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2005, 2006 ECHL All-Star Games Have Seven Players, Coach Reach NHL

January 18, 2008 - ECHL (ECHL) News Release


PRINCETON, N.J. - The 2005 ECHL All-Star Game saw five players and coach Dave Farrish advance to the National Hockey League while Brandon Nolan and Pascal Pelletier became the first players from the 2006 ECHL All-Star Game to reach the NHL when both made their debuts this season.

Since the league began showcasing younger players in 2002 there have been 25 players that have reached the NHL compared to 16 players from the first nine All-Star Games. Thirty-nine players from the 2005 game went on the play in the American Hockey League while 38 advanced to the AHL from the 2006 game.

Selected to the All-Star Game as a rookie in 2004-05, Joe Tenute signed a multi-year contract with Washington in November 2005 and made his NHL debut on Feb. 7, 2006 with the Capitals. Named to the All-Star Game as a rookie in 2004-05, Martin St. Pierre has played in the NHL each of the last three seasons, making his NHL debut with Chicago on Nov. 4, 2005, and has been selected to the AHL All-Star Game and the AHL All-Rookie Team.

Selected as the starter but unable to play after he was called up to the AHL, Dany Sabourin has played in the NHL each of the last two seasons with Pittsburgh and Vancouver. Named as a rookie in 2004-05 to replace Sabourin, Barry Brust made his NHL debut on Nov. 30, 2006 with the Los Angeles Kings while Connor James, who was chosen to the All-Star Game as a rookie in 2004-05, has played in the NHL with Pittsburgh and Los Angeles.

Selected to the All-Star Game as a rookie, Brandon Nolan played his first NHL game with Carolina on Dec. 22, 2007 and registered an assist in six games with the Hurricanes while also playing in the AHL where he has 31 points (15g-16a) and 59 penalty minutes in 34 games with Albany. Pascal Pelletier, who made his NHL debut on Jan. 17 with Boston, had 30 points (18g-12a) in 21 games for Gwinnett, earning him a selection to the ECHL All-Star Game. He did not play in the game after being called up to Providence where he had 46 points (20g-26a) in 53 regular season games and six points (2g-4a) in six playoff games.

In addition to Farrish and the five players, the 2005 game also had Russ Holden, who is now the assistant equipment manager for Chicago in the NHL.

Chase Chevrolet ECHL All-Star Game Notes
Chase Chevrolet ECHL All-Star Game is presented by Jackson Rancheria Casino & Hotel and Bud Light.

Game will be televised live at 10 p.m. ET on NHL Network for sixth-consecutive year.

Telecast available online free-of-charge through ECHL web site on B2 Networks, the "Official Broadband Broadcast Provider of the ECHL".

Broadcast carried live on XM Radio for third consecutive year on NHL Hockey Play-by-Play (XM Channel 206) at 10 p.m. ET on Jan. 23 in the United States on XM Radio and in Canada through XM Radio's partner, Canadian Satellite Radio.

The NHL Radio broadcast will be broadcast on KGEO-AM 1230 in Bakersfield, Calif.; 1640 WTNI and 1490 WXBD in Biloxi, Miss.; 1350 KTIK - The Ticket in Boise, Idaho; 790 ESPN Radio, The Deuce in Fresno, Calif.; AM-970 ESPN Radio in Modesto/Stockton, Calif.; ESPN 910 The Team in North Charleston, S.C.; KKAT AM 860 in Salt Lake City; 1420 KSTN-AM in Stockton, Calif.; and WKWK 97.3 FM in Wheeling, W.Va.

Stanley Cup and Patrick J. Kelly Cup will be on display at all events.

Henry Brabham, Patrick J. Kelly, Nick Vitucci and Chris Valicevic will be inducted as the inaugural class into the ECHL Hall of Fame at a luncheon on Jan. 23.

Diane and Tom Husband of Phoenix are the winners of the Chase Chevrolet "Win A Trip to the ECHL All-Star Game" contest, receiving roundtrip transportation to Stockton where they will stay at the new Sheraton Stockton Hotel at Regent Pointe, the official host hotel of the 2008 Chase Chevrolet ECHL All-Star Game.

Game-worn jerseys and game-used pucks from the All-Star Game and Skills Competition will be auctioned online at MeiGray.com.

ECHL
Celebrating its 20th Anniversary in 2007-08, the ECHL is the Premier 'AA' Hockey League and the third-longest tenured professional hockey league behind only the National Hockey League and the American Hockey League.

ECHL began in 1988-89 with five teams in four states and has grown to be a coast-to-coast league with 25 teams playing 900 games in 17 states and British Columbia in 2007-08.

The league officially changed its name to ECHL on May 19, 2003.

The ECHL has affiliations with 26 of the 30 teams in the NHL in 2007-08, marking the 11th consecutive season that the league has had affiliations with at least 20 teams in the NHL.

There have been 342 former ECHL players who have gone on to play in the NHL after playing in the ECHL, including a record 47 in 2005-06 and 26 in 2006-07. There have been 197 former ECHL players who have played their first game in the NHL in the past five seasons.

There are 15 coaches in the NHL who have ECHL experience including former Wheeling coach Peter Laviolette, who is head coach of the Carolina Hurricanes, and former Mississippi coach Bruce Boudreau, who is head coach of the Washington Capitals.

The ECHL is represented for the seventh consecutive year on the National Hockey League championship team in 2007 with Anaheim assistant coach Dave Farrish, players Francois Beauchemin and George Parros and broadcasters John Ahlers and Steve Carroll.

The ECHL has affiliations with 26 of the 29 teams in the American Hockey League in 2007-08 and for the past 18 years there has been an ECHL player on the Calder Cup champion.

In each of the last two seasons there have been more than 225 players who have played in both the ECHL and the AHL and there were over 800 call-ups involving more than 500 players.

In the last five seasons the ECHL has had more call-ups to the AHL than all other professional leagues combined with over 2,000 call-ups involving more than 1,000 players since 2002-03.

Further information on the ECHL is available from its website at ECHL.com.

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