a cool experience."