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Kraft Hockeyville™ USA Announces Top 10 Finalists

By USAHockey.com, 04/09/16, 12:30PM MDT

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First Round of Public Voting Begins April 12

Community pride and the love of hockey are alive and well across the country and now 10 communities are one step closer to being named Kraft Hockeyville™ USA 2016. The Kraft Heinz search for America’s most passionate hockey community, in partnership with the National Hockey League (NHL®) and National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA), led to more than a thousand local rink nominations across the United States. Now that the nominations have been narrowed down to 10 finalists, the first round of public voting will begin on April 12. Kraft Heinz will award funds to each of the finalists for arena upgrades and the grand prize winner will be awarded $150,000 and the opportunity to host an NHL® Pre-Season game televised live on NBCSN.

The 10 communities advancing to the first round of public voting include:

East

Bridgewater Ice Arena – Bridgewater, Mass.
Lake Placid Olympic Center Arena – Lake Placid, N.Y.
Lakeview Arena – Marquette, Mich.
Rockville Ice Arena – Rockville, Md.
Twin Ponds Family Complex East – Harrisburg, Pa.

West

Fox Valley Ice Arena – Geneva, Ill.
MAYSA Arena – Minot Park District – Minot, N.D.
NYTEX Sports Centre – North Richland Hills, Texas
Pagel Activity Center – Minnetonka, Minn.
Rushmore Thunderdome – Rapid City, S.D.

 “We’re thrilled to see so many U.S. communities rally behind their local rinks and love of hockey, once again nominating more than 1,000 rinks across the country,” said Nina Barton, Senior Vice President of Marketing, Kraft Heinz. “The personal and passionate stories shared throughout the nomination process were truly inspiring, and demonstrate what Kraft Hockeyville USA is all about. We’re looking forward to watching hockey fans across America unite around these 10 finalists to select this year’s winner.”

USA Hockey teamed up with Kraft Heinz on Kraft HockeyvilleTM USA to help support and raise awareness for youth hockey across the country. All 50 states and the District of Columbia were represented among more than a thousand individual rinks nominated, accounting for nearly 70 percent of rinks nationwide, according to USA Hockey data.

The first of three rounds of voting to determine the Kraft HockeyvilleTM USA 2016 winner will begin on April 12. The voting schedule is as follows:

Round 1 (April 12-14) – Top four communities chosen to move on to the next round; remaining six each receive $10,000 toward arena upgrades.
Round 2 (April 19-20) – Top two finalists selected; remaining two each receive $25,000 toward arena upgrades.
Round 3 (April 25-26) – One community will emerge as “Kraft HockeyvilleTM USA” 2016; runner-up will receive $75,000 toward arena upgrades.

The grand prize winner will be announced on or around April 30 and will receive the top prize of $150,000 and the opportunity to host an NHL® Pre-Season Game broadcast on NBCSN.

For contest rules and complete program details, visit www.KraftHockeyville.com. Kraft HockeyvilleTM USA 2016 can also be found at Facebook.com/KraftHockeyvilleUSA and on Twitter (@HockeyvilleUSA). You can join the conversation using #HockeyvilleUSA.

NHLPA, National Hockey League Players’ Association and the NHLPA logo are trademarks of the NHLPA. © NHLPA.

NHL and the NHL Shield are registered trademarks, and HOCKEYVILLE is a trademark of the National Hockey League. All NHL logos and marks (including HOCKEYVILLE) and NHL team logos and marks are the property of the NHL and the respective NHL teams and may not be reproduced without the prior written consent of NHL Enterprises, L.P. © NHL 2016. All Rights Reserved.

ABOUT THE KRAFT HEINZ COMPANY

The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ: KHC) is the third-largest food and beverage company in North America and the fifth-largest food and beverage company in the world, with eight $1 billion+ brands. A globally trusted producer of delicious foods, The Kraft Heinz Company provides high quality, great taste and nutrition for all eating occasions whether at home, in restaurants or on the go. The Company’s iconic brands include Kraft, Heinz, ABC, Capri Sun, Classico, Jell-O, Kool-Aid, Lunchables, Maxwell House, Ore-Ida, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Planters, Plasmon, Quero, Weight Watchers Smart Ones and Velveeta. The Kraft Heinz Company is dedicated to the sustainable health of our people, our planet and our Company. For more information, visit www.kraftheinzcompany.com.

