On Wednesday January 26th, the ECHL, which markets itself as America’s Premier “AA” Hockey League, held its 13th annual All-Star Game at the Sovereign Center in Reading, Pennsylvania. A crowd of 6742 witnessed some of the young talent the ECHL has to offer, including 24 rookies. It was quite a spirited affair as the players were intent on trying to impress the NHL and AHL personnel in attendance.

In a game that featured a little bit of everything, ranging from checking to penalties to stellar goaltending and even an empty-net goal, the National Conference prevailed by the score of 6-2. The combined eight goals scored were the fewest in ECHL All-Star history.

The MVP of the game was Idaho Steelheads goaltender Frank Doyle. Doyle, who was credited with the win, stopped 20 of 21 shots in a frantic second period of play. The National Conference was trailing by the score of 2-0 just 3:45 into the second period, but Trenton Titans forward Brent Robinson tallied the first of his two goals just ten seconds later. This goal sparked a scoring onslaught for the National Conference as they scored six straight goals, four of which came in the decisive second period.

The ECHL is just past the halfway mark of the season, and some of the players featured in the All-Star Game have been opening some eyes with their play thus far. The top rookie scorer is center Matt Hendricks of the Florida Everblades (40 points in 39 games). In fact, nine of the top 12 leading rookie scorers were named to the game. Carl Mallette, a starter for the American Conference, currently leads the circuit in scoring (52 points in 38 games). Defenseman Greg Amadio leads the league with a plus/minus of +23. Four of the top five goalies (Chris Madden, Todd Ford, Doyle, and Barry Brust) in terms of GAA were between the pipes for their respective conferences.

One player who will certainly remember the night fondly is Dayton Bombers forward Tyler Kolarik, as he celebrated his 24th birthday. Kolarik, a native of Abington, Pa., had a goal and an assist and finished the night with a +3. The game also featured the Minard brothers playing for each conference. Mike was the starting goaltender for the American Conference, while his younger brother Chris played for the National Conference.

Roster: American Conference

The American Conference is comprised of the East Division and the South Division. With only six teams in each division, these are the two smallest divisions in the ECHL. The co-coaches were Dave Farrish of the Pensacola Ice Pilots and Jeff Pyle of the Gwinnett Gladiators.

ND = not drafted.

* rookie.

Roster: National Conference

The National Conference is comprised of the North Division and the West Division. With eight teams in each division, these are the two largest divisions in the ECHL. The co-coaches were Matt Thomas of the Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies and Mike Haviland of the Trenton Titans.

ND = not drafted.

* rookie.

Replacements

The rosters for both squads were announced approximately three weeks prior to the All-Star Game. Injuries and call-ups to the AHL necessitated some tweaking of the rosters. A list of the changes follows.

* rookie.

Demographic Breakdown

Netminder Ford, fresh out of the WHL, was the youngest player to appear in this year’s ECHL All-Star Game at 20 years old. On the other end of the spectrum, the oldest player was 34-year-old Guy Dupuis. Twenty-eight players hail from Canada (Ont. 11, Alta. 5) while the remaining 14 are U.S. born (Mass. 5, Minn. 4). It was almost an even split between how many players spent last season playing college hockey and pro hockey (18 to 16). The average age for the American Conference roster was 23.7 and for the National Conference 23.9.

Postgame Callup

The day after the All-Star Game, forward Lou Dickenson was recalled to the San Antonio Rampage. Greg Amadio and Jeff Hutchins of Columbia have since been called up to the Grand Rapids Griffins as well. A dozen players who played in the All-Star Game have spent time in the AHL this season. Twenty-two of the 28 ECHL teams have NHL affiliations.

Skills Competition

The day before the All-Star Game, the players put on a show in the Skills Competition. The National Conference won the event 10 points to 9. The players competed in the following events: Puck Control Relay (individual and team), Fastest Skater, Hardest Shot, Rapid Fire, Accuracy Shooting, and the Breakaway Relay.

Defenseman Dan Eberly of the Toledo Storm recorded the hardest shot, clocking in at 97.4 mph. The fastest skater was forward Mark Mullen of the Pee Dee Pride, who blistered around the rink in a time of 14.299 seconds.

2006 ECHL All-Star Site

The host team for the 2006 ECHL All-Star Game will be announced during the week of January 31st.

Copyright 2005 Hockey’s Future. Do not duplicate without permission of the editorial staff.