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Charlotte Checkers

Checkers Matthew Ford Selected to All-Star Game

December 31, 2008 - ECHL (ECHL)
Charlotte Checkers News Release


Charlotte, N.C. - The Charlotte Checkers are pleased to announce that rookie forward Matthew Ford has been selected to represent the team at this season's ECHL All-Star game.

Ford, 6-foot-1, 207 pounds, currently leads the Checkers in goals scored with 12 and ranks third on the team with 20 points in 13 games played. The West Hills, CA. native also leads the team with a +13 rating. Ford was recently on a scoring streak which lasted for 11 games. During that streak, he amassed 12 goals and 6 assists for 18 points. Earlier this season, Ford signed a Professional Tryout contract with the Hartford Wolf Pack and played in 12 games scoring one goal. Ford was an eighth round selection of the Chicago Blackhawks during the 2004 National Hockey League Entry Draft.

The Reading Royals, the City of Reading and the Sovereign Center will host the 17th Annual ECHL All-Star Game on Jan. 21, 2009 and the 12th Annual All-Star Skills Competition on Jan. 20, 2009. There are 11 rookies on the American Conference roster and 18 of the 21 players are making their first appearance in an ECHL All-Star Game.

There have been 46 players from the All-Star Game who have gone on to play in the National Hockey League, including 29 since 2002 when the lineups began having players who coaches felt were prospects to move up to a higher level.

The starting lineups are determined in voting by American Conference coaches, team captains, media directors, broadcasters and media members. Coaches also submitted the top prospects from within their conference to determine the final roster with each of the nine teams having a representative.

The Stanley Cup and the Patrick J. Kelly Cup will both be on display throughout the event, marking the ninth time in the last 10 years that the NHL championship trophy and the ECHL championship trophy have been displayed together at the All-Star Game.

The Checkers are in their 16th season of play as a member of the ECHL. The next home game will take place Jan. 9th against the Gwinnett Gladiators at 7 p.m.

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