Matej Stransky Added to AHL All-Star Classic
Jan 24, 2017Forward Leads Texas with 15 Goals this Season
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- The American Hockey League announced today four additions to the playing rosters for the 2017 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Capital BlueCross, to be held January 29-30 at PPL Center in Allentown, Pa., home of the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins defenseman David Warsofsky (27gp, 8-21-29, +27) has been added to the Atlantic Division team; Chicago Wolves defenseman Vince Dunn (40gp, 7-15-22, +11) has been added to the Central Division team; and Ontario Reign goaltender Jack Campbell (18-6-3, 2.61, .910) and Texas Stars forward Matej Stransky (39gp, 15-13-28) have been added to the Pacific Division roster.
In addition, the AHL announced that Wilkes-Barre/Scranton forward Jake Guentzel, Chicago defenseman Brad Hunt, San Antonio goaltender Spencer Martin and Texas defenseman Julius Honka will be unavailable for the event.
The 2017 All-Star rosters now feature 39 first-time participants, 12 AHL rookies and 12 former first- and second-round NHL draft choices. In addition, 28 of this year’s All-Stars have been recalled to the National Hockey League already this season.
The 2017 AHL All-Star Skills Competition presented by Giant Food Stores and Velaspan on Sunday will pit the All-Stars from the two Eastern Conference divisions against those from the two Western Conference divisions in seven skills events. In the 2017 AHL All-Star Challenge on Monday, the four teams will participate in a round-robin tournament featuring six games of 10 minutes each, played entirely at 3-on-3. The two teams with the best records at the end of the round-robin will face off for the championship, a six-minute game also played at 3-on-3.
The All-Star Classic festivities also include the AHL Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Ceremony, to be held at Miller Symphony Hall at 11 a.m. on Jan. 30. The ceremony will feature the induction of Billy Dea, Bryan Helmer, Rob Murray and Doug Yingst as the AHL Hall of Fame Class of 2017 and will also celebrate honorary All-Star Classic captains Daniel Briere and Terry Murray.
The 2017 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Capital BlueCross will feature the top young talent in the American Hockey League: since 1995, more than 93 percent of All-Star Classic participants have gone on to compete in the National Hockey League, including Jake Allen, Artem Anisimov, Patrice Bergeron, Ben Bishop, Troy Brouwer, Ryan Callahan, Zdeno Chara, Logan Couture, Braden Holtby, Tyler Johnson, Martin Jones, Chris Kunitz, Zach Parise, Tuukka Rask, Pekka Rinne, Bobby Ryan, Cory Schneider, Patrick Sharp, Jason Spezza, P.K. Subban and Mats Zuccarello, as well as former Lehigh Valley Phantoms representatives Nick Cousins, Brandon Manning and Anthony Stolarz.
In operation since 1936, the American Hockey League continues to serve as the top development league for the players, coaches, managers, trainers, executives and broadcasters of all 30 National Hockey League teams. More than 88 percent of NHL players last season were AHL graduates, and more than 100 honored members of the Hockey Hall of Fame spent time in the AHL in their careers. In 2015-16, over 7.1 million fans attended AHL regular-season and playoff games across North America, the highest total attendance in league history.
The Texas Stars are the primary development affiliate of the NHL’s Dallas Stars, and are currently playing their eighth season at H-E-B Center at Cedar Park. Full season, 24-game, 12-game and six-game ticket packages for the 2016-17 campaign are on sale now. For more information, call (512) GO-STARS (467-8277) or visit TexasStars.com.