Kraft Hockeyville™ USA Returns for Its Third Year with Kraft Heinz, NHL® and NHLPA to Find the Most Passionate Hockey Communities in America

Kraft Hockeyville™ USA is officially back and nominations are open to find America’s most spirited and enthusiastic hockey communities. Towns across the U.S. can now contend for the coveted title of "Kraft Hockeyville™ USA 2017" and enter for a chance to host an NHL® Pre-Season game televised live on NBCSN and $150,000 in arena upgrades. All the program partners are back -- the National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA), National Hockey League (NHL®), NBC Sports Group and USA Hockey -- to support the search to find the ten communities across the U.S. that exhibit the most pride, passion and love for the game of hockey. A formal announcement will be made during NBC’s broadcast of the 2017 Bridgestone NHL® Winter Classic outdoor game between the St. Louis Blues® and the Chicago Blackhawks® at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.

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“Like the rest of the country, we were inspired by the pride and brilliant enthusiasm Marquette demonstrated to become Kraft Hockeyville™ USA 2016,” said Nina Barton, Senior Vice President of Marketing, Kraft Heinz. “We can’t wait to see what this year’s contest brings, and we look forward to helping more hockey communities thrive across America in 2017.”

Jeremy Roenick, former NHL® great and current NHL® analyst for NBC, is back as program ambassador. “I’m thrilled to be back as part of Kraft Hockeyville™ USA 2017 to help inspire community rinks and youth hockey players across the U.S.,” said Roenick. “This great program helps share the hockey spirit and allows me to work with the next generation of players to bring communities together.”

How Kraft Hockeyville™ USA 2017 Works

Like a hockey game, Kraft Hockeyville™ USA 2017 has three periods. In the first period, communities across the country are encouraged to enter by sharing unique stories about their local rink, teams, hockey spirit and passion and submitting their nominations now through March 10, 2017, at www.KraftHockeyville.com, where complete contest rules and nomination applications are available.

The competition heats up in the second period when 10 community finalists will be chosen, which includes three rounds of public voting:

• Round 1 (April 11-13, 2017) – Top four communities chosen to move on to the next round; remaining six each receive $10,000 toward arena upgrades.
• Round 2 (April 18-19, 2017) – Top two finalists selected; remaining two each receive $25,000 toward arena upgrades.
• Round 3 (April 24-25, 2017) – One community will emerge as Kraft Hockeyville™ USA 2017; runner-up will receive $75,000 toward arena upgrades.

In the final period, the winning community will be announced April 29, 2017 and receive the grand prize of the chance to host an NHL® Pre-Season game televised on NBCSN, as well as $150,000 in arena upgrades from Kraft Heinz.

Since launching in Canada in 2006, Kraft Hockeyville™ has positively impacted 82 communities with over $3 million donated in arena upgrades across Canada and the U.S. Throughout the program, Kraft Heinz will also leverage its diverse portfolio of products to unite hockey fans in their celebrations of the sport and their communities. The campaign will celebrate a variety of iconic Kraft Heinz brands including Planters, Velveeta, Maxwell House, Heinz, Oscar Mayer and Kraft Macaroni & Cheese.

For contest rules, information on nominating a community and complete program details, visit www.KraftHockeyville.com. Kraft Hockeyville™ USA 2017 can also be found at Facebook.com/KraftHockeyvilleUSA and on Twitter (@HockeyvilleUSA). Fans can join the conversation using #HockeyvilleUSA.

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

NHL, the NHL Shield and the word mark NHL Winter Classic are registered trademarks of the National Hockey League, and the NHL Winter Classic logo and HOCKEYVILLE are trademarks 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 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, will celebrate its Centennial anniversary in 2017. The year-long celebration will pay tribute to 100 years of NHL hockey by honoring the past, commemorating the present, and celebrating its future. In 2017 the League will also celebrate 125 years of the most revered trophy in professional sports – the Stanley Cup®. Comprised of 30 Member Clubs, the NHL is represented by players from more than 20 countries across team rosters. 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. 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 17 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.

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