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STOPs & STARTS NAHL T Showcase A Perfect 10 II Junior League set an NAHL record with 324 scouts in attendance at the Sept. 12-16 showcase in Blaine, Minn. Every NHL team was represented as were all but two NCAA Div. I programs. The NAHL Showcase provides an oppor- tunity for scouts at both the professional and collegiate level to see the best the league has to offer. Last year, more than 190 NAHL players committed to NCAA schools during the season and two players (Anthony Stolarz and Connor Hellebuyck) were selected in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. he North American Hockey League kicked off the 2012-13 season in record- breaking fashion by hosting the 10th annu- al Combat Hockey/NAHL Showcase. The only USA Hockey-sanctioned Tier North American Hockey League," said NAHL Commissioner Mark Frankenfeld. "The first is that we are unique in the fact that the major- ity of our players begin the season without a college opportunity in place and by playing in the league and being part of our event expo- sure placement system those players earn that opportunity. "The second, inclu- sive of the NAHL, the NA3HL and the NAPHL, we provide more places for players to play, coaches to coach, and officials to officiate than any other hockey company in the coun- try, which truly defines the North American Hockey League as the league of opportunity." USA HOCKEY NEWS & UPDATES Rossi Retains Seat On IIHF The 10th annual Combat Hockey/NAHL Showcase provided some of the top American players with a chance to compete in front of 324 college and professional scouts. "There are two things that really define the the Texas Tornado, edged out the Wenatchee Wild and Kalamazoo Jr. K-Wings with a 4-0 record and a plus-12 goal differential to win the showcase. The defending Robertson Cup Champions, Council Tony Rossi, who has dedicated more than 40 years of his life to ice hockey at the local, national and international levels, was re-elected to the International Ice Hockey Federation Council during the organization's annual meeting in Tokyo. Rossi began attending IIHF meetings in 1993 and first represented the United States as a delegate to the IIHF in 2003. He also served on the IIHF Women's Committee from 2003-08. He was elected to the council in 2008 and has served as chair of the IIHF History Committee since 2009. Rossi's administrative career Not only did the NAHL's 24 franchis- es hit the ice but so did teams from the North American Prospects League, the Upper Midwest High School Elite League, the Tier I High Performance Hockey League and a 16U Futures Prospect Division with six teams from across the United States. John Vanbiesbrouck, USA Hockey vice pres- ident and Junior Council chair, attended the showcase and walked away impressed. "It was a huge success," Vanbiesbrouck said. "There were a lot of NHL and college scouts there, and Blaine can house a big tournament and did a wonderful job. The North American Hockey League deserves a lot of credit for run- ning a showcase." great in hockey began in the early 1970s in Flossmoor, Ill., when he started a local club for kids and helped convince the park district to build an ice rink. Over the years he has spent countless hours serving the Amateur Hockey Association of Illinois, including a three- year term as president of the organization, and at the national level with USA Hockey, where he was elected to the board of directors in 1983 and served as a director from the Central District until 1988. In 1989 he was elected to the executive committee, serving as secretary from 1989 to 1995. He later transitioned to the role of treasurer, a position he held until June 2003. In his role as both secretary THEY SAID IT "Youth hockey coaches ask me all the time, 'How do we get a player to you?' I have a very simple answer to that. The elite players find us, and we find them. Your hockey programs should be geared to developing hockey players for life, not NHL players." — Brian Burke, general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs and the 2010 U.S. Olympic Team, speaking to youth hockey coaches at the National Hockey Coaches Symposium. 08 and treasurer, Rossi helped guide the formation and growth of The USA Hockey Foundation, a charitable and educational non-profit corporation that provides long-range financial support for USA Hockey and promotes the growth of hockey in the United States. In June of 2003, Rossi was elected to his current post as vice president and international council chairperson. He was honored with the NHL's Lester Patrick Award in 2011. NOVEMBER.2012 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM PHOTOS COURTESY OF NAHL; Getty Images