PRINCETON, N.J. – The ECHL and Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association have announced a unique wrinkle to the 2020 ECHL All-Star Classic to come in January.
Four players; Dani Cameranesi, Annie Pankowski, Gigi Marvin, and Kali Flanagan will be part of each team, as well as take part in the Skills Competition. The women’s participation in the event is part of the Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association’s barnstorming “Dream Gap Tour” that is visiting several cities in Canada and the United States.
Image Courtesy: ECHL
“The Warrior/ECHL All-Star Classic is an opportunity for our League to celebrate our player’s skill and development, but also to highlight hockey everywhere for our fans to enjoy,” said ECHL Commissioner Ryan Crelin. “Having players from the PWHPA/U.S. Women’s gold medal team is another great element to an already exciting couple of days of festivities in Wichita.”
Cameranesi, Marvin and Flanagan were members of the 2018 Gold Medal winning women’s hockey team, while Pankowski is a three-time world champion.
“We are excited to join forces with the ECHL to promote and grow the game of hockey,” said Jayna Hefford, Operations Consultant, PWHPA. “We truly appreciate the support of the ECHL. By having the women of the PWHPA compete in the ECHL All-Star Classic, the league is supporting the future of women’s professional hockey.”
Following the format established last season, the Warrior/ECHL All-Star Classic will feature a 3-on-3 tournament with four teams competing for the top spot. The host Wichita Thunder will make up two of the four teams and face-off against the other two teams made up of All-Star players from the Eastern and Western Conference. These four teams will compete in a 3-on-3 tournament with rally scoring in order to crown a winner. The 2020 ECHL All-Star Skills Competition will take place in between rounds of the tournament, with results counting towards the cumulative score.
The Sin Bin will have complete on-site coverage of the 2020 ECHL All-Star Classic, starting Monday, January 20, 2020. More details will be coming soon.