ABOUT THE NHL

The National Hockey League (NHL®), founded in 1917, consists of 30 Member Clubs, with players from more than 20 countries represented across team rosters, competing for the most revered trophy in professional sports – the Stanley Cup®. Each year, the NHL entertains hundreds of millions of fans around the world. The League broadcasts games in more than 160 countries and territories through its rightsholders including NBC/NBCSN in the U.S., Sportsnet and TVA in Canada, and Viasat in the Nordic Region. The NHL reaches fans worldwide with games available online in every country including via its live and on-demand streaming service NHL.TV™. Fans are engaged across the League’s digital assets on mobile devices via the free NHL app; across nine social media platforms; on SiriusXM NHL Network Radio™, and on NHL.com, available in eight languages and featuring an enhanced statistics platform powered by SAP, providing the definitive destination for hockey analytics. A historic media rights partnership between the NHL and MLBAM will transform the fan experience across the League’s digital and broadcast assets, with an emphasis on deeper access into the game and enhanced storytelling. To celebrate the NHL’s international diversity, the World Cup of Hockey will return in September 2016, a best-on-best international tournament featuring eight teams comprised of the world’s best hockey players. On Founder’s Day in November 2017, the League will celebrate its Centennial anniversary, commemorating 100 years of NHL hockey. The NHL is committed to giving back to the community through programs including: Hockey is for Everyone™ which supports nonprofit youth hockey organizations across North America; Hockey Fights Cancer™ which raises money and awareness for hockey's most important fight; NHL Green™ which is committed to the pursuit of sustainable business practices; and a partnership with the You Can Play Project, which is committed to supporting the LGBT community and fighting homophobia in sports. For more information, visit NHL.com.

ABOUT THE NHLPA

The National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA), established in 1967, is a labor organization whose members are the players in the National Hockey League (NHL). The NHLPA works on behalf of the players in varied disciplines such as labor relations, product licensing, marketing, international hockey and community relations, all in furtherance of its efforts to promote its members and the game of hockey. In 1999, the NHLPA launched the Goals & Dreams fund as a way for the players to give something back to the game they love. Over the past 16 years, more than 70,000 deserving children in 34 countries have benefited from the players' donations of hockey equipment. NHLPA Goals & Dreams has donated more than $23-million to grassroots hockey programs, making it the largest program of its kind. For more information on the NHLPA, please visit www.nhlpa.com. 

ABOUT NBC SPORTS GROUP

When the Comcast-NBCUniversal transaction was completed in January 2011, the sports assets of the two companies combined to form NBC Sports Group, which serves sports fans 24/7 with premier live events, insightful studio shows, and compelling original programming. The sports media company consists of a unique array of sports assets, including NBC Sports, NBC Olympics, NBCSN (NBC Sports Network), Golf Channel, 10 NBC Sports Regional Networks, NBC Sports Radio and NBC Sports Digital. NBC Sports Group possesses an unparalleled collection of television rights agreements, partnering with some of the most prestigious sports properties in the world: the International Olympic Committee and United States Olympic Committee, the NFL, NHL, NASCAR, PGA TOUR, PGA of America, USGA, Churchill Downs, Premier League, MLS, Tour de France, French Open, Formula One, IndyCar and many more.

ABOUT USA HOCKEY

USA Hockey Inc., founded on October 29, 1937, and headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colo., provides the foundation for the sport of ice hockey in America; helps young people become leaders; and connects the game at every level while promoting a lifelong love of the sport. More than one million strong, including players, coaches, officials and volunteers that span all 50 states, USA Hockey is the National Governing Body for the sport in the United States and has important partnerships with the National Hockey League, United States Olympic Committee and International Ice Hockey Federation. For more information, visit usahockey.com.

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