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National Conference Announced For Rbk Hockey ECHL All-Star Game

December 22, 2006 - ECHL (ECHL) News Release


PRINCETON, N.J. - The ECHL on Friday announced the starting lineup and roster of the National Conference for the 2007 Rbk Hockey ECHL All-Star Game on Jan. 17 at Qwest Arena in Boise, Idaho.

There are 13 rookies on the National Conference roster and 18 of the 21 players are making their first appearance in an All-Star Game. Fresno left wing Luke Curtin is making his third consecutive start and his fourth start overall while playing in his fifth ECHL All-Star Game which is the second most in league history behind Chris Valicevic, who appeared in seven games (1994 and 1996-2001). Mike McKenna of Las Vegas is making his second appearance, having been chosen as a rookie last season, and first start while teammate Tyler Mosienko is making his second All-Star appearance, having been selected as a replacement as a rookie last year.

The 15th Annual ECHL All-Star Game will be at 7 p.m. MT on Jan. 17 and the 10th Annual ECHL All-Star Skills Competition will be at 7 p.m. MT on Jan. 16.

The starting lineups are determined in voting by National 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 10 teams having a representative.

National Conference Starters
G - Mike McKenna, Las Vegas (15 gp, 9-1-5, 2 shutouts, 2.27 GAA, .927 save pct.)
D - Beau Geisler, Stockton (22 gp, 4g, 16a, 20 pts)
D - Darrell Hay, Idaho (24 gp, 2g, 16a, 18 pts)
F - Luke Curtin, Fresno (18 gp, 4g, 22a, 26 pts)
F - Nathan Martz, Stockton (16 gp, 5g, 16a, 21 pts)
F - Scott May, Phoenix (23 gp, 13g, 18a, 31 pts)

Making his second consecutive appearance and his first as a starter is Mike McKenna of Las Vegas. McKenna has won his last seven games and is 9-1-5 and leads the league with a save percentage of .927 and is third with a goals-against average of 2.27. Also selected from the Wranglers are Tyler Mosienko, who is making his second All-Star appearance in a row, and rookie defenseman Jason Krischuk. Mosienko leads Las Vegas with 15 assists and 23 points while Krischuk has nine points (1g-8a) in 16 games.

Luke Curtin of Fresno is making his third consecutive start and his fourth start overall while playing in his fifth ECHL All-Star Game. He was named the Most Valuable Player at the 2006 All-Star Game after scoring two goals in 20 seconds, the third-fastest two goals scored in an All-Star Game, in the first 45 seconds of the third period to give the National Conference a 5-2 lead on its way to a 7-6 win. Curtin leads the Falcons and is fifth in the ECHL with 22 assists and is tied for the team lead with 26 points in 18 games. Joining Curtin from the Falcons is rookie defenseman Tom Walsh, who is under American Hockey League contract to the Worcester Sharks and who has five points (1g-4a) in 16 games.

Idaho is represented by starting defenseman Darrell Hay, forward Derek Nesbitt and rookie Francis Wathier. Hay has 18 points (2g-16a) in 24 games while Nesbitt leads the Steelheads with 21 assists and 30 points in 24 games and Wathier, who is under National Hockey League contract to the Dallas Stars, has 13 points (4g-9a) in 17 games.

Stockton has a league-high four selections with starters Beau Geisler and Nathan Martz and rookies Devan Dubnyk and Troy Bodie, who are all making their first-ever All-Star appearance. Geisler is tied for seventh among ECHL defensemen with 20 points (4g-16a) while Martz has 21 points (5g-16a) in 16 games. Under NHL contract to the Edmonton Oilers, Bodie is tied for third among league rookies with 11 goals and is tied for fourth among first-year players with 21 points in 22 games. Dubnyk, who is under NHL contract to the Edmonton Oilers, is 8-2-4 with a goals-against average of 2.71 and a save percentage of .914.

Making his first appearance and start is Phoenix's Scott May, who will be joined by rookie teammate Dave Pszenyczny. May, who is currently playing in the AHL for the Iowa Stars, is seventh in the league with 31 points in 23 games while Pszenyczny has 10 points (2g-8a) in 22 games.

Bakersfield is represented by rookies Todd Griffith and Rane Carnegie. Griffith is second among league rookies with 12 goals and tied for ninth among first-year players with 19 points in 16 games while Carnegie has 12 points (4g-8a) in 19 games.

Selected from Kelly Cup champion Alaska is rookie Kevin Croxton, who is under AHL contract to the Peoria Rivermen, and rookie Julian Talbot. Croxton is second on the team with 10 goals and has 16 points (10g-6a) in 21 games while Talbot has 18 points (8g-10a) in 24 games.

Long Beach will be represented by rookie T.J. Trevelyan, who is under NHL contract to the Boston Bruins and who is tied for the team lead with nine goals and tied for second with 17 points in 15 games.

Rookie defenseman Andy Sertich, who has seven points (1g-6a) in 25 games, will represent the Utah Grizzlies while rookie goaltender Julien Ellis, who is under NHL contract to the Vancouver Canucks, was chosen from the Victoria Salmon Kings.

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

The Premier 'AA' Hockey League, the ECHL has affiliations with 25 of the 30 teams in the National Hockey League in 2006-07. There have been 310 former ECHL players who have gone on to play in the NHL after playing in the ECHL, including a record 47 in 2005-06. There have been 165 players who have played in the NHL after the ECHL in the past five seasons.

The ECHL was represented for the sixth consecutive year on the National Hockey League championship team, including Carolina Hurricanes head coach Peter Laviolette, who is the first ECHL coach to win the Stanley Cup.

The ECHL has affiliations with 24 of the 27 teams in the American Hockey League in 2006-07 and for the past 17 years there has been an ECHL player on the Calder Cup champion. The ECHL has had more players called up to the AHL than all other professional leagues combined each of the past four seasons with 1,646 call ups involving almost 1,000 players.

The ECHL raised its average attendance for the third straight year in 2005-06 drawing 3,934,794 for 900 games which is an average of 4,372 per game, an increase of more than nine percent from 2004-05 and the largest per-game average since 1999-2000. Six teams surpassed 200,000 and nine teams averaged 5,000 per game for the first time since 1999-2000 as the league welcomed 39 sellout crowds and 13 of the 22 returning teams raised their average attendance from a year ago.

In 2005-06 the ECHL and its member teams contributed more than $2.3 million for charity and relief funds, including those benefiting victims of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, while also making thousands of appearances by players, coaches, team personnel and mascots at schools, hospitals, libraries and charity functions.

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

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