NHL secures $10 million in corporate marketing partner activation for 2009 NHL All-Star Weekend

NEW YORK -- The National Hockey League, which has secured $10 million in corporate marketing partner activation for the 2009 NHL All-Star Weekend in Montreal,  today announced the activation plans for all of its partners at the event.

As the League continues to play to a record percentage of building capacity and attract an increased national audience online and on television, corporate marketing partners have shown even more eagerness to activate at the NHL's marquee events.

"We are extremely pleased at the breadth and scope of activation at the 2009 NHL All-Star Weekend in Montreal," said Keith Wachtel, NHL Senior Vice President of Integrated Sales and Marketing.  "The NHL and its partners are excited to showcase the sport of hockey to a global audience better than ever."

A summary of corporate marketing partner activation follows (alphabetically):

2KSports

• Presenting a Nintendo Wii Video Gaming Competition on the Red Carpet during the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree™.
• Hosting the finals of the Hockey Hall of Fame Xbox 360 video game tournament on the Red Carpet leading up to player arrivals.

Bell

• Will feature two Interactive Zones in the Bell Centre concourses for product display and fan interaction.

Bridgestone

• Title sponsor of Bridgestone/NHL Fastest Skater™ during Honda/NHL SuperSkills®.
• Feature presentation of the Bridgestone Greatest NHL Captains promotion during Honda/NHL SuperSkills.
• Sponsor of an Interactive Skill at the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree.

Bud Light (Labatt)

• Bud Light/NHL Concert on Crescent -- a two-day festival on Crescent Street with ice sculptures and a live performance by the multiplatinum band Hedley on Saturday after Honda/NHL SuperSkills.
• Presenting Sponsor of the Bud Light Fan Tailgate Zone at the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree.

Cisco

• Title sponsor of The Cisco All-Access Pre-Game Show on the LiveWire channel at NHL Network Online™.
• Title Sponsor of Cisco/NHL Hardest Shot™ during Honda/NHL SuperSkills.
• Cisco will feature its TelePresence technology at the Bell Centre.

ConAgra

• Sponsor of an Interactive Skill at the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree.

The Hockey News

• Title Sponsor of an exclusive Friday night party ? The Hockey News/NHL All-Star Party.

Home Depot

• Rink refurbishment at the Martin Lapointe Arena: NHL All-Star Replay -- A Rink Renovation Project Built by Home Depot.
• Year Two of the On The Bench program, which brings a minor hockey player and his/her coach to NHL All-Star Weekend where they will have an opportunity to attend the Coaches Roundtable and have breakfast with an NHL All-Star Coach.
• Title sponsor of an interactive area in the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree.

Honda

• Title sponsor of Honda/NHL SuperSkills event on Saturday night.
• Title sponsor of the Interactive Skills at the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree.
• Presenting sponsor of Most Valuable Player Award to MVP of the NHL All-Star Game.

McDonald's

• Year Three of the In The Line Up program, through which 12 lucky minor hockey players will have the opportunity to join the starting line-ups on the ice for the NHL All-Star Game.
• Title Sponsor of the Open Practice Event -- McDonald's/NHL All-Star Game Practice.
• Sponsor of McDonald's/NHL Accuracy Shooting™ at the Honda/NHL SuperSkills.
• Sponsor of an Interactive Skill at the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree.

McFarlane Toys

• Presenting Sponsor of the Trading Card and Memorabilia show

Pepsi

• Frito-Lay is a title Sponsor of the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree.
• Title sponsor of the Gatorade/NHL Elimination Shootout™ Skill during Honda/NHL SuperSkills.

Scotiabank

• Title sponsor of the Scotiabank/NHL Fan Fav Breakaway Challenge™ at the Honda/NHL SuperSkills.
• ScotiaHockey Visa cardholder VIP All-Star experience, including private behind-the-scenes tour.
• Sponsor of an Interactive Skill at the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree.

Upper Deck

• Title Sponsor of the NHL YoungStars™ Game during the Honda/NHL SuperSkills competition.
• Presenting Sponsor of the Trading Card and Memorabilia show.

Visa

• Sponsor of the autograph booth at the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree.
• Visa cardholder promotion in the NHL Boutique at the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree.

Xbox

• Will host Interactive Gaming Zone at the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree.
• Will host Interactive Gaming Zone in the Bell Centre concourse.

XM

• Title Sponsor of NHL All-Star Fan Balloting.
• Sponsor of the DJ Booth at the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree and XM Be A Guest Host of 'The Hockey Show.'

The 2009 NHL All-Star Weekend in Montreal kicks off with live national broadcasts of the Honda/NHL SuperSkills® event on Saturday, Jan. 24, and the NHL® All-Star Game on Sunday, Jan. 25, on CBC and RDS in Canada and VERSUS in the United States. NASN, ASN, J Sports, Sky Mexico, Fox Sports Australia and other NHL international broadcast partners will provide live coverage of both the Honda/NHL SuperSkills event and the NHL All-Star Game to more than 150 countries and territories in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, the Pacific Rim, Mexico and the Caribbean. NHL Radio™ will provide exclusive, national radio coverage which can be heard on stations around the United States and Canada as well as on Sirius XM Radio's NHL Home Ice, located at XM channel 204 and on SIRIUS channel 208 with the "Best of XM" programming package. NHL.com and NHL Network™ will provide extensive coverage of the All-Star Weekend.