Five Cedar Rapids RoughRiders- Forwards David Boehm, Doug Jones and Tyler Thompson, defenseman Matt Tomassoni and goaltender Brady Hjelle - have been selected to play in the 2008 United States Hockey League Prospects/All-Star Game Tuesday, January 29 in Green Bay.

“This is a tremendous honor for each of these guys and an honor they’re all very deserving of,” said RoughRiders coach and general manager Mark Carlson. “At the same time, the fact that we have had five players chosen also reflects what we’ve been able to accomplish as a team so far this season.”

No USHL team had more players selected to compete in the All-Star Game than the RoughRiders. This marks the third straight year that at least five Riders have been selected to play in the Prospects/All-Star game; at least four Riders have been chosen each of the last seven years. The Rider representatives will skate for the East Division All-Stars against the West Division stars. All-Stars were chosen following a vote of USHL coaches.

Boehm, 18, has scored seven goals and totaled 19 points in this, his second USHL season. The Naples, Florida native scored 12 goals and notched 29 points in 55 games last year. Boehm will play his college hockey at the University of Massachusetts.

Jones (8-19-27) leads the RoughRiders in assists and points, is tied for the team lead in power play goals (4) and is tied for eighth in the league in assists. A Rider assistant captain, Jones returned to Cedar Rapids for a second season after producing 11 goals and 29 points last year. The 20-year old Marietta, Georgia, product will begin his college career at Dartmouth next season.

Thompson, another second year player, leads the Riders in goals (12) and ranks second in points (26). The 18-year old is also tied for second on the team in plus/minus rating (+15) and is tied for seventh in the league in plus/minus. A native of Wayzata, Minnesota, Thompson has been among the hottest Riders in recent days, scoring four times and recording eight points in just his last five games.

Thompson has already topped his offensive totals for all of last year- he scored eight goals and registered 17 points in 37 games in his first USHL campaign.

Tomassoni, 18, is tied for sixth among USHL defensemen in points (16) and is tied for eighth in goals (4). The Carol Stream, Illinois, native joined the RoughRiders last season, collecting four points (two goals, two assists) in 40 games. Tomassoni will skate for NCAA power Miami (Ohio) next season.

At 17 years of age, Hjelle is Cedar Rapids’ youngest all-star and is also the lone first-year player among the five Riders selected. Youth notwithstanding, the International Falls (Minnesota) High School product has enjoyed a superb season so far. He has posted a record of 15-5-1 and ranks first among goaltenders in wins. Last Saturday Hjelle stopped 26 Green Bay Gambler shots on the way to his league-leading second shutout of the season. He ranks second in the league in goals against average (2.18), save percentage (.934) and minutes played (1265:06).

All-Star selection is just the latest in a string of honors for Hjelle. Last August he played for the United States Under-18 Select Team at the 2007 Under-18 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament in Slovakia and the Czech Republic. In October, the Minnesota-Duluth recruit helped the U.S. Junior Select Team to a bronze medal at the World Junior A Challenge in British Columbia. Hjelle has also already been named USHL Goaltender of the Week twice this season.

The Riders originally selected Hjelle in the ninth round of the October, 2006 USHL Futures Draft with the one hundredth overall pick.

This year’s Prospects/All-Star Game will be held at the Resch Center, home of the USHL’s Green Bay Gamblers. Last year the West Division All-Stars defeated the East 7-3 in Waterloo.

The RoughRiders (19-7-1, 39 points) are currently in second place in the East Division. The Riders will visit Green Bay for a pair of games this weekend. The Riders and Gamblers will meet Friday evening at 7:05 and again Sunday afternoon at 1:05.

The Riders are next in action at home on Friday, January 18 against the Chicago Steel. One night later the Riders will host the Sioux Falls Stampede. Both of those games face off at 7:05PM.

Tickets for all remaining RoughRider regular season home games- including the January 18 and January 19 games- are now on sale. Tickets are available for purchase in person at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena ticket office, over the phone at (319) 261-4625 or on line at www.roughridershockey.com. The ticket office is open from noon to 5:00PM on weekdays and from noon through the end of the second period on game days. Ticket prices range from $7 to $17 in advance and from $8 to $18 on game days.