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This Week in the WHA2

January 23, 2004 - SPHL (SPHL) News Release


CELEBRATION, Fla. – The World Hockey Association 2 (WHA2) will be holding the WHA2's Inaugural All-Star Game on January 27 in Jacksonville at the brand-new, state-of-the-art Veterans Memorial Arena when the best of the league takes on the Barracudas. Puck drop is 7:05pm. Contact the Barracudas office at 904.367.1423 for ticket information. Great ticket packages are available!

Orlando Seals Head Coach Jim Paek will act as the Head Coach for the All-Star Team. Miami Manatees Head Coach Zac Boyer will join Paek behind the bench as the Assistant Coach for the League All-Stars. Manatees Trainer Danielle Henry was named the trainer for the team and Seals Clint Reif will take care of the equipment duties for the league's best.

Head Coach Ron Duguay and Assistant Coach Brett Strot will coach their Jacksonville Barracudas in front of the hometown crowd as they face the team put together by Paek and Boyer.

WHA2 fans voted for the All-Star starting line-up. With nearly 25% of the votes, Orlando Seals Goaltender David Goverde will start in net. Orlando Seals Mark White and Macon Trax Art Mnatsakanov will start on the blue line. Rounding out the starting line-up is Miami Manatees Oak Hewer, Orlando Seals Brad Federenko, and Lakeland Loggerheads Chris Cerrella.

Paek and Boyer filled out the rest of the roster with the following picks: Lakeland Loggerheads Jim Callahan, Macon Trax David Deeves, Alabama Slammers Doug Lawrence, Miami Manatees Tom Perry, Alabama Slammers Ryan Prentice, Alabama Slammers Jamie Ronayne, Orlando Seals B.J. Stephens, Miami Manatees Kevin Swider, and Macon Trax Steve Zoryk. Due to an injury, Orlando Seals Joe Pecoraro will not participate in the All-Star Game. Teammate Mike Fournier will replace Pecoraro on defense.

For the All-Star Game, the WHA2 will have two referees and two linesmen. Mike Galloway and Mike Hughes will handle the referee duties. Derek Devivo and Shane Klatt have been named linesmen.

Olympic Gold Medalist and Co-Chairman of the WHA2 Board, Mike Eruzione, will drop the ceremonial first puck and will be on hand for all of the All-Star festivities. Eruzione scored the game-winning goal versus Russia in the 1980 Olympics. The game became known as "Miracle on Ice". The US Olympic hockey team, captained by Eruzione, then went on to defeat Finland and win the Gold Medal. Disney's cinematic tribute to the 1980 Olympic Hockey team, "Miracle", will open in theaters on February 6th.

The WHA2 All-Star Game will be broadcast on www.irn.fm. WHA2 broadcasters will make a collective effort to bring the excitement of the game to WHA2 fans that listen on IRN.FM. Fans in the arena can listen to the broadcast on "Stadio" by bringing a walkman and tuning into 89.5 on the FM dial. Macon Trax broadcaster Adam Minnick will call the play-by-play action. Miami Manatees broadcaster Mark Fischel will join him with color commentary. Orlando Seals broadcaster Steve McCall will cover the All-Star bench getting coaches and player's reactions to the game. Lakeland Loggerheads broadcaster Peter Jay will cover the Jacksonville Barracudas bench. Barracudas broadcaster Woody Carlson will be the P.A. Announcer.

WHA2 Team Mascots will face each other for an intense game of broom ball during the first intermission of the All-Star Game. After the mascots showcase their talent, one lucky mascot will be named to the All-Star team as the All-Star Mascot. Hammer (Alabama), Chomper (Jacksonville), CROSSCHECK (Macon), Riverside Ford "The Engineer" (Macon), Manny (Miami), Mandy (Miami), Sealvester (Orlando), and the Lakeland Loggerhead mascot, making his debut on his home ice tonight, will all be on hand to compete for the honor.

Along with the excitement on the ice, the WHA2 has several events open to the public. On Tuesday, there will be an open practice at the Veterans Memorial Arena from 10am to 12 noon. At 5:30pm, pre-game festivities will be held on the Arena Plaza and at the Amsterdam Sky Café. After the game, fans are invited back to the Amsterdam Sky Café for a post-game celebration.

The WHA2 has six member teams for the 2003 – 2004 season: the Alabama Slammers, Jacksonville Barracudas, Lakeland Loggerheads, Macon Trax, Miami Manatees, and Orlando Seals. Every game will be broadcast on www.irn.fm with video broadcast of select games available throughout the season.

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