Kraft Hockeyville USA contest looking for most spirited hockey community
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Kraft Hockeyville USA returns for its fifth year, and nominations are officially open to find America’s most spirited and enthusiastic hockey communities.
Towns nationwide can compete for the title of Kraft Hockeyville USA 2019, which includes the opportunity to host an NHL preseason game and $150,000 in rink upgrades.
Rostraver Ice Garden won in 2017, and the Cambria County War Memorial in Johnstown won in 2015.
The nomination application is the first step for communities to share stories about their local rinks, teams and hockey spirit. Hockey communities will be asked to bring their stories to life online to earn Rally Points by adding notes, uploading photos and videos, tweeting from the community page and interacting with the community on www.KraftHockeyville.com, where complete contest rules are available.
So far, the 2019 Pennsylvania nominations include the Center Ice Arena in Delmont, the Belmont Complex in Kittanning, the Printscape Arena at Southpointe in Canonsburg and the Erie Insurance Arena.
Finalists will be selected based on the best stories and their community’s total Rally Points through four phases:
- Phase 1 (Jan. 1-March 2): Local communities submit a story on why they deserve to win on www.KraftHockeyville.com. Users then activate their community online to rally behind the local rink by boosting their digital Rally Points.
- Phase 2 (March 3-8): A panel of judges selects four finalists from all the eligible story submissions.
- Phase 3 (March 24): The top four finalists are announced.
- Phase 4 (March 30-31): The four finalist communities rally to receive as many votes as possible. The grand prize winner will be announced on March 31. First place (runner-up) will receive $30,000 toward rink upgrades, and the second place rinks will receive $10,000 each.
Stephen Huba is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Stephen at 724-850-1280, shuba@tribweb.com or via Twitter @shuba_trib.