He first attended the Culver Military Academy where he helped his team win the Indiana state championship in 2003. He was invited to join the USA Hockey National Team Development Program (USNTDP) where he spent two seasons between 2004 and 2006. He made his international debut with Team USA at the 2006 IIHF World Under-18 Championship. He scored five points in six games in the tournament for the gold medal winning Americans.