The Stars head athletic trainer had to pack up crates of medical equipment and supplies for the three-hour drive and then unpack everything again. In addition, he had a team full of sore athletes who needed some attention and a reporter from Dallas who wanted to chat.

Dave Zeis was working on about four hours of sleep Friday after helping Team USA move from Herning to Copenhagen to prepare for Saturday's semifinal matchup against Sweden at the 2018 IIHF World Championship in Denmark.

He could have been exhausted, frustrated or even overwhelmed, but the main emotion he was feeling was pride.

"How can you not be proud," Zeis said of his first chance to represent Team USA in international competition. "It's just an incredible feeling to represent your country and to feel the camaraderie from everyone here. I'm having a great time."

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Zeis just completed his 11th season with the Stars and jumped at the chance to join the staff of Team USA. Born and raised in Buffalo, N.Y., he has always had a strong sense of national pride. A player at SUNY-Brockport in the early 1990s, he worked his way through college and seven seasons in the ECHL before landing a gig with the Stars, so he knows all about hard work.

But these past few weeks have been eye-opening.

"It's just a different world," he said. "It's a little bit like going back to the ECHL days, so there are a lot of challenges, but it really has been rewarding too."

Jyske Bank Boxen, the site of Team USA's preliminary round games, holds 11,000 fans, so it's a bit different than the mega arenas of the NHL. What's more, Team USA is not only assembling a team on the fly, but a support staff too. That's made for some interesting days.

In addition to learning to improvise here and there with equipment, Zeis also is dealing with new athletes. No Stars players are on Team USA, so the process has been educational.

"It's been a lot of fun, because you learn from them and they learn from you," Zeis said. "With our guys, we're all so familiar that we can anticipate what their needs will be, and there is a very good routine. But I also think having to ask questions and exchange information with these guys, that can be eye-opening. You can show them different things, and they get excited if something you do helps them either prepare better or avoid pain or whatever. Sometimes, it's good to sort of shake things up."

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Zeis is not a world traveler, so the entire trip has shaken things up for him. Everything from lodging to language to currency to electrical current has been different -- and that's been a good thing.

"Most people speak our language, so that helps, but the people have been really great," Zeis said. "We had volunteers helping us today, and they were so nice and so helpful. Just being a part of that experience makes all of it worth it."

His wife, Michelle, and son, Brendon, have joined him on the trip, and that's been an added bonus. Now, if Team USA can beat Sweden on Saturday and advance to the finals, it could be a perfect excursion.

"It just feels good to be a part of this," Zeis said. "To see all of the Team USA stuff in the room and see all of the pride here, it's been a great experience."

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.

Mike Heika is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika.

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