Buccigross

LOS ANGELES – In the first of a series of programming announcements, the Los Angeles Kings announced Thursday that ESPN anchor and ESPN.com columnist John Buccigross will serve as the “official host” of LA Kings Hockey Fest ’09, a three-day interactive festival celebrating the Los Angeles Kings and the game of hockey that will take place beginning Friday evening, Aug. 28, and conclude on Sunday, Aug. 30. 

Q and A with John Buccigross

This inaugural event, which was originally announced in March, will feature Kings’ players, coaches, alumni, hockey dignitaries, special Kings’ merchandise, hockey memorabilia, special Q&A sessions with players and autograph sessions.  All activities and events during the LA Kings Hockey Fest ’09 will take place at LA Live in the heart of downtown Los Angeles.

Buccigross serves as a SportsCenter and ESPNEWS anchor. He has been with the network for nearly 13 years, and he was the primary host of NHL 2Night, ESPN2’s 30-minute program dedicated to hockey highlights and news from 1998-04.  Since 2001, he has also been a weekly ESPN.com columnist on the NHL, and he is the co-author of the hockey book Jonesy: Put Your Head Down and Skate – The Improbable Career of Keith Jones.

Said Buccigross: “I feel there is not a young team in the NHL who is better positioned to leap to elite status in the coming years than the Kings. I’m excited to feel the vibe of the awesome Kings fans in person again like I did during the 2002 All-Star Game.  This weekend will be the highlight of my summer -- talking hockey in beautiful LA.”

“John is a tremendous, nationally-recognized advocate of hockey and we are very pleased that he will serve as our event’s official host,” said Kings President, Business Operations Luc Robitaille. “We are looking forward to a great event in August, and we will have a number of additional Hockey Fest-related announcements soon that will surely appeal to and energize the Southern California hockey community.”  

Tickets for LA Kings Hockey Fest ’09 are currently on-sale and cost $60. Each ticket allows admittance into all LA Kings Hockey Fest events for the weekend. Click here to buy tickets now.