Captain America: Brodie Ziemer brings leadership, hard-working effort to 2024 NHL Draft

Credit: Steven Ellis/Daily Faceoff

ESPOO, Fin. – As James Hagens chases down the all-time scoring record at the U-18 World Championship in Finland, he has continuously pointed towards one of his wingers as a big piece of his success: Brodie Ziemer.

Ziemer isn’t the flashiest or the most outspoken guy out there. He’s not going to set any scoring records, and he’s not going to spend time with chirping guys to no end.

“He always so vocal, he just leads by example and does all the little things right,” linemate Teddy Stiga said. “I think he’s the perfect leader.”

Ziemer has two goals and 10 points through five games at the U-18s, the end of a two-year run with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program. The Americans have cruised through the tournament so far and look primed to challenge for their second consecutive gold medal.

Ziemer, a University of Minnesota commit, has been one of the team’s better two-way threats, consistently helping to set up Hagens and Stiga. The trio have combined for 39 points through five games, including 16 goals.

As a whole, Ziemer has 65 points in 59 games, putting him ahead of Kamil Bednarik for fourth in USNTDP scoring. Hagens is now up to 99 points while largely having Ziemer as one of his winger.

Ziemer’s role is simple: fight like hell to get the puck. He’s a worker-bee who never gives up, and you can tell he’s a team-first player out there. And when opponents start to zone in on Hagens, Ziemer is able to take control and put some pucks in himself.

Hagens is special on his own. He could probably play with anyone, but there’s a reason why he’s been paired with Ziemer for most of the season instead of his previous star winger, Cole Eiserman: the chemistry. Hagens, Ziemer and Stiga are all workhorses who give it their all every shift, and it pays off.

“We’re playing together, we play with a high pace and we work really hard,” Ziemer said. “Just getting hard on the forecheck and making it hard on the defense.”

That sounds cliche, of course, but it’s how they play. And with Ziemer the way, everyone follows in his footsteps.

“His shot’s huge, the way he works is huge,” Hagens said. “He’s a leader. He’s a guy that we all that should be leading our team, and he always gets it going. He makes plays happen, you’re going to have a hard time knocking him off the puck.”

Asking around the lockerroom, it’s clear Ziemer is close to everyone. He’s not the most outspoken player, but he’s got the respect of everyone. When he scores, the bench goes wild. It’s not easy being the captain of a championship contender, especially given how many superstars have come in the system.

“He’s one of those guys that you’re gonna love no matter what,” defenseman Cole Hutson said. “He’s just got that personality on him. And if you watch him, he’s a hell of a player, too.”

If there’s one guy USA coach Nick Fohr loves talking about, it’s his captain, No. 2.

“Brodie has been our leader from Day 1,” Fohr said. “From a coach’s perspective, he just does so many things right. He can step in and play in so many different roles. You need somebody to go win a faceoff, he’ll go win a faceoff. You need a guy to block a shot, he’ll go block a shot. You need a guy to go stand in front of the net and try to make some plays off the goal line on the power play, he goes and does that. He’s just so versitaile.

“And then he’s just got a personality that everyone likes,” Fohr continued. “It’s just a magnetic personality that everybody gets along with. He’s just a really good, level-headed kid that does a really good job of having great relationships with his teammates.”

In other words, he’s a coach’s player.

Depending on who you’re talking to, Ziemer can go anywhere from the second until the fourth round. It’s a wide range, with some scouts thinking Ziemer’s ceiling isn’t high enough to warrant much. Others see a guy who can adapt to any situation and think he can be a solid utility player. He’s just 5-foot-11, but he’s 192 pounds and is getting more comfortable at laying the body out when he needs to. Ziemer had some USHL games in which he stood out more than Hagens or Eiserman this year, showing flashes of being able to take games over.

That’s not his game, though. He’s looking like a future bottom-six player, but someone you can throw in a variety of roles and feel comfortable with. There’s no standout quality, like a booming shot or Dylan Larkin-esque speed. And that’s fine, he’s a Swiss army knife. But scouts think that could be enough for him to excel in the NHL.

“From the get-go, he was a top-six player for the Americans,” a scout said. “But the growth in his game this year has been so significant. He went from a potential sixth-rounder to something more significant. Still not too high, but he might have a solid NHL future ahead.”

Next on Ziemer’s list: leading his country to a gold on Sunday. They’ll have to beat Slovakia on Saturday before facing off against either Canada or Sweden, both of which would be spectacular matchups. The Americans are the favorites to win, with Hagens being the biggest reason why as he chases history.

But he’ll be the first to tell you his captain has had a big part in making that possible.

Captain America: Brodie Ziemer brings leadership, hard-working effort to 2024 NHL Draft

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