Ontario Hockey League All-Stars ready to face-off in Sault Ste. Marie
Published on February 5, 2008 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL) News Release
Dustin Jeffrey is willing to take on a little extra pressure.
The Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds' veteran is the captain of the Western Conference squad for the OHL All-Star Classic this week in Sault Ste. Marie and on Tuesday, he guaranteed a clean sweep for the home side.
Just after all of the players were introduced to the media on Tuesday, Jeffrey welcomed all of the players from both sides and then promised that the Western Conference would win the skills competition tonight as well as the All-Star Game on Wednesday (7:00 p.m. Eastern on Rogers Sportsnet).
"We heard (Eastern Conference captain) John Tavares go up there and say that they were looking for a victory and they started laughing," Jeffrey said. "Our team thought we will guarantee it. We think we have the better conference anyway so we'll see what happens tonight."
Jeffrey is one of 40 OHL stars that will compete in the annual showcase this week at the Steelback Centre. It's the first time that the OHL All-Star Game has been held in Sault Ste. Marie since 1979.
"I think this is an awesome thing for the city," Jeffrey said. "They have supported the OHL for so long and it's just such a great community. We deserve something like this to showcase the OHL and show everyone around the league what we have to offer."
The Eastern Conference has won the past two all-star events, including a 13-9 win over the Western Conference last year in Saginaw, MI.
OHL scoring leader Brett MacLean of the Oshawa Generals is playing in his second straight all-star game and said that even though the Eastern Conference roster is younger, he still expects another win.
"I think the Eastern team might come out on top," MacLean said. "I think we`ll pop in a few extra goals. It's a great time and a great honour to play in something like this. I was there last year and it was a lot of fun. "
The 2008 OHL All-Star Classic will feature 40 of the league's brightest stars in an Eastern Conference versus Western Conference showdown format. It is a two-day event that includes the OHL All-Star Skills Competition and Three-on-Three Game on Tuesday February 5, along with the All-Star Luncheon and OHL All-Star Classic on Wednesday February 6.
The OHL All-Star Classic rosters include all 10 OHL members of Canada's gold medal winning National Junior Team.
Matt Halischuk and Steve Mason of the Kitchener Rangers, Wayne Simmonds and Josh Godfrey of the Greyhounds Steve Stamkos of the Sarnia Sting and Drew Doughty of the Guelph Storm will represent the West while Shawn Matthias and P.K. Subban of the Belleville Bulls, John Tavares of the Oshawa Generals and Stefan Legein of the Niagara IceDogs will represent the East. Halischuk and Legein will miss the game because of injuries.
The game will also feature four of the top five North American prospects for the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. Stamkos and Doughty were rated first and second respectively in the NHL Central Scouting mid-term rankings announced last week while Zach Bogosian (third) of the Peterborough Petes and Alex Pietrangelo (fifth) of the Niagara IceDogs will suit up for the Eastern Conference.
"It's a big honour," Pietrangelo said. "There are a lot of great older players, but there are also some of the younger guys that are coming into the OHL and guys that are up for the draft this year from the OHL. We are being acknowledged for what we do and it`s exciting. "
Jared Staal of the Sudbury Wolves is representing the Eastern Conference in the game, following older brothers Marc and Jordan, who also played in the event. He became the fourth member of his family to play in the Home Hardware CHL Top Prospects Game two weeks ago and said that it is a big honour to be selected for this event.
"It's really exciting and it's going to be a really good experience," Staal said. "It's going to be a lot of fun playing with both of those players. It's really neat having two older brothers that went through it. They have done a lot of things in hockey so far and it's been really fun watching them and seeing them do well. I'm just happy to continue going in their footsteps and hopefully I can continue to get better every day and hopefully one day go where they have been."
The 2008 OHL All-Star Classic is supported by OHL partners Boston Pizza, All Weather Windows, Subway, NAPA, Yamaha and Reebok.
For fans outside of the Rogers Sportsnet viewing area, the game is also available through the OHL's Live Stream Web broadcast at www.ontariohockeyleague.com.
Ontario Hockey League Stories from February 5, 2008
- Mike Murphy Named OHL Goaltender of the Month - Belleville Bulls
- Greyhounds Gajewski added to OHL All-Star Classic in Sault Ste. Marie - OHL
- Ontario Hockey League All-Stars ready to face-off in Sault Ste. Marie - OHL
- Majors and Tim Hortons Team Up for Community Hockey Day - Mississauga St. Michael's Majors
- McCollum and Helenius share ADT CHL Goaltender of the Week - OHL
- Troyer Farms To Set A Guinness World Record - Erie Otters
- McCollum named Boston Pizza OHL Player of the Week - OHL
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