Auston Matthews, Matthew Knies named to U.S. men’s Olympic orientation camp

Toronto Maple Leafs forwards Auston Matthews and Matthew Knies are among the 44 players named to the U.S. men’s Olympic orientation camp, USA Hockey announced Tuesday. The camp will take place from August 26-27, with no formal on-ice activity.

Matthews was originally named to the team as one of the first six players selected, joined by Jack Eichel, Brady Tkachuk, Matthew Tkachuk, Quinn Hughes and Charlie McAvoy in June. During the 4 Nations Face-Off, Matthews also served as USA’s captain, steering the team to the gold medal game where it lost in overtime to Canada.

Knies has emerged as a legitimate candidate to make the team after a breakout season with the Maple Leafs. The 22-year-old power forward recorded 29 goals and 58 points in 78 regular season games, before adding five goals and seven points in 13 playoff contests. Knies was stapled to Toronto’s first line alongside Matthews for the past two seasons, and he could be considered as a legitimate top-six option for his country, while improving as a penalty killer.

Here is the full USA orientation camp roster:

Goaltenders: Joey Daccord, Connor Hellebuyck, Jake Oettinger, Jeremy Swayman

Defensemen: Brock Faber, Adam Fox, Luke Hughes, Quinn Hughes, Noah Hanifin, Seth Jones, Jackson LaCombe, Charlie McAvoy, Ryan McDonagh, Brett Pesce, Neal Pionk, Jake Sanderson, Brady Skjei, Jaccob Slavin, Alex Vlasic, Zach Werenski

Forwards: Matt Boldy, Cole Caufield, Logan Cooley, Kyle Connor, Jack Eichel, Conor Garland, Jake Guentzel, Jack Hughes, Patrick Kane, Clayton Keller, Matthew Knies, Chris Kreider, Dylan Larkin, Auston Matthews, J.T. Miller, Frank Nazar, Brock Nelson, Shane Pinto, Jason Robertson, Bryan Rust, Tage Thompson, Brady Tkachuk, Matthew Tkachuk, Vincent Trocheck, Alex Tuch

For the time being, Knies is at least in consideration for the Olympic team and though it will be a competitive endeavour throughout, another stellar season with a larger role on the Maple Leafs ought to go a long way. Knies secured a six-year extension worth $7.75 million annually in June, and will be one of the pillars of the Maple Leafs’ organization for the foreseeable future.