Brian Gionta, a forward who has played 1,006 NHL games spanning 15 seasons in the NHL with the New Jersey Devils, Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres, spoke to the U.S. players prior to practice at HarborCenter.
"He's played in this tournament and knows how competitive it has to be, and he gave the guys some great advice on how to compete and how to win gold," said U.S. high performance coach Sean Braziel. "Ultimately he wants to see this team go back to back so that it sets conditions for our U.S. Olympic team."
The United States won gold with a 5-4 shootout win against Canada at the 2017 WJC.
Gionta, 38, who has not played in the NHL this season, told the players about his experiences representing the United States at the WJC (1998, 1999), the World Championship (2000, 2001, 2005) and the 2006 Torino Olympics.
"I think he's got great insight being a captain for so long and being a part of USA Hockey," said U.S. captain Joey Anderson, a Devils forward prospect. "He's has a lot of experience he can share with us. He wants us to enjoy what we're doing and to make sure we stick together as a group. It was nice to hear another voice."