Kraft Hockeyville™ USA Announces Top 10 Finalists; First Round of Public Voting Begins April 11

Communities across the country have shown their local pride and love of hockey, and now 10 of them are one step closer to being awarded the title of Kraft Hockeyville™ USA 2017.

The Kraft Heinz search for America’s most passionate hockey community – in partnership with the National Hockey League (NHL®), National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA), NBC Sports Group and USA Hockey – led to almost 1,300 local rink nominations across the United States, accounting for nearly 73 percent of rinks nationwide, according to USA Hockey data. With the nominations now narrowed down to 10 finalists, the first round of public voting will begin April 11 at www.krafthockeyville.com.

Each of the 10 finalists will be awarded funds for arena upgrades from Kraft Heinz, and the grand prize winner will be awarded $150,000 and the opportunity to host an NHL® Pre-Season game televised live on NBCSN.

The 10 communities advancing to the first round of public voting are:

East

• Bill Gray’s Regional Iceplex – Rochester, N.Y.
• Falmouth Ice Arena – Falmouth, Mass.
• Ira S. Wilson Ice Arena – Geneseo, N.Y.
• Louis Astorino Arena – Hamden, Conn.
• The Rostraver Ice Gardens – Bell Vernon, Penn.

West

• Bloomington Ice Garden – Bloomington, Minn.
• Douglas Ice Arena – Douglas, Wyo.
• MAYSA Arena – Minot, N.D.
• Pepsi Ice Center – Bloomington, Ill.
• Riverside Arena – Austin, Minn.

“We’re excited to be one step closer to naming the most passionate hockey community in America for 2017, and are astonished by the emotion and spirit depicted in the nearly 1,300 nominations we received,” said Nina Barton, Senior Vice President of Marketing, Kraft Heinz. “It’s going to be a great race to the finish, as each of the top 10 rinks truly embodies the spirit of Kraft Hockeyville™ USA.”

USA Hockey teamed up with Kraft Heinz on Kraft Hockeyville™ USA to help support and raise awareness for youth hockey across the country. All 50 states and the District of Columbia were represented among the individual rinks nominated.

The first of three rounds of voting to determine the Kraft Hockeyville™ USA 2017 winner will begin on April 11 - online, via text and via Twitter. Visit www.krafthockeyville.com for more details. The voting schedule is as follows:

• Round 1 (April 11-13) – 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) – Top two finalists selected; remaining two each receive $25,000 toward arena upgrades.
• Round 3 (April 24-25) – One community will emerge as “Kraft Hockeyville™ USA” 2017; runner-up will receive $75,000 toward arena upgrades.

The winning community will be announced on April 29 and will receive the grand prize of $150,000 and the opportunity to host an NHL® Pre-Season Game broadcast on NBCSN.

For contest rules, information on nominating a community and complete program details, visit https://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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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 31 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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