Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Officials Named for USHL/NHL Top Prospects Game

Press Release

Four members of the 2011-12 United States Hockey League on-ice officiating staff have been named to work the 2012 USHL/NHL Top Prospects Game. Referees Chris Pitoscia and Brett Sheva, along with linesmen Ryan Daisy and Brian Oliver, will work the game that features 40 of the League’s top NHL prospects.

“This is an outstanding achievement for these four young officials and a great opportunity for them to also showcase their abilities in front of NHL personnel,” said Scott Brand, USHL Director of Game Operations and Referee-In-Chief.

Each of the officials was chosen based on input and reports from USHL supervisors and evaluators that include many former NHL on-ice officials.

“In addition to the 40 rising stars on the ice looking to put their talents on display, we are proud of these four young men for their selections to this event,” said USHL Commissioner and President Skip Prince. “Their efforts help ensure that the quality of the USHL on-ice product continues to improve and this recognition from those who evaluate them on a nightly basis is a testament to their development as officials.”

Chris Pitoscia, 24, is a native of Edison, New Jersey and has been in the USA Hockey Officiating Development Program for seven seasons, including his third season in the USHL. Pitoscia has previously drawn USHL playoff assignments that included last season’s Clark Cup Final series. He is also working professional hockey games this season in the Southern Professional Hockey League, the Central Hockey League, and the ECHL in addition to his USHL schedule.

Brett Sheva, 25, is a native Horsham, Pennsylvania and is currently working his third season in the USHL after first being selected for the ODP in 2005. He also had referee assignments during the USHL postseason, including the Clark Cup Final. Sheva is also officiating in the SPHL, CHL, and ECHL this season.

Ryan Daisy, 23, of Mansfield, Massachusetts is in his second USHL season after being selected for the ODP three years ago. Daisy has worked professional games in the SPHL, CHL, and ECHL and was also selected and attended the Program of Merit, an elite officiating camp sponsored by USA Hockey last summer.

Brian Oliver, 24, is from Rochester, New York and despite his youth, is a six-year veteran of officiating in the USHL. He has worked three USHL Clark Cup Final series and previously was selected to officiate USHL all-star events. Oliver has spent the last four seasons also working in professional hockey, including the American Hockey League. He earned assignments for the AHL’s Calder Cup Playoffs in addition to games in the ECHL and CHL.

“We are each honored to be selected,” said Oliver. “The USHL and the ODP have provided each of us with the opportunity to work in an elite environment, which has helped us to gain the valuable experience in order to progress into professional hockey.”

More than 300 USHL officials have advanced to professional, collegiate, and international levels of hockey, including 10 graduates of the USHL that have earned contracts to work in the NHL.

The 2012 USHL/NHL Top Prospects Game, which is the first of its kind for the USHL, will showcase many of the top USHL players eligible for the 2012 NHL Draft. A total of 30 players selected are in their first year of eligibility for the NHL Draft. Seven of the players are draft-eligible for the second time this year. In addition, the USHL will showcase three players who are eligible to be drafted by NHL teams in 2013.

A live broadcast of the game will be available for free through the USHL’s exclusive online broadcast partner, FASTHockey. Viewers can watch the game live via multiple formats – the USHL’s Facebook page, through a previously established FASTHockey account, or Roku users can watch the game on the platform’s USHL channel. To view the USHL free game broadcast, fans must first register and create a free account on FASTHockey http://ushl.fasthockey.com.



(Nathan can be reached at fourniern@students.nescom.edu)

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