Jan. 5, 2010
Springfield, Mass. – Former Notre Dame hockey player Christian Hanson (`09), currently playing for the American Hockey League’s Toronto Marlies, has been selected to play for the PlanetUSA All-Stars in the 2010 AHL All-Classic that will be held Jan. 19-20 at the Cumberland County Coliseum in Portland, Me.
Hanson is one of 24 players – 13 forwards, eight defensemen and three goaltenders – born outside of Canada to be selected to the PlanetUSA squad. He will participate in the 2010 AHL All-Star Skills Competition on Mon,, Jan. 18 at 8:00 p.m. and then the AHL All-Star game on Tues., Jan. 20 at 6:00 p.m.. AHL fans determined the starting lineups via on-line balloting at theahl.com, while a committee of AHL coaches selected the remainder of the rosters. All 29 AHL teams are represented by at least one All-Star.
With the Marlies, Hanson is currently second in scoring with nine goals and 12 assists for 21 points in 22 games. Included in his totals are three power-play goals and one short-handed tally while he is +5 for the year. Toronto is currently sixth in the AHL’s Western Division’s North Conference with a 15-15-3-2 record, good for 35 points in the standings. Hanson has also seen time in the National Hockey League this year with the Toronto Maple Leafs where he had one assist in six games.
Signed by the Leafs following the end of his senior season at Notre Dame last March, the 6-4, 228-pound forward played in 140 games at Notre Dame from 2005-09, scoring 36 goals with 28 assists for 64 points. He was a member of the 2006-07 and 2008-09 CCHA regular season and tournament championship teams and played in three NCAA Tournaments.