Whitehall's John Gibson Helps USA to World Juniors Title Game

Whitehall Borough native John Gibson has surrendered just one goal in two playoffs games to help to lead Team USA to the gold-medal game of the Under-20 World Ice Hockey "Junior" Championships, which will be held on Saturday in Russia at 8 a.m. Eastern time.

Gibson, formerly a student at Whitehall's St. Gabriel of the Sorrowful Virgin and Baldwin High schools, blanked the Czech Republic, 7-0, on Wednesday before defeating Canada, 5-1, in the semifinals on Thursday.

The United States (4-2) will now face undefeated Sweden—3-2 winners over Russia in Thursday's other semifinal—for the gold. The game will be broadcast live on the NHL Network and re-broadcast at 8 p.m. It will also be live-streamed on NHL.com.

The 6-foot-3, 222-pound Gibson helped Team USA to win gold at the 2011 world under-18 championships by posting back-to-back overtime wins against Canada and Sweden. He was named as the best goaltender of that tournament.

Since then, he has signed with the NHL's Anaheim Ducks but currently plays for the junior-level Kitchener Rangers of the Ontario Hockey League.

Gibson has allowed eight goals in six games at this season's world junior championships, which started on Dec. 26. He has a 1.42 goals-against average and a .954 saves percentage.

There are other strong Pittsburgh-area ties on Team USA's roster for Saturday's championship game, as well: forward and Upper St. Clair Township native Vincent Trocheck, who has two goals and two assists in six games, forward and Washington, PA, native Riley Barber, who has three goals and three assists in six games, and forward and one-time Coraopolis Borough resident J.T. Miller, who has two goals and a team-high-tying six assists in six games.

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