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Benton Joins 2010 ECHL All-Star Game Radio Coverage

January 12, 2010 - ECHL (ECHL) - Stockton Thunder News Release


STOCKTON, Calif. - Stockton Thunder radio play-by-play announcer Mike Benton has been named to the radio broadcast announcing team of the 2010 ECHL All-Star Game presented by Reebok Hockey and brought to you by Toyota and the City of Ontario, Thunder president Dan Chapman announced today in conjunction with the ECHL.

Benton is returning to national radio coverage of the All-Star Game for the third time in his career and is in his fifth season behind the microphone for the Thunder. Benton, 28, joins Mike Modugno of the Kamalazoo Wings and Joseph Zakrzewski of the South Carolina Stingrays on the broadcast, with the game to be held at Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario beginning at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 20.

The game's broadcast will air locally on 1420 KSTN, with additional listening details to be announced soon.

"The Thunder is extremely proud of Mike's accomplishment in returning to call national radio broadcast coverage of our league's signature event for a third time," said Chapman. "It's yet another indicator of how fortunate we are to have one of the premier voices in our league and to represent our organization in Ontario. It's a well-deserving opportunity resulting from his skill, hard work and dedication to serving our listeners."

The audio broadcast is produced by Doug Lane of NHL Radio and is scheduled to be aired live on KJQS-AM 1230 in Salt Lake City, KSTN 1420-AM in Stockton, Calif., Fox Sports Radio 1230-WCWA in Toledo, Ohio and WLKM-FM in Three Rivers, Mich. B2 Networks, the "Official Broadband Broadcast Provider of the ECHL" is also making the broadcast available online through the ECHL web site at ECHL.com.

Benton previously worked as a member of the audio broadcast team for the ECHL All-Star Game in 2007 and 2008 and spent two years as an anchor for "SportsCenter" and in a variety of hosting roles on AM 970 ESPN Radio.

He also serves in the front office as director of media relations for the Thunder and in 2008-09 was selected as Award of Excellence for Media Relations as determined in voting by members of the media, league media relations directors and broadcasters.

Benton received his bachelor's degree in communication studies from Azusa Pacific University (Calif.) where he handled play-by-play duties for the school's basketball telecasts and was the radio voice for the team's football broadcasts. He has also served in play-by-play roles for University of California Riverside women's basketball and in minor league baseball for Dayton and High Desert.

The 2010 ECHL All-Star Game presented by Reebok Hockey and brought to you by Toyota and the City of Ontario will be hosted by the Ontario Reign at Citizens Business Bank Arena and played on Jan. 20, 2010 while the 2010 ECHL All-Star Skills Competition will be held on Jan. 19, 2010.

The Thunder will be represented on the ice by two players, including left winger Judd Blackwater and rookie center Chris D'Alvise.

The proud ECHL affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League and Springfield Falcons of the American Hockey League, the Thunder is a two-time recipient of the ECHL "Award of Excellence," was voted "Best Local Sports Team" by readers of the San Joaquin Magazine, has led the ECHL in attendance for four consecutive seasons and drew 223,854 fans to Stockton Arena in 2008-09. Season tickets for 2009-10 are on sale now. For more information about tickets, merchandise, or other inquiries contact the Stockton Thunder offices at (209) 373-1500 or visit http://www.stocktonthunder.com/.

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