SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … American Hockey League President and CEO David Andrews announced today that the AHL Board of Governors has unanimously approved the selection of the Syracuse Crunch as host of the 2016 AHL All-Star Classic.
The 2016 AHL All-Star Classic will include the AHL All-Star Skills Competition on Sunday, January 31, followed by the AHL All-Star Game on Monday, February 1, taking place at the Onondaga County War Memorial Arena in downtown Syracuse, N.Y.
While the Crunch enter their 22nd season as members of the AHL in 2015-16, the city's history in the league can be traced back to the Syracuse Stars, who won the very first Calder Cup championship in 1936-37.
The American Hockey League will host a media conference to formally introduce the Syracuse Crunch as host of the 2016 AHL All-Star Classic on Wednesday, May 27, at 1 p.m., inside the Onondaga County War Memorial. Ticket information for the 2016 AHL All-Star Classic will be announced at that time; details about other social events taking place – including the AHL Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Ceremony – will be announced at a later date.
The 2016 AHL All-Star Classic will feature the top young talent in the American Hockey League: Of the 679 players to take part in the AHL All-Star Classic since 1995, more than 93 percent have competed in the National Hockey League, including Patrice Bergeron, Ben Bishop, Troy Brouwer, Ryan Callahan, Zdeno Chara, Logan Couture, Jiri Hudler, Tyler Johnson, Chris Kunitz, Ryan Miller, Gustav Nyquist, Zach Parise, Tuukka Rask, Pekka Rinne, Bobby Ryan, Martin St. Louis, Cory Schneider, Patrick Sharp, Jason Spezza, Eric Staal, P.K. Subban and Mats Zuccarello.