The Sharks swam with a different school of fish on Sunday night at the DCU Center for the 2009 AHL All-Star Classic. Worcester All-Stars Derek Joslin and Ryan Vesce took part in the All-Star Skills Competition along with the best talent in the AHL. On this occasion though, Joslin and Vesce were opponents, with Joslin competing for Team Canada and Vesce a part of PlanetUSA.

 

The rivalry began in the night’s very first event, the Sher-Wood Puck Control Relay. After Team Canada and PlanetUSA split the first two heats, Joslin and Vesce squared off in a one-on-one matchup for the final heat. After exchanging hold of the lead countless times, Vesce edged out Joslin by a fraction of a second to put PlanetUSA in front at the outset.

 

Both players also took part in the EA Sports NHL 09 Breakaway Relay, with Vesce scoring a goal on Rochester goalie Mike Brodeur. Joslin put up a strong attempt, but was denied by Manitoba goalie Cory Schneider.

 

In the Charter Communications Accuracy Shooting contest, Vesce put up an impressive effort, destroying each of the four targets in only five attempts. Ultimately, Vesce came up just short, as Milwaukee’s Mike Santorelli took home the crown after hitting all four targets in just four attempts.

 

The highlight of the night, however, came when Joslin took home the trophy in the AHL’s Reebok Hardest Shot contest. The DCU Center erupted upon Joslin’s first and winning attempt, which registered at 98.6 miles per hour. Joslin blew away the competition, as his closest competitor finished at 95.4 miles per hour.

 

The 2009 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Charter Communications will feature the top young talent in the 2009 AHL All-Star Game. Tomorrow’s game will be televised to more than 100 million households, including on TSN nationally in Canada and on a series of regional sports networks in the United States, with telecasts produced by the New England Sports Network. The weekend's events will also be streamed live on-line at AHL Live.

Of the 455 players to take part in the AHL All-Star Classic since 1995, more than 94 percent have competed in the National Hockey League, including Patrice Bergeron, Brad Boyes, Dan Boyle, Brian Campbell, Zdeno Chara, Rick DiPietro, Jiri Hudler, Miikka Kiprusoff, Kari Lehtonen, Ryan Miller, Zach Parise, Martin St. Louis, Jason Spezza, Eric Staal and Tomas Vokoun.