Tony Granato sat in the press box at USA Hockey Arena earlier this week watching the future of American hockey as the U.S. National Junior Teamwent through camp for the upcoming 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship.
“This is fun for me to watch because these kids aren’t going to participate, they are going to try and win,” Granato said. “When we went to tournaments when I was their age, we were long shots, happy to be there. Now we go as a country ready to win and compete for gold medals.”
That’s one of the reasons Granato is so excited about calling games for NHL Network, working as the color commentator beside E.J. Hradek, when the tournament starts on Dec. 26.
“I would pay to watch these kids practice,” Granato said. “The level of hockey is so high now,” Granato said, motioning toward the group going through paces with Team USA head coach David Carle.
Granato working the games on NHL Network is a welcome sign for the hockey community. The former University of Wisconsin and U.S. Olympic coach announced in December of 2023 that he had been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, requiring him to take a leave of absence from his TV roles at the time.
Granato learned this past summer that the treatment had been working, his cancer was in remission and he was cleared to start calling hockey games again, bringing a welcome sense of normalcy.
“I’m back at the rink, getting to do what I love, and that’s the best part,” Granato said. “I recently had my three-month check, and fortunately things are going well. I’m in remission and feeling good, and I get to focus on this great tournament.”
It brings back memories for Granato, who played for Team USA at the 1983 and 1984 World Juniors. Granato tallied five goals and three assists in 14 games.
“It was very special,” Granato said. “Back in my day, we didn’t have any development teams or pre-teams, so the World Junior tournament was the first time you really got to pull on the USA sweater, and I have so much pride in that. This was only two or three years after the Olympic team won in 1980, so there was a whole different meaning and sense of pride in what that jersey meant fresh off of that.”
While Team USA was working on building a team to defend its gold medal on the ice, above it, Granato was looking forward to teaming up with Hradek. The duo worked a game together for NHL Network recently, a nice pre-tournament warm-up before the games in Ottawa.
“We worked that game together and got some familiarity with each other and I’ve listened to E.J. for a long time on NHL Network,” Granato said. “He knows the players. He knows the game and does his homework. All I’ve got to do is work on what I do and complement what he brings, so I’m just really excited about the opportunity.”
While Granato looked back on his past while preparing to call this tournament, he said in the future he’ll enjoy looking back on how the careers developed for the players on the ice in front of him.
“The enthusiasm for me, with this American team, is to be really watching some great players that we aren’t only going to get to know in this tournament, but we will see most of these guys in the NHL for 10 or 15 years, we’ll see them on Team USA at the Olympics in the future,” Granato said. “Thinking about that, that’s one of the most exciting parts for me.”
Story from Red Line Editorial, Inc
Source: usahockey.com