• by Karl Greenberg , January 22, 2009

The National Hockey League says corporate sponsorship of the NHL All-Star Weekend on Jan. 24-25 in Montreal has topped $10 million. The league says there are 17 sponsors for this year's match-up, running an array of programs that put their names on the ice, at the venue, special in-game events and in Montreal broadcasts this week.

Mike DiLorenzo, NHL's vice president/communications, says sponsorship rolls are up 40% over last year.

Honda is title sponsor of the Honda/NHL SuperSkills event on Saturday night. The SuperSkills program pits players against each other for a series of skills-based events, such as fastest skater and hardest shot. Honda is also title sponsor of the interactive skills at the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree, which runs Thursday through Sunday.

In addition, Honda will sponsor the Most Valuable Player Award to MVP of the NHL All-Star Game.

Tire maker Bridgestone will get its name on the "Bridgestone/NHL Fastest Skater" during the Honda SuperSkills. Bud Light sponsors the "Bud Light/NHL Concert on Crescent," a two-day festival on Montreal's Crescent Street featuring ice sculptures and a live concert by Hedley on Saturday after Honda/NHL SuperSkills. The company also sponsors Bud Light Fan Tailgate Zone at the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree.

Tech company Cisco is sponsoring the "All-Access Pre-Game Show on the LiveWire channel at NHL Network Online" and the "Cisco/NHL Hardest Shot" portion of the SuperSkills event.

ConAgra gets title sponsorship of the Lay's/NHL All-Star Jamboree, and Home Depot gets kudos for a refurbishment project at the Martin Lapointe Arena--"On The Bench"--in which a minor hockey player and his/her coach attend the All-Star Weekend where they will attend the Coaches Roundtable and have breakfast with an NHL All-Star coach.

McDonald's is in year three of sponsoring the Line Up program, in which 12 minor league hockey players are chosen to join the starting line for the NHL All-Star Game. The fast feeder is also title sponsor of the Open Practice, and an Accuracy Shooting contest at the Honda/NHL SuperSkills event.

Pepsi's Gatorade brand sponsors the NHL Elimination Shootout Skill during the Honda/NHL SuperSkills. The All-Star Jamboree is home to the NHL Broadcast Center that will deliver live broadcasts from RDS, NHL Network and XM Satellite Radio, as well as other outlets. All 18 trophies from the Hockey Hall of Fame, including the Stanley Cup, will be on display throughout the Jamboree.

Other sponsors include Scotiabank, Upper Deck, Visa (which will sponsor an autograph booth and a cardholder-only NHL Boutique at the Lay's NHL All-Star Jamboree), Xbox and XM Satellite Radio.