The American Hockey League announced on Wednesday that Hershey Bears defenseman Dylan McIlrath will serve as a captain at the 2024 AHL All-Star Classic. McIlrath was personally selected by AHL President and CEO Scott Howson due to his “outstanding leadership and service.” Henderson Silver Knights forward Adam Cracknell will be the other captain.
McIlrath, who has worn the C for the Bears for the last two seasons, helped Hershey win the Calder Cup in 2023.
The big rearguard has also played seven NHL games for the Washington Capitals since signing with the team in summer of 2021.
⭐ The people's captain ⭐@TheAHL has announced that Dylan McIlrath has been named a playing captain for the 2024 AHL All-Star Classic, to be held Feb. 4-5 in San Jose!
📰 https://t.co/W0uV3iKCMH pic.twitter.com/d4uR3JeVOK
— Hershey Bears (@TheHersheyBears) January 3, 2024
McIlrath will be joined at the All-Star Classic by his Bears head coach Todd Nelson. Nelson will be behind the bench for the Atlantic Division and will set a new league record as it will be his fourth appearance as an All-Star head coach.
The 2024 event will take place in San Jose on both February 4 and 5. The AHL All-Star Skills Competition will occur on the first day followed by the AHL Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Ceremony and the 2024 AHL All-Star Challenge the next day.
Here’s the full press release provided by the Bears:
HERSHEY’S DYLAN MCILRATH NAMED PLAYING CAPTAIN FOR 2024 AHL ALL-STAR CLASSIC
(Springfield, MA –January 2, 2024) – American Hockey League President and Chief Executive Officer Scott Howson announced today that Hershey Bears defenseman Dylan McIlrath has been selected as one of the playing captains for the 2024 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Tech CU, to be held February 4-5 in San Jose, California.
Captains for the American Hockey League All-Star teams are selected by the league president each year in recognition of their outstanding leadership and service.
McIlrath, 31, is in his third season with the Bears, and the Winnipeg, Manitoba native has served as the club’s captain for two years. He led Hershey to the 2023 Calder Cup title, earning the second AHL championship of his career. With the Chocolate and White, McIlrath has played in 160 games, scoring 30 points (7g, 23a) and logging 245 penalty minutes. This season, the veteran defender has scored seven points (3g, 4a) in 26 games for Hershey.
The 12th-year pro has played 586 regular-season games in the AHL with Hershey, Grand Rapids, Springfield, and Hartford/Connecticut, tallying 130 points (30g, 90a). McIlrath has also played 73 games in the NHL with the N.Y. Rangers, Florida, Detroit and Washington – including a recall by the Capitals earlier this season – and was a first-round pick by the Rangers in the 2010 NHL Draft. This is McIlrath’s first AHL All-Star Classic appearance, and he becomes the first Bear since Matt Moulson (2020) to be named a playing captain.
In addition to McIlrath, Henderson forward Adam Cracknell was also selected as a playing captain. Cracknell has played in 1,094 games over 18 seasons of professional hockey since debuting with the AHL’s Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights in 2006, and has totaled 209 goals and 252 assists for 461 points in 723 contests for 12 teams in the American Hockey League.
The 2024 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Tech CU will include the AHL All-Star Skills Competition on Sunday, February 4, followed by the AHL Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Ceremony on Monday, February 5 and the 2024 AHL All-Star Challenge that evening. Ticket packages start as low as $56, and include admission to both the Skills Competition and the Challenge. For more information, fans can visit sjbarracuda.com/allstar.
Headline photo: Ian Oland/RMNB
