On Thursday, fans of the American Hockey League finally got word of who they’d see on the ice at the 2013 Dunkin’ Donuts AHL All-Star Classic taking place on January 27 and 28 at Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island.
Beginning today through until January 24, AHL fans can vote for their favourites to determine the starting line-ups for the 2013 AHL All-Star Game by visiting facebook.com/theahl and completing the official CCM AHL All-Star Fan Ballot.
This season the event will showcase the talent of 12 rookies, 12 former first and second-round draft choices, and 33 first-time AHL All-Stars with all 30 teams in the league are represented by at least one All-Star.
Some of the former first- and second- round draft choices who have become standouts this season and will be on the ice at the Dunk include Jason Zucker of the Houston Aeros, Tyler Toffoli of the Manchester Monarchs, Beau Bennett of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, Tim Erixon of the Springfield Falcons, David Rundblad of the Portland Pirates and Nino Niederreiter of the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.
The event also features AHL All-Star veterans, showing hockey fans the staying power of players in the league, their commitment to excellence in the game and the leadership they provide to younger players as they move their way up the ranks.
Brett Sterling of the Chicago Wolves is a player who does just that. Drafted in the fifth round, 145 overall in the 2003 entry draft by the Atlanta Thrashers, the 28-year-old continues to see success during his sixth year in the AHL.
Sterling will be making his fourth appearance at the event. During his rookie season he took home the 2007 Rbk Hockey AHL All-Star Game MVP at the event in Toronto, and then went on to be awarded 2006-07 AHL Rookie of the Year. In his three All-Star appearances he’s netted five goals and seven points.
He’s currently setting the pace for his Wolves teammates, leading the team with 28 points (15G, 13A) and a +10 plus/minus record in 31 games. His 13 assists put him in third in that category. His recent 8 point scoring streak over four games, including a two-goal performance on January 16th when the Wolves took down the Stars 4-1, saw him move into second place in all-time goals for the team with 158 in 285 career games with the club.
He sets a great example for players joining the ranks of the American Hockey League.
Luke Richardson of the Binghamton Senators and Jon Cooper of the Syracuse Crunch will coach the Eastern Conference All-Stars, while Dallas Eakins of the Toronto Marlies and Jeff Daniels of the Charlotte Checkers will take the spots behind the bench for the Western Conference All-Stars.
Western Conference Head Coach Eakins is making his second All-Star appearance, having appeared as an assistant coach at last season’s All-Star Game in Atlantic City, New Jersey. In an interesting twist, Eakins and Richardson also spent time together during their junior hockey days as defensemen for the Ontario Hockey League‘s Peterborough Petes.
The rosters for the event are as follows:
| 2013 AHL Eastern Conference All-Star Team | |||
| Goaltenders | Forwards | ||
| Robin Lehner, Binghamton Senators | Jonathan Audy-Marchessault, Springfield Falcons | ||
| Curtis McElhinney, Springfield Falcons | Beau Bennett, W-B/Scranton Penguins | ||
| Niklas Svedberg, Providence Bruins | Alexandre Bolduc, Portland Pirates | ||
| Chris Bourque, Providence Bruins | |||
| Defensemen | Bobby Butler, Albany Devils | ||
| Mark Barberio, Syracuse Crunch | Peter Holland, Norfolk Admirals | ||
| Andre Benoit, Binghamton Senators | Tyler Johnson, Syracuse Crunch | ||
| Matt Donovan, Bridgeport Sound Tigers | Tim Kennedy, Worcester Sharks | ||
| Tim Erixon, Springfield Falcons | Chad Kolarik, Connecticut Whale | ||
| Erik Gustafsson, Adirondack Phantoms | Nino Niederreiter, Bridgeport Sound Tigers | ||
| Tomas Kundratek, Hershey Bears | Richard Panik, Syracuse Crunch | ||
| Zach Redmond, St. John’s IceCaps | Tyler Toffoli, Manchester Monarchs | ||
| David Rundblad, Portland Pirates | Trent Whitfield, Providence Bruins (“C”) | ||
| 2013 AHL Western Conference All-Star Team | |
| Goaltenders | Forwards |
| Barry Brust, Abbotsford Heat | Andrew Agozzino, Lake Erie Monsters |
| Petr Mrazek, Grand Rapids Griffins | Mark Arcobello, Oklahoma City Barons |
| Justin Peters, Charlotte Checkers | Matt Fraser, Texas Stars |
| Brendan Gallagher, Hamilton Bulldogs | |
| Defensemen | Ryan Hamilton, Toronto Marlies |
| Victor Bartley, Milwaukee Admirals | Quintin Laing, Abbotsford Heat (“C”) |
| Chad Billins, Grand Rapids Griffins | Gustav Nyquist, Grand Rapids Griffins |
| Adam Clendening, Rockford IceHogs | Kevin Porter, Rochester Americans |
| Mark Cundari, Peoria Rivermen | Martin St. Pierre, Rockford IceHogs |
| Michal Jordan, Charlotte Checkers | Mike Sgarbossa, Lake Erie Monsters |
| Mike Kostka, Toronto Marlies | Drew Shore, San Antonio Rampage |
| Brayden McNabb, Rochester Americans | Brett Sterling, Chicago Wolves |
| Jamie Oleksiak, Texas Stars | Jason Zucker, Houston Aeros |
Tickets are still available for the 2013 Dunkin’ Donuts AHL All-Star Classic. Don’t miss this fantastic opportunity to see some of the best talent in the AHL, and some of the young players soon to lace up their skates in the National Hockey League.
For more information, contact the Providence Bruins at (401) 273-5000 or visiting www.providencebruins.com.
