Participating players announced for Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game.

London, Ontario - The Canadian Hockey League and the National Hockey League announced today the 40 players who were selected to participate in the 2004 Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game on

Wednesday January 21, 2004 at the John Labatt Centre in London.

The game will showcase 40 of the CHL's top players that are eligible

for selection in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft that will be held in

Raleigh, N.C. on June 26 and 27. The players were selected by the

National Hockey League's 30 teams.

More than 300 players have suited up in the Home Hardware CHL/NHL

Top Prospects Game and gone on to be selected in the NHL Entry

Draft, including all 40 players who played in the game last year.

The game has featured five players who were the first overall picks

in the NHL Entry Draft - Chris Phillips (1996), Joe Thornton (1997),

Vincent Lecavalier (1998), Rick Nash (2002) and Marc-Andre Fleury

(2003)

The 2004 Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game will start at 7:00

p.m. on January 21, 2004. The game will be broadcast live across

Canada on Rogers Sportsnet and RDS. The event will also feature a

skills competition on Tuesday January 20 at the John Labatt Centre.

The coaches for the 2004 Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game

will be Don Cherry and Bobby Orr, who have been behind the benches

for eight of the nine games. Orr won three straight games from 1999-

2001 and leads the series 4-3. Team Cherry won last year's game in

Kitchener.

Cherry will be joined behind the bench once again by Brian Kilrea,

coach and general manager of the Ottawa 67's. Kilrea is the CHL's

all-time winningest coach and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of

Fame in November. London Knights coach Dale Hunter will join Orr

behind the bench. Hunter played three seasons in the OHL with the

Kitchener Rangers and Sudbury Wolves before graduating to a 20-year

career in the NHL. He is in his second season behind the bench with

the Knights, who are currently third overall in the OHL.

2004 Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game Participating Players

Devin Dubnyk, Kamloops Blazers

Julien Ellis, Shawinigan Cataractes

Justin Peter, Toronto St. Michael's Majors

David Shantz, Mississauga IceDogs

Cam Barker, Medicine Hat Tigers

Brett Carson, Calgary Hitmen

Mark Fistric, Vancouver Giants

Michael Funk, Portland Winterhawks

Mike Green, Saskatoon Blades

Andy Rogers, Calgary Hitmen

David Schulz, Swift Current Broncos

Jeff Schultz, Calgary Hitmen

Michael Sersen, Rimouski Oceanic

Roman Tesliuk, Kamloops Blazers

Boris Valabik, Kitchener Rangers

Kyle Wharton, Ottawa 67's

Joe Barnes, Saskatoon Blades

Adam Berti, Oshawa Generals

Bryan Bickell, Ottawa 67's

David Bolland, London Knights

Dane Byers, Prince Albert Raiders

Kyle Chipchura, Prince Albert Raiders (injured)

Blake Comeau, Kelowna Rockets

Renaud Des Alliers, Gatineau Olympiques

Ryan Garlock, Windsor Spitfires

Bruce Graham, Moncton Wildcats

Tyler Haskins, Toronto St. Michael's Majors (replacement)

Eric Hunter, Prince George Cougars

Andrew Ladd, Calgary Hitmen

David Laliberte, PEI Rocket

John Lammers, Lethbridge Hurricanes

Evan McGrath, Kitchener Rangers

Vaclav Meidl, Plymouth Whalers

Chad Painchaud, Mississauga IceDogs

Alexandre Picard, Lewiston MAINE-iacs

Peter Pohl, Gatineau Olympiques

Rob Schremp, London Knights

Aki Seitsonen, Prince Albert Raiders

Jan Steber, Halifax Mooseheads

Jared Walker, Red Deer Rebels

Wojtek Wolski, Brampton Battalion