PLYMOUTH, Mich. -- Anaheim Ducks forward Max Jones, the 24th pick of the 2016 NHL Draft, was one of 10 players cut by the United States from the 2016 USA Hockey National Junior Evaluation Camp on Tuesday.
There are 33 players remaining at camp, which runs through Aug. 6: four goalies, 11 defensemen and 18 forwards.
The camp is the first step in picking the United States roster for the 2017 IIHF World Junior Championship.
U.S. team down to 33 players at Evaluation Camp
First-round pick Max Jones among 10 sent home vying for World Junior team
© Jeff Vinnick/Getty Images
Jones, a 6-foot-3, 203-pound left wing, played for USA White during two split-squad games. He had one assist and one shot on goal in an 8-2 win against Finland on Monday, and two shots on goal and four penalty minutes in a 6-3 loss to Sweden on Sunday.
Two other players picked in the first round of the 2016 draft were sent home for precautionary reasons. Forward Riley Tufte, selected by the Dallas Stars with the 25th pick, left the game because of a wrist injury sustained in the second period of USA Blue's 6-4 win against Sweden on Monday. Forward Matthew Tkachuk, taken by the Calgary Flames with the sixth pick, has not skated since the start of camp to be allowed to rest after a long season.
Tkachuk helped the U.S. win the bronze medal at the 2016 WJC with 11 points in seven games, tied for the team lead.
"I'd love to be out there playing but there's no need for me to be out there playing with the long season I had," Tkachuk said Monday. "And rest is probably the best thing for me at this point. … Talking with [U.S. WJC general manager] Jim Johansson about it, he was completely understanding about it. He wanted the same for me. We all know that when I come back, if I have the chance to represent this team at Christmastime, I want to be a leader and want to be looked upon as a leader."
Also sent home was forward Casey Mittelstadt, a top prospect for the 2017 NHL Draft. The 5-11, 192-pound center played for USA White and had one assist and one shot on goal against Finland, and one shot on goal against Sweden.
Two other top prospects for the 2017 draft remain at camp: forward Kailer Yamamoto and defenseman Luke Martin.
Yamamoto, a 5-7, 147-pound right wing, had one goal and one assist for USA White against Finland and had an assist against Sweden.
"Yamamoto plays with great energy," U.S. coach Bob Motzko said Monday. "Hard on pucks. Size is not a factor for him; he plays right through it. He gets to the dirty ice. Was strong game for him tonight."
Other players cut were forwards Joseph Anderson (New Jersey Devils), Rem Pitlick (Nashville Predators) and Brendan Warren (2017 draft eligible), and defensemen Sean Day (New York Rangers), James Greenway (Toronto Maple Leafs) and Joseph Masonius (Pittsburgh Penguins).
Greenway's older brother, forward Jordan Greenway, remains at camp. The Greenways were trying to become the third set of brothers to play for the U.S. at the World Junior Championship. Peter Ferraro and Chris Ferraro did it in 1992 and 1993, and Neal Broten and Aaron Broten in 1979.
The U.S. has three games remaining at the camp, starting with Sweden on Wednesday (4 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN). It then plays Finland on Friday (4 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN2) and Canada on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN4).
USA Hockey announced that forward Colin White (Ottawa Senators) will arrive at camp Thursday. White is unable to skate while he recovers from wrist surgery.
USA HOCKEY SUMMER EVALUATION CAMP ROSTER
GOALIES: Jake Oettinger, Boston University, H-EAST (2017 draft eligible); Tyler Parsons, London, OHL (Calgary Flames); Evan Sarthou, Tri-City, WHL (2017 draft eligible); Joseph Woll, Boston College, H-EAST (Toronto Maple Leafs)
DEFENSEMEN: Jack Ahcan, St. Cloud State, NCHC (2017 draft eligible); Nicholas Boka, Michigan, BIG10 (Minnesota Wild); Joseph Cecconi, Michigan, BIG10 (Dallas Stars); Casey Fitzgerald, Boston College, H-EAST (Buffalo Sabres); Adam Fox, Harvard, ECAC (Calgary Flames); Caleb Jones, Portland, WHL (Edmonton Oilers); Chad Krys, Boston University, H-EAST (Chicago Blackhawks); Ryan Lindgren, Minnesota, BIG10 (Boston Bruins); Luke Martin, Michigan, BIG10 (2017 draft eligible); Charlie McAvoy, Boston University, H-EAST (Boston Bruins); Jack Sadek, Minnesota, BIG10 (Minnesota Wild)
FORWARDS: Kieffer Bellows, Boston University, H-EAST (New York Islanders); Brock Boeser, North Dakota, NCHC (Vancouver Canucks); Jeremy Bracco, Kitchener, OHL (Toronto Maple Leafs); Logan Brown, Windsor, OHL (Ottawa Senators); Alexander DeBrincat, Erie, OHL (Chicago Blackhawks); Christian Fischer, Windsor, OHL (Arizona Coyotes); Erik Foley, Providence, H-EAST (Winnipeg Jets); Trent Frederic, Wisconsin, BIG10 (Boston Bruins); Jordan Greenway, Boston University, H-EAST (Minnesota Wild); Clayton Keller, Boston University, H-EAST (Arizona Coyotes); Luke Kunin, Wisconsin, BIG10 (Minnesota Wild); Tanner Laczynski, Ohio State, BIG10 (Philadelphia Flyers); Thomas Novak, Minnesota, BIG10 (Nashville Predators); Jack Roslovic, London, OHL (Winnipeg Jets); Troy Terry, Denver, NCHC (Anaheim Ducks); Tage Thompson, Connecticut, H-EAST (St. Louis Blues); Colin White, Boston College H-EAST (Ottawa Senators) - \; Kailer Yamamoto, Spokane, WHL (2017 draft eligible)
* - not skating*
