New York
Rangers
Ryan McDonagh
logged 53 minutes
and 21 seconds of
ice time in a tripleovertime playoff
victory on
May 2, 2012
McDonagh gradually developed and
grew through the Mounds View Youth
Hockey Association. He took advantage
of the Reebok Minnesota Hockey High
Performance programs when he was both
15 and 16 and progressed all the way to
the national-level USA Hockey Player
Development Camp both years.
His high school hockey career opened
plenty of eyes. McDonagh actually played
forward his freshman and sophomore seasons
at Cretin-Derham Hall, proving that versatility
and the ability to play different positions is an
incredibly valuable skill. He eventually shifted
back to the blue line, where his superior
skating allowed him to quarterback the
Raiders in every aspect of the game.
In his three years at the University of
2014 USA
Olympic Team
"I was the only
one in our close
group that made
the B-Squirt
team, and I
remember how
heartbroken
I was."
Wisconsin, he became more of a shutdown
defenseman. McDonagh is now a staple for
the New York Rangers, averaging 24:38 of ice
time every game. The organization's trust
in their young star earned him a six-year,
$28.2 million contract extension last summer.
And now, USA Hockey has selected him
to represent the Red, White and Blue in the
2014 Winter Olympics.
McDonagh is the second Olympian
to come out of the Mounds View Youth
Hockey Association. Rob McClanahan—
who helped lead Team USA to Gold in
1980—was the first.
"We could not be prouder than to have
one of our own represent the U.S. in the
Olympics," Mounds View Youth Hockey
Association President Tim Herold said in a
statement. "We all wish Ryan the best and
hope he brings home a gold medal like
Rob McClanahan."
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