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ECHL Reading Royals

City of Reading and Royals Team Up To Host 2009 ECHL All-Star Game

February 8, 2008 - ECHL (ECHL)
Reading Royals News Release


Reading, PA - The City of Reading, Pennsylvania, the Sovereign Center, and the Reading Royals of the ECHL today announced that Reading will serve as the host city for 2009 ECHL All-Star Game. The series of events that will encompass 'Hockey Week In Reading' will include the ECHL All-Star Skills Competition and All-Star Game on Tuesday and Wednesday, January 20 and 21, 2009, both of which will be held at the Sovereign Center in downtown Reading.

A central focus of 'Hockey Week in Reading' will be the city itself with particular emphasis on the continuing revitalization of the downtown area. A wide variety of special events will be held in conjunction with the ECHL All-Star celebration, encouraging participation of local and regional residents, landmarks and businesses. Those special events are expected to include a Royals' regular season game on the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday (Monday, January 19, 2009) and the official induction ceremony for the second class of the ECHL's Hall of Fame. The Stanley Cup and Patrick J. Kelly Cup will also be on display throughout the event, marking the ninth time in the last ten years that the NHL championship trophy and the ECHL championship trophy have been displayed together at the All-Star Game.

With the 2009 All-Star celebration, Reading becomes the first city in the 17-year history of ECHL All-Star Game to host the event for a second time. In 2005, a near-capacity crowd at the Sovereign Center watched the 'home' (at that time) National Conference team defeat the American Conference, 6-2. Six members of the Royals' organization participated in that event including goaltender Barry Brust, who stopped all eleven shots he faced in the third period and picked up an assist; forward Ryan Kinasewich, who scored a goal and assisted on another; forward Jon Francisco, who registered an assist; Equipment Manager Russ Holden; Athletic Trainer Brian Grogesky; and Broadcaster John Curtis.

"I'm excited about the potential these events hold for Reading. This is one more example that Reading is a turnaround city," stated City of Reading Mayor Thomas McMahon.

"The combination of the Royals' organization, a great host in the Sovereign Center and the many exciting development projects underway in and around the downtown, made it an easy choice to come back to Reading," said ECHL Commissioner Brian McKenna.

"We are proud to bring the ECHL All-Star Game back to Reading," said Royals' General Manager Gordon Kaye. "It is important to emphasize that, during the 2009 'Hockey Week In Reading' celebration, the spotlight is not just going to be on our organization, but also the entire City of Reading. Our concept is to make this series of special events a gateway to displaying all of the positive growth and development within our community, while also presenting hockey and sports fans in our region-and those visiting from other areas-an opportunity to experience first hand all of the top young talent in our league."

"We're extremely excited to have this opportunity to be a part of hosting the ECHL All-Star celebration for a second time," said Zane Collings, General Manager of the Sovereign Center. "We were impressed with the professionalism of everyone associated with the league when these events were held in the Sovereign Center in 2005, and we're confident that with the expanded participation from the City of Reading and the greater Reading area, we'll be able to help take the All-Star experience to an even more exciting level for our business partners and the fans of our region and beyond."

Historically, hockey operations representatives from the National Hockey League and American Hockey League have attended the ECHL All-Star game, which has produced some 42 players who have gone on to play in the NHL, including 26 since 2002 when the focus of the game was shifted to feature younger prospects. The past six ECHL All-Star Games have brought at least $1 million to the local economy with invited guests, players, coaches, and fans occupying hundreds of hotel rooms and spending three days in the host city. The game has been available live to more than 80 million homes on the NHL Network each of the last six years as well as being rebroadcast on multiple regional sports networks. The audio broadcast has been carried each of the last three years on XM Satellite Radio as well as being available in all ECHL markets.

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The Royals return to action tomorrow night (Saturday, February 9; 7:05 pm), when the Elmira Jackals visit the Sovereign Center. That night, the Royals host "Ladies Night," and the first 1500 ladies 21 years of age and older will receive a cosmetic case courtesy of Mike's Hard Lemonade and All-Star Distributing. The game night broadcast on Saturday will begin at 6:35 pm with the pre-game warm-up show on ESPN Radio 1240 am in Ephrata, as well as on the internet through the Royals' website, www.royalshockey.com. Streaming video is available on a pay per view basis through the B2 Networks.

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