Inside stories behind the start of the United States National Team Development Program

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There was infighting within USA Hockey. There was a heated physical altercation over recruiting a player. There was the agent who got fired for buying kegs and hiring exotic dancers to recruit teenagers.

There were parents who signed guardianship of their sons over to people they had never met. There was a boxing ring. There was a trip to Russia, where political protesters and armed soldiers surrounded a game's rink.

Then there was the legacy that came from all those events.

The United States National Team Development Program has become well known among hockey fans. The NTDP, as it's more commonly known, has become the proving ground for some of America's top…