I think one of the main reasons for the resurrgence in U.S. hockey is a spinoff from the World Cup win in 1996. (I know I've advocated this before). The Kessels and Johnsons are the latest line in an impressive group of prospects from the last few years. The 2002 and 2003 first rounds saw eight Americans drafted in each. The 2003 crop was particularly strong, with excellent prospects such as Suter, Parise, Brown, Stuart, Kesler and Eaves. These were players inspired by the 1996 World Cup win. 2004 wasn't as strong for the U.S., but 2004 was a pretty crappy draft outside of the top three picks.
Look at the spinoff from the 1980 Miracle on Ice. The U.S. had several years of bumper drafts from 1986 to 1992. Most of the players on the 96 team (and other recent Team USA editions) came from those drafts. Again, these were players between the ages of five and 12 inspired by the Miracle on Ice.
One of the reasons the U.S. went with such a decrepid, old roster at the 2004 World Cup is the talent pipeline suffered a gap from about 1994 to 2001. (Not to say the U.S. didn't produce any quality players, they did, but not in the abundance from 1986-92 or that we've seen recently). Sorry, Americans, but your team is going to take a legitimate plunge in the next five years (like what Sweden will take in a couple years), as USA Hockey transitions from one era to the next. However, with the talent that has been emerging in recent years, and continues to be emerging, there promises to be hope in the future.
In the end, the U.S. still has a long way to catch up to Canada and Russia for overall talent produced. That will not only require events to inspire the youth of America, but hard work and improved coaching in the American developmental leagues.