NHL all-stars to face celebrities in 'Chel Gaming Challenge'

NEW YORK/TORONTO- What do stars from the worlds of hockey, baseball, WWE, gaming and digital media have in common? A love of EA SPORTS™ NHL® 20, which they will celebrate together at the 2020 Honda NHL® All-Star Weekend in St. Louis.

The National Hockey League today announced plans for its 2020 NHL All-Star egames activation, the Chel Gaming Challenge. Inspired by last year's groundbreaking House of Chel, the Chel Gaming Challenge will bring together NHL All-Stars, influencers and members of the hockey and gaming communities for an afternoon of fun and unique challenges, as well as EA SPORTS™ NHL® 20 game play.
The Chel Gaming Challenge will take place on Saturday, January 25, from 12 p.m. - 3 p.m. CTat St. Louis' Ballpark Village. Hosted by social media sensation Paul 'BizNasty' Bissonnette and Blues reporter Angella Sharpe, the Chel Gaming Challenge will drop the puck on Season Three of the NHL Gaming World Championship™ -- with registration set to open in early February.
NHL All-Star players Jack Eichel (Buffalo Sabres), Seth Jones (Columbus Blue Jackets), Matthew Tkachuk (Calgary Flames) and Hilary Knight (American All-Star, Elite Women's 3-on-3 presented by adidas™) will headline the event that also will include a roster of celebrity star power -- WWE Superstar Xavier Woods, Philadelphia Phillies pitcherCole Irvin, Gaming Hall of Famer Johnathan 'Fatal1ty' Wendel and the NHL Gaming World Championship's very own Andrew 'Nasher' Telfer.
"Last year's House of Chel showed that hockey gaming is more than a trend, it's a lifestyle" said Chris Golier, NHL Vice President of Business Development. "We want to continue that momentum and fuel the passion of our NHL gaming community with the Chel Gaming Challenge and showcase gaming on the biggest stage possible - our All-Star weekend. We're thrilled to have an incredible roster of NHL players, celebrities and gaming community members join us for this event."
Gaming fans across the globe can watch all the Chel Gaming Challenge action by tuning in to NHL's Twitch channel,
twitch.tv/nhl
and participating in the community chat. Fans can also follow the conversation using the #NHLGWC hashtag.
MEET THE PARTICIPANTS:
Jack Eichel
Buffalo Sabres, center
NHL player bio
here
.
"I've always loved the competition of playing sports video games. There's nothing better than winning battles against your friends and having bragging rights. I'm looking forward to bringing my gaming skills to the Chel Gaming Challenge in St Louis."

Irvin is a pitcher with the Philadelphia Phillies of the MLB and an avid EA SPORTS™NHL® 20 Gamer. His love of hockey and gaming played an integral role in the creation of Homeland Gaming in September 2019. Irvin is a self-proclaimed Detroit Red Wings** fan. He was drafted by the Phillies in the fifth round of the 2016 MLB draft, and made his major league debut in 2019. He is a graduate of the University of Oregon and native of Yorba Linda, Calif.

Columbus Blue Jackets, defenseman
NHL player bio
here
.
"I have two brothers, Justin is older and

(Edmonton Oilers) is younger, so we played a lot of video games when we were growing up. There were some pretty heated battles and a lot of trash talking and it didn't matter what we were playing - EA SPORTS™ NHL® 20 or NBA - whatever it was. It is still a lot of fun to play with them now. Even though we're a bit older, the competition with your brothers never goes away and you're always looking for bragging rights."

American All-Stars, forward (Elite Women's 3-on-3 presented by adidas™)
A three-time Olympic medalist, Knight, has represented Team USA at 10 World Championships, winning gold eight times. From Sun Valley, Idaho, Knight was just 17 years old when she first debuted for the U.S. National Women's team in 2006. A graduate of the University of Wisconsin, she won two NCAA championships (2009 and 2011) with the Badgers.

Nasher is one of the most well-known names in the online gaming community and one of the most popular EA SPORTS NHL gamers in the world. At a young age Telfer found a passion for hockey and filmmaking through YouTube and has since built an audience of more than 360,000 subscribers. From his popular twitch streams to his hockey content, Nasher brings a little bit of everything for every hockey fan. A native of Columbus, Ohio, Telfer served as the analyst for Columbus Blue Jackets esports and was a participant at the House of Chel during the 2019 Honda® NHL All-Star Weekend in San Jose. Telfer will also return for a third season as lead analyst for the NHL Gaming World Championship™.

Calgary Flames, left wing
NHL player bio
here
.
"Growing up in a sports household with my brother

(Ottawa Senators) and sister Taryn (Lacrosse), we loved to compete at everything we did. Gaming was one area we always enjoyed friendly competition - the newest versions of the EA SPORTS™ NHL® 20 series always being a favourite of ours."

A native of Independence, Missouri now living in Las Vegas, Fatal1ty is one of the world's first prominent and accomplished professional gamers. Wendel turned pro at the age of 18 and hasn't stopped taking on the gaming world ever since. He is a twelve-time FPS World Champion and esports Hall of Fame inductee. Fatal1ty also received the first Lifetime Achievement Award in esports for his contributions to competitive gaming. Fatal1ty holds World Championship esports titles in Doom 3, Alien vs. Predator 2, Unreal Tournament 2003, Quake III and Painkiller. He is also an avid Vegas Golden Knights fan attending the first game of the franchises' history with family and friends.

Woods is a WWE Superstar, where he performs on Friday Night SmackDown. The native of Columbus, Ga. has a master's degree in psychology and a bachelor's degree in philosophy from Furman University as well as PhD in educational psychology from Capella University. Woods, who games under the alias Austin Creed, has a dedicated YouTube channel, UpUpDownDown that showcases his lifelong love of video gaming. He lists the Tampa Bay Lightning as his favorite NHL team.
HOSTS:

A larger-than-life hockey personality and social guru, Bissonnette is best known by his social media handle, "BizNasty". Biz, who played for the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins and Phoenix Coyotes is currently the color analyst for Coyotes radio. He is also one of the co-hosts of the popular hockey podcast, Spittin' Chiclets where the panel discusses all things hockey, trends, pop culture and stories from their time on the ice. Biz has also been featured in EA SPORTS™ NHL® 20 promotional videos with past and present cover athletes, P.K. Subban and Auston Matthews. He was most recently featured in EA SPORTS™ NHL® 20 Hockey Ultimate Team's™ highly popular game mode 'Squad Battles'.

A lifelong hockey fan, Sharpe was the face of the St Louis Blues home game experience for 11 seasons and is a hardcore fan of the game. She is a multimedia journalist and reporter for StL Tv and the MLB's Cardinals, as well as a contributor to The Daily Mix, Prepzone game of the week, See Players Now and St Louis Ambush. With a very diverse sporting background, Angella has made herself one of the more recognized sports personalities in St Louis. In her spare time, Sharpe enjoys classic cars, country music and hot air balloons.
2020 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend Information
The Blues and the city of St. Louis will host the 2020 Honda NHL® All-Star Weekend, from Jan. 24 25, including the 2020 NHL All-Star Skills™ on Friday, Jan. 24 (8 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. CT, NBCSN, CBC, SN, TVAS) and the 2020 Honda NHL® All-Star Game on Saturday, Jan. 25 (8 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. CT, NBC, CBC, SN, TVAS). The 2020 Honda NHL® All-Star Weekend marks the third time NHL All-Star activities will take place in St. Louis. The Blues previously hosted the event in 1970 and 1988, both at St. Louis Arena.