Jacob Rombach has become used to the added attention.
At 6 feet 6 inches, the towering Lincoln Stars defenseman immediately grabs your attention on the ice. He’s physical and uses his size well. Rombach is a bit of a throwback defender, someone who shuts things down and makes life easier for his defensive partner.
It’s one of the reasons NHL scouts have given Rombach plenty of attention and why he’s been selected to play for Team White in the Chipotle All-American game on Thursday (7 p.m. ET NHL Network) at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, Michigan.
“I was super grateful to be selected for that game, and just being able to play against top draft-eligible players in the USHL is a huge chance for me to show my skills,” Rombach said. “So I’m just really excited overall about this.”
When it comes to those skills, Rombach describes himself as a two-way defenseman who leans defense first. His game has taken major strides the past two seasons after making the jump to the USHL from high school hockey.
For Rombach, making that jump as a 16-year-old was important. While he enjoyed playing high school hockey for Spring Lake Park in Minnesota, he said he realized he needed to push himself to build a brighter hockey future.
“I needed to go against bigger, faster, stronger [players],” Rombach said. “I needed to go against the best, and I needed to go against players that were going to make me adapt, and that’s something I learned quite a bit in the USHL.”
He learned enough and performed well enough to be selected for Team USA at the World Jr. A Challenge, where he helped the Americans defeat Sweden in the championship game.
While Rombach is more of a late arrival to the 2025 draft scene, his Team White teammate Cole McKinney has been high on scouts’ radars the past two seasons with USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program.
McKinney, who is now ranked 33rd amongst North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting, has 27 points in 30 games this season with the NTDP and has proven he’s a stabilizing force for the Under-18 team.
“It’s pretty exciting for me with this event because we’ll also get to play against some of our teammates from the NTDP,” McKinney said. “Plus, they’ll be an opportunity to play against some players I’ve gotten to know, and you know it’ll be a great challenge, I’m really excited.”
For both McKinney and Rombach, the fact they’ll be playing in front of so many NHL scouts isn’t lost on them. For both players, sticking to their game will be vital on Thursday.
“It’s there and as much as you try to not look at this stuff, it comes up and it’s a dream to get drafted,” McKinney said. “You have to set team goals, and you build that focus to not get distracted by some of the rankings and stuff.”
For McKinney, and the rest of the NTDP, the goal is winning the 2025 IIHF Under-18 Men’s World Championship this spring in Frisco and Allen, Texas. For Rombach, his eyes are on the USHL Playoffs and trying to win a Clark Cup.
But for both, on Thursday, it’s about helping Team White win against Team Blue.
Story from Red Line Editorial, Inc.